Latest news with #LaRéunion
Daily Mail
13-06-2025
- Health
- Daily Mail
UK vaccine chiefs suspend newly approved jab for over 65s - reports of two deaths and 21 severe reactions
UK vaccine chiefs have suspended a newly approved jab from being given to people aged over 65, after reports of two deaths and 21 severe reactions. The vaccine protects against the potentially fatal Chikungunya virus, which is typically found in the subtropical regions of the Americas, Africa, Southeast Asia, India, the Pacific Region and increasingly in Europe. Although the virus isn't found in the UK, Britons can become infected while overseas and fall ill when they return home. While the jab, called IXCHIQ, is approved in the UK it has yet to be rolled out, so there are no immediate safety concerns, British regulators said. The suspension follows global reports of 23 serious adverse effects in older people, including two deaths. It followed two fatalities in the French island La Réunion—in the Indian Ocean—where a vaccination campaign is underway following a recent Chikungunya outbreak. One death involved an 84-year-old man who developed encephalitis—a swelling of the brain—after having an adverse reaction to the vaccine. The other was a 77-year-old man living with Parkinson's disease who reportedly began finding swallowing increasingly difficult after the jab. This is believed to have triggered aspiration pneumonia, a serious infection caused by food, saliva and/or vomit entering the lungs rather than the stomach. The European Medicines Agency, who are reviewing the chikungunya vaccine following the reports, has not yet revealed the time between the dead men receiving the jabs and their deaths. There are no changes in the recommendations for vaccination with IXCHIQ for people aged between 18 and 64. The vaccine is currently not approved for use in individuals with a weakened immune system as a result of disease or medical therapy. The decision by the Commission on Human Medicines (CHM) is a precautionary measure until a further safety review has been concluded. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is working with the vaccine manufacturer Valneva. The majority of people infected with Chikungunya develop a sudden fever and severe pain in multiple joints. Other symptoms may include headache, muscle pain, joint swelling, or rash. The virus is spread to humans by bites from infected mosquitoes, but cannot be passed from person-to-person. Symptoms typically resolve within 7 to 10 days, and most patients make a full recovery. However, in some cases the joint pain and arthritis may persist for several months or even years. Occasional cases of eye, neurological and heart complications have been reported, as well as gastrointestinal complaints. A small number of people may develop a severe version of the disease, which can lead to multiple organ failure and death. Severe symptoms and deaths are rare and usually occur in young babies or elderly people with coexisting health problems. There is no specific antiviral treatment for Chikungunya but medications (such as paracetamol) for fever and pain can be used to alleviate these symptoms. There are currently two vaccinations which protect against the virus; IXCHIQ for those aged between 18 and 64 and Vimkunya for those 12 years and older. A recent outbreak in La Réunion has seen over 47,500 cases of the virus, with 12 fatalities. In 2024 there were 112 Chikungunya cases reported in England, Wales and Northern Ireland from travellers arriving to or returning to Britain—this was nearly one-and-a-half times the level recorded in the previous year.
Daily Mail
09-06-2025
- Health
- Daily Mail
UK vaccine chiefs pause newly approved jab for over 65s
UK vaccine chiefs have suspended a newly approved jab being given to people aged over 65 after reports of two deaths and 21 severe reactions. The vaccine protects against the potentially fatal Chikungunya virus, which is typically found in the subtropical regions of the Americas, Africa, Southeast Asia , India , the Pacific Region and increasingly in Europe. The two fatalities occurred in the French overseas department of La Réunion, in the Indian Ocean, where a vaccination campaign is underway following a recent chikungunya outbreak. The two deaths were an 84-year-old man who developed encephalitis—a swelling of the brain—after having an adverse reaction to the vaccine. The other was a 77-year-old man living with Parkinson's disease. He reportedly began finding swallowing increasingly difficult, which is believed to have caused aspiration pneumonia, a serious infection caused by food, saliva and/or vomit entering the lungs rather than the stomach. The European Medicines Agency, who are reviewing the chikungunya vaccine following the reports, has not yet revealed the time between the dead men receiving the jabs and their deaths. There are no changes in the recommendations for vaccination with IXCHIQ for people aged between 18 and 64. The vaccine is currently not approved for use in individuals with immunodeficiency or immunosuppression as a result of disease or medical therapy. The decision by the Commission on Human Medicines (CHM) is a precautionary measure until a further safety review has been concluded. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is working with the vaccine manufacturer Valneva. The majority of people infected with Chikungunya develop a sudden fever and severe pain in multiple joints (arthralgia). Occasional cases of eye, neurological and heart complications have been reported, as well as gastrointestinal complaints. A small number of people may develop severe acute disease, which can lead to multiple organ failure and death. Severe symptoms and deaths are rare and usually occur in young babies or elderly people with coexisting health problems. There is no specific antiviral treatment for it but antipyretic and analgesic medications (such as paracetamol) for fever and pain can be used to alleviate these symptoms. There are currently two vaccinations which protect against the virus; IXCHIQ for those aged between 18 and 64 and Vimkunya for those 12 years and older. A recent outbreak in La Reunion, an overseas department and region of France, saw over 47,500 people contract the virus, with 12 fatalities. In 2024 there were 112 Chikungunya cases reported in England, Wales and Northern Ireland from travellers arriving to or returning to Britain—this was nearly one-and-a-half times the level recorded in the previous year.
