Acceptability and Efficacy of Purified Vero-Cell Rabies Vaccine in Thai Children Exposed to Rabies

Abstract

A field trial of purified vero-cell tissue culture rabies vaccine (PVRV) was carried out, and 566 children under 15 years of age were studied. Of these 309 (54.6%) had been exposed to laboratory proven rabid animals. Rabies immune globulin (RIG) was given to 47 children with severe exposures. The vaccine was given by the conventional six-dose intramuscular route to 467 patients (82.5%). The remaining 99 victims (17.5%) were given vaccine by the multiple site intradermal route using a schedule of 0.1 ml at two sites on days 0, three and seven, and at one site on days 30 and 90. Adequate follow-up was achieved in 100% of the cases with proven exposure to rabid animals at three months, and in 94.1% at one year. The overall follow-up rate for the entire group was 91.1% at the end of one year, and all patients traced were alive and healthy. The incidence of minor adverse reactions to PVRV was equal to that of other tissue culture rabies vaccines. Regional lymphadenopathy and itching at the injection sites were significantly more common in the group receiving intradermal vaccine than in those who received vaccine by the intramuscular route.