LONDON (AP) — Europe's medicines regulator has recommended the approval of the first vaccine for dengue despite concerns about the vaccine's wide use and a lawsuit in the Philippines alleging it was linked to three deaths.

The European Medicines Agency said Friday it had adopted a "positive opinion" of French pharmaceutical company Sanofi's Dengvaxia. The vaccine is the world's first against dengue, which sickens about 96 million people annually.

Earlier this year, the World Health Organization said the vaccine needs to be dealt with "in a much safer way" and should be given mainly to people who had dengue before. The vaccine is licensed for use in about 20 countries.

Sanofi previously warned that people who had never been sickened by dengue were at risk of more serious disease after receiving the vaccine.