Mumbai, May 12 ( Agency) Mumbai-based TechInvention Lifecare, India, has partnered with Eubiologics, South Korea, to launch Euvichol-Plus, the world’s first and only oral cholera vaccine(OCV), in a low-density polyethylene (LDPE) unidose pack in India. While cholera remains a major global public health threat, there has been an alarming resurgence of cases in susceptible countries globally amidst the stoppage in production of one of the only two cholera vaccines, said a press release on Thursday. India features at the top of the list of cholera-endemic countries, with an estimated incidence rate of 1.64 per 1,000 people. In India, estimates show that 400 million people are at risk of cholera, with an estimated 6,751,888 cases and 20,256 (3%) deaths annually. From 2011 to 2020, 565 outbreaks were reported in India which led to 45,759 cases and 263 deaths.
This represents only the tip of the iceberg, as cholera remains an under-recognised health issue and is grossly under-reported in India. An effective cholera vaccine has long been the vision for controlling cholera in India. “In this joint effort with Eubiologics to bring a preventive solution to the recurring endemic that is cholera, the launch of Euvichol-Plus is the empirical choice,” said TechInvention’s founder and CEO Syed Ahmed. “We wish to contribute to the national initiatives along the lines of WHO’s ‘Ending Cholera: A Global Roadmap by 2030’. TechInvention has two more vaccines in late-stage clinical development and regulatory approval in India, while there are more on the anvil,” he added.