AIM The evidence needed for tropical countries to take informed decisions on influenza vaccination is scarce. This article reviews policy, availability, use and effectiveness of seasonal influenza vaccine in tropical and subtropical countries. METHOD Global health databases were searched in three thematic areas - policy, availability and protective benefits in the context of human seasonal in...

BACKGROUND The novel influenza A(H1N1pdm09) virus emerged in North America in early 2009 and rapidly spread worldwide. In this study we report the efficacy of the live attenuated monovalent H1N1pdm09 vaccine and 2009-10 seasonal influenza vaccine in a randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trial. METHODS We enrolled 703 children aged 7-11. Each child was randomly allocated in the ratio 3:...

conclusions the aiv loaded into cnp vaccines induce appropriate antibody titers, after a single immunization, while requiring a low dose of antigen. the cnp also represent an interesting new platform for antigen delivery and a promising adjuvant candidate for h9n2 inactivated influenza vaccine. results the cnp did not cause any mortality or side effects, when chickens were administered the prep...

OBJECTIVE: Current guidelines recommend that egg-allergic patients receive an influenza vaccine skin test before the influenza vaccine. This study evaluated the safety of bypassing the skin test and administering graded doses of influenza vaccine to egg-allergic children. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective chart-review study of eggallergic patients aged 6 months to 18 years who received the ...

OBJECTIVE: Current guidelines recommend that egg-allergic patients receive an influenza vaccine skin test before the influenza vaccine. This study evaluated the safety of bypassing the skin test and administering graded doses of influenza vaccine to egg-allergic children. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective chart-review study of eggallergic patients aged 6 months to 18 years who received the ...

BACKGROUND There is limited data on the epidemiology of influenza and few published estimates of influenza vaccine effectiveness (VE) from Africa. In April 2009, a new influenza virus strain infecting humans was identified and rapidly spread globally. We compared the characteristics of patients ill with influenza A(H1N1)pdm09 virus to those ill with seasonal influenza and estimated influenza va...

Seasonal influenza vaccines are unique because they are regularly reformulated and prepared in anticipation of the upcoming influenza season. Selection of vaccine strains occurs in advance of the influenza season, allowing time for vaccine production. Influenza viruses constantly evolve, and mismatches between vaccine strains and circulating strains have occurred in the past, impacting on vacci...

In the fall of 2004, the United States faced a national shortage of influenza vaccine after a major vaccine manufacturer was unable to produce millions of doses of the vaccine due to potential contamination. Many public and private sector entities had far fewer doses of influenza vaccine to allocate than they had anticipated. In response, federal, state, and local public health officials, priva...

T he United States has recently experienced influenza vaccine shortages because of manufacturing problems and distribution delays. During the 2004-2005 season, only 61 of the expected 100 million influenza vaccine doses were available to the US market after 1 of the 2 licensed companies withdrew their product. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommended that available vacci...

The seasonal influenza vaccine is currently the most effective preventive modality against influenza infection. Nasopharyngeal samples of vaccinated and non-vaccinated patients presenting with Influenza-like-illness (ILI) were collected from over 20 outpatient clinics located in different geographic parts of Israel and were tested for the presence of influenza viruses (influenza A and influenza...