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medpundit |
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Wednesday, September 25, 2002The National Institutes of Health is developing a vaccine against West Nile virus and could have one ready in as little as three years, Anthony Fauci, director of the NIH's National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told senators. Here’s the problem, though, with a vaccine: The CDC reported as of Tuesday the number of West Nile cases topped the 2,000 mark, confirming 98 deaths in 2,072 cases. Illinois, the state reporting the most cases and deaths, upped its death toll to 29 in 518 cases after the CDC figures were released. Indiana reported its third probable West Nile death and Virginia reported its first -- all of which have yet to be counted by the CDC. Two thousand cases out of a population of 290 million is hardly a blip as far as disease goes. To be profitable, a vaccine has to have a market. With such a low rate of infection and an even lower rate of mortality, it will be hard to justify the cost of manufacturing it. Who would want to undergo the inconvenience of a vaccine when the odds of getting the disease are so slim? One need look no further than the now defunct Lyme Disease vaccine to answer that question. posted by Sydney on 9/25/2002 06:39:00 AM 0 comments 0 Comments: |
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