Who is responsible for vaccine side effects?

ManilaStandard reports: Some of those responsible for the premature use of an experimental Dengue vaccine might finally go to trial

The best analysis of this controversy is at SciAmerica, but Wikipedia also has a shorter summary. I have a longer discussion of this on my medical blog.

But the controversy comes down to: IF a vaccine will save many lives, but a few who get it will die, do you give the vaccine?

This has been argued for over a century, when prominent people like GBShaw were anti smallpox vaccine. But smallpox vaccine kills less than 1 percent, but the disease kills at least 30 percent. 

A newer vaccine safety profile shows even fewer problems, but enough that it is used only for the military or those who might be in contact with smallpox: or more recently, for those at risk for being infected with monkeypox.

 The UN wiped out smallpox by vaccinating everyone, even in dangerous areas. So now the only smallpox virus around is in a few biological laboratories... The main worry is that some crazy will release it as bioterrorism. 

But fast forward to today.

Dengue fever is a problem and a growing one.

The main problem: The first episode is minor but a repeat episode might give you a complicated case of Dengue (been there, done that). And if you never had dengue, the vaccine itself will increase your chance of having a complicated case.

A lot of parents here became anti all vaccines after the deaths of some children after the Dengue vaccine (and some of these deaths, but not all, were from complications of teh vaccine). The end result was lack of trust in all vaccines, so childred ended up dying of measles. etc.

Sigh.

But dengue vaccine is not the only one where the harm from the vaccine might be worse than the disease: 

Dr. C discusses the FDA wanting everyone even kids to get the new covid shot (and notes in the UK it is only recommended for elders and high risk folks).

And wonders why.

Sigh.