Current use and development of vaccines for Japanese encephalitis.

Beasley, David W C; Lewthwaite, Penny; Solomon, Tom

BACKGROUND Japanese encephalitis (JE) is a significant cause of human morbidity and mortality throughout Asia. Vaccines for JE have been available for many years and their use has been effective in reducing the incidence of JE disease in several countries but, as disease incidence has decreased, concerns regarding adverse events following immunisation have increased. OBJECTIVE To review existing JE vaccines and new candidates in advanced preclinical or clinical evaluation. METHODS The review primarily covers published and some unpublished literature from the past decade describing current use of approved JE vaccines in various parts of the world, and advanced development and clinical testing of alternative vaccine candidates. RESULTS/CONCLUSION There is a clear need for additional licensing of existing or new JE vaccines. Several promising candidates are currently in use or completing clinical trials.