KYASANUR FOREST DISEASE (KFD) VACCINE

NEWS: The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) is developing an improved indigenous vaccine against Kyasanur Forest Disease (KFD)

ABOUT

• KFD Vaccine: Fully indigenous, two-dose, adjuvanted inactivated vaccine
• Under: Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
• Developed: Indian Immunologicals Limited (IIL), ICMR–National Institute of Virology (NIV).
• Schedule: Two doses given 28 days apart.

Kyasanur Forest Disease (KFD)

• Tick-borne viral haemorrhagic fever
• Causes: The KFD flavivirus virus (single-stranded RNA virus).
• Transmitted by: Tick bites of Haemaphysalis spinigera or exposure to an infected animal.

Symptoms

• Fever, chills, headache.
• Severe muscle pain.
• Vomiting and gastrointestinal symptoms.
• Treatment: No cure for KFD.
• Prevention through vaccination and tick control is key.

Region found in:

• Endemic to the Western Ghats region of India.
• Mainly Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Goa and Maharashtra.