Forbes
19-05-2025
- Science
- Forbes
Indian Ocean Tuna Commission Passes New Shark Rules — With One Big Exception
At the recent 29th session of the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission held in La Réunion, countries finally adopted a suite of shark conservation measures after years of lobbying by environmental groups. These new rules, which aim to cut down on shark bycatch and regulate harmful fishing practices, represent a significant step forward. But for some species… it may not be enough. The IOTC regulates fisheries for tuna and other highly migratory species like swordfish across the Indian Ocean. Tuna and sharks often swim in the same waters, so fishing fleets frequently haul in sharks as bycatch (animals fishers do not want, cannot sell, or are not allowed to keep). In some cases, like with blue sharks (Prionace glauca), they are caught in such high numbers that conservationists argue they should be managed as target species instead; blue sharks make up over 60% of swordfish fishery catches in the region. Many of these sharks species are also intentionally caught for their fins, which are used in delicacies and traditional medicine in parts of Asia. The newly passed resolution now requires that all sharks be landed with their fins still naturally attached, closing a major loophole that allowed for shark finning at sea. Cutting off a shark's fins and discarding the rest of the body not only kills the shark, but makes it nearly impossible to track which species are being caught. The new rule allows some flexibility, such as tagging fins and carcasses and storing them separately, but starting in 2028, any party wanting to use an alternative method will need to justify it with evidence. This change, IOTC argues, is a win for both enforcement and science. Also adopted were stricter retention bans that prevent fishers from keeping certain shark species if they are caught. Oceanic whitetips (Carcharhinus longimanus) and thresher sharks (Alopias spp.) were already protected under such bans. Whale sharks (Rhincodon typus) will be added to that list starting in 2026, assuming the IOTC's scientific committee gives it the green light. Meanwhile, blue sharks will soon be managed under a formal system that includes catch limits and quotas, a first for the species in the Indian Ocean. With updated data showing they're not currently overfished, this preemptive approach aims to keep it that way. But the shortfin mako (Isurus oxyrinchus), already overfished and in danger of collapse, didn't receive the full protection that many hoped for. While there is now a partial retention ban, it applies only under specific conditions: if a mako is still alive when brought aboard, it must be released, but if it's dead (and if an observer or electronic monitoring system is on board) the vessel is allowed to keep it. Given that many makos are caught on wire traces, which virtually guarantee the shark won't survive the fight to the surface, critics say this rule is too weak to make a real difference. These wire traces are often made of steel and are used in longline fishing to prevent toothier fish (like sharks) from biting through the line. They also increase shark catchability (and at times, mortality). The IOTC has now restricted their use, but only in the area north of 20 degrees south latitude. That leaves much of the southern Indian Ocean, including key fishing zones for Spain and other EU countries, unaffected. Since EU fleets tend to fish in those southern waters and use electronic monitoring, they're allowed to keep dead makos while others are not. That discrepancy has drawn sharp criticism from conservation groups, who argue it undermines the intent of the ban and could keep mortality levels far too high for mako populations to recover. Scientific advice suggests mako mortality needs to drop by 60% to give the species a fighting chance. The current resolution likely won't achieve that, and some observers fear it could be too late already. Still, the IOTC considers the adoption of even a partial ban a success, though one unevenly shared. EU officials defended their position by pointing out that many developing coastal nations lack the resources to monitor their fleets as rigorously, leading to gaps in reporting. Without stronger commitments and better data, the path to true recovery for sharks like the shortfin mako remains uncertain.
