CDC Accepts Recommendations for Mosquito-Transmitted Virus Vaccine

On May 13, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has accepted its advisory panel’s recommendations on vaccines for chikungunya, a virus transmitted by mosquitoes, Reuters reported.

Chikungunya outbreaks have occurred in Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe, and islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. The CDC is concerned that  the virus can spread to unaffected areas by infected travelers. Locally acquired chikungunya cases have not been reported from U.S. states or territories since 2019, but last year the CDC confirmed nearly 200 travel-associated cases in the U.S. mainland.

The most common symptoms of chikungunya are fever and joint pain. Other symptoms can include headache, muscle pain, joint swelling, or rash. While no medicines have been developed to treat chikungunya, the best way to prevent chikungunya is to not get bitten by a mosquito. Vaccination currently is recommended for some travelers.

As climate changes affects the migration of mosquitoes, West Nile virus also has been found in mosquitoes collected in Great Britain for the first time, the United Kingdom Health Security Agency said on May 21. West Nile virus is endemic in regions across the globe, including Europe, Africa, the Middle East, West and Central Asia, North America, South America, and Australia. The geographic range of West Nile Virus has expanded in recent years to more northerly and western regions of mainland Europe.

Meanwhile, on May 22, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisers unanimously recommended that COVID-19 vaccines for the 2025-26 period should target newer strains of the JN.1 variant, Reuters reported. This followed the news last week that the FDA plans to restrict annual COVID-19 boosters for healthy Americans under age 65, essentially restricting them to older adults and those at risk of developing severe illness, as CMM previously reported.

The CDC is also expected to decide on recommendations for vaccines against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and meningococcal disease, a bacterial infection, Reuters reported. However, details regarding the approval status of the RSV and meningococcal vaccine recommendations are not available on the CDC’s website.