What is the medical term for the rabies vaccine?

Medical Terms for Rabies Vaccine

The medical terms for rabies vaccines are Human Diploid Cell Vaccine (HDCV), Purified Chick Embryo Cell Vaccine (PCECV), and Rabies Vaccine Adsorbed (RVA). 1

Types of Rabies Vaccines

Human Diploid Cell Vaccine (HDCV)

• Prepared from the Pitman-Moore strain of rabies virus grown on MRC-5 human diploid cell culture, concentrated by ultrafiltration, and inactivated with beta-propiolactone 1
• Available in two forms:
  • Intramuscular (IM) administration: single-dose vial containing lyophilized vaccine reconstituted to 1.0 mL
  • Intradermal (ID) administration: single-dose syringe containing lyophilized vaccine reconstituted to 0.1 mL 1
• Commercially available as Imovax Rabies (for IM use) and Imovax Rabies I.D. 1

Purified Chick Embryo Cell Vaccine (PCECV)

• Prepared from the fixed rabies virus strain Flury LEP grown in primary cultures of chicken fibroblasts 1
• Inactivated with betapropiolactone and processed by zonal centrifugation in a sucrose density gradient 1
• Formulated for IM administration only as a single-dose vial containing lyophilized vaccine reconstituted to 1.0 mL 1
• Became available in the United States in 1997 1

Rabies Vaccine Adsorbed (RVA)

• Prepared from the Kissling strain of Challenge Virus Standard (CVS) rabies virus adapted to fetal rhesus lung diploid cell culture 1
• Inactivated with betapropiolactone and concentrated by adsorption to aluminum phosphate 1
• Liquid rather than lyophilized due to aluminum phosphate adsorption 1
• Approved for IM administration only as a 1.0-mL dose 1

Important Clinical Considerations

• All three types of rabies vaccines are considered equally safe and efficacious when used as indicated 1
• The potency of one dose is greater than or equal to 2.5 international units (IU) per 1.0 mL of rabies virus antigen, which meets the World Health Organization recommended standard 1
• Only HDCV (Imovax Rabies I.D.) has been evaluated and approved by the FDA for intradermal administration for preexposure vaccination 1
• Current postexposure prophylaxis recommendations include a 4-dose regimen of either HDCV or PCECV administered intramuscularly on days 0,3,7, and 14 1
• For persons previously unvaccinated, both rabies vaccine and rabies immune globulin (RIG) should be used concurrently for postexposure prophylaxis 1

Administration Considerations

• For adults, rabies vaccines should always be administered IM in the deltoid area 1
• For children, the anterolateral aspect of the thigh is also acceptable 1
• The gluteal area should never be used for vaccine injections as this results in lower neutralizing antibody titers 1
• An immunization series is usually initiated and completed with one vaccine product 1

These medical terms represent the modern cell culture-derived rabies vaccines that have replaced older nerve tissue-based vaccines due to their superior safety and efficacy profiles in preventing this otherwise fatal disease 1.