WHO authorizes mpox vaccine, which should ease global access

The World Health Organization announced Friday it has authorized the use of an mpox vaccine, calling it an “important step” in the fight against the disease.  

The move could help national regulatory authorities fast-track their own approvals of the Bavarian Nordic vaccine, making it easier for countries struggling to contain outbreaks to access the injections.  

The WHO declared mpox a global health emergency in August amid a surge in cases in Central and Eastern Africa and the rapid spread of a more severe subtype of the virus.  

The Democratic Republic of Congo is at the heart of Africa’s mpox outbreak with more than 5,000 confirmed cases of the disease and more than 700 deaths, according to UNICEF.

“We now need urgent scale up in procurement, donations and rollout to ensure equitable access to vaccines where they are needed most, alongside other public health tools, to prevent infections, stop transmission and save lives,” said WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. 

Bavarian Nordic said its vaccine has been cleared for the immunization against smallpox, mpox and related orthopoxvirus in adults 18 and older.  

But the WHO added in a statement that the shot could be given “off-label” to babies, children and adolescents, as well as pregnant and immunocompromised people, where the use of the vaccine outweighs its risks.  

Children are particularly vulnerable to mpox because their immune systems are still developing and have a higher risk of developing severe mpox, according to the WHO.  

Symptoms of the disease in kids can look like many other common childhood illnesses like chickenpox or other viral infections.  

Typically, the vaccine is administered to adults in two-dose injections given four weeks apart, but the WHO recommends single-dose use in outbreak situations where the supply of the vaccine is limited.  

Bavarian Nordic’s mpox vaccine has been used since 2022, when the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicines Agency issued emergency use authorization for the drug to combat a different mpox strain.  

Data show that a single dose of the MVA-BN vaccine given to a person before exposure is roughly 76 percent effective in preventing mpox infection, while a two-dose regimen is 82 percent effective, according to the WHO.