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First identified in 1983, hepatitis E virus (HEV) is widely distributed and has caused large outbreaks, especially in parts of Asia. Most outbreaks have resulted from drinking fecally contaminated water. Although HEV does not cause chronic disease, acute infection can last up to 4 weeks; mortality is 1% to 3% overall and can reach 25% in pregnant women infected during the third trimester. Now, investigators report on a phase II trial of a recombinant HEV vaccine.
In this partially industry-supported study, 2000 healthy, HEV-susceptible adults from the Nepalese army (99.6% men; mean age, 25) were randomized to receive three doses of recombinant HEV vaccine or placebo injections given at months 0, 1, and 6. From 14 days after administration of…