Category: Vaccine

The Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) will hold a free, vaccination clinic for school-aged children (pre-K through high school) from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. on Friday, March 29, at the Dennis Avenue Health Center in Silver Spring.

Maryland law requires students to be vaccinated against a variety of diseases. Montgomery County is urging parents to review their childrens immunization record. The list of vaccine requirements may be found on the Maryland Health Departments website. Free vaccines are available to Montgomery County school-aged children who are missing any required immunizations.

It is important to keep children healthy, and ensuring they are up to date on required immunizations should be a top priority, said County Executive Marc Elrich. This is a great opportunity for parents to take advantage of the free vaccinations offered at this upcoming clinic.

No appointment is needed. A parent must be present and bring an ID and immunization record if available.

The vaccines available include:

The Dennis Avenue Health Center is located at 2000 Dennis Ave., in Silver Spring. For questions relating to this upcoming clinic, contact the DHHS Immunization Program at 240-777-1050.

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Vaccination Clinic Set for Friday in Silver Spring - Montgomery Community Media

A Lake County resident who spent approximately 50 hours in a Lake Zurich restaurant between March 13 and 19 has a case of measles adding to the spread of the disease in the Chicago area, according to a news release from the Lake County Health Department.

The Lake County Health Department confirmed the case of measles Saturday in Lake County in a news release letting the public know the individuals whereabouts and what they can do to prevent becoming ill.

People already vaccinated against measles are likely protected and need to take no further action, according to the release. The health department is making an effort to identify and contact individuals who may have been exposed.

The infected individual was in the emergency room at Advocate Condell Medical Center in Libertyville between 5:56 p.m. Wednesday and 4:01 a.m. Thursday, according to the release. They were also at Consume Restaurant at various times March 13 through 16 and March 19.

Times the infected individual was at the restaurant were between 1:58 p.m. and 11:10 p.m. March 13, between 12:15 p.m. and 11:12 p.m. March 14, between 11:12 a.m. and 11:59 p.m. March 15, between 10:30 a.m. and 11:27 p.m. March 16 and between 1:42 p..m. and 5:34 p.m. March 19, according to the release.

Anyone who was at the restaurant or the hospital during the times the infected individual was present should contact the health departments communicable disease team (847-377-8130). Symptoms should be monitored for 21 days.

Vaccination is the best tool we have to prevent the spread of measles, Dr. Sana Ahmed, the Lake County Health Departments Medical Epidemiologist, said in the release. This is a good reminder to make sure that you are up to date on all your vaccines.

In a person is not certain they were vaccinated, Sana said in the release they should check with their health care provider to learn if they need to receive the vaccine. Parents should check with the health care provider of any child 1 or older to become current with the vaccine.

A first dose of the vaccine is recommended when a child turns 1 and another when they are between 4 and 6, according to the release. It is never too late to become vaccinated.

Lake County health officials said in the release the case is connected to the outbreak in Chicago. There are 17 confirmed cases concentrated largely in the largest city-run migrant shelter. Of the confirmed cases, 11 are children under the age of 5.

There have been 60 reported measles cases in Illinois since 2010, according to the release. There were five cases reported in Chicago in 2023, according to the Chicago Department of Public Health website. They were the first there since 2019. The City of Chicago has vaccinated 4,000 migrants, mostly from Venezuela, since the outbreak.

Though cases of measles are rare due to the high vaccination rate locally, they have increased internationally and in some parts of the United States more recently, according to the release.

Lake County Health Department officials said in the release measles is a respiratory infection that causes a rash and high fever. It can lead to pneumonia and other complications. It spreads easily through the air when an infected person breathes talks, coughs, or sneezes. It can stay in the air or on surfaces for many hours.

Chicago Tribune reporter Alyssa Guffey contributed to this story.

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Lake County resident confirmed to have a case of the measles, officials say - Chicago Tribune

Cancer Research UK and the CRIS [Cancer Research Innovation in Science] Cancer Foundation have awarded a 1.7m ($2.1m) grant to researchers at the University of Oxford, the Francis Crick Institute and University College London to develop the lung cancer vaccine LungVax.

The funds will support the creation of the worlds first vaccine to prevent lung cancer in high-risk individuals.

The potential vaccine will use technology similar to the successful Oxford-AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine.

Similar to standard vaccines, LungVax will use neoantigens harmless proteins from the surface of cancer cells to train the immune system to recognise and fight abnormal lung cells.

Neoantigens result from mutations in the cells DNA that signal the immune system to target and destroy the cells, potentially stopping lung cancer before it starts.

The research team will conduct laboratory tests to determine if the vaccine can effectively trigger an immune response. On obtaining positive test results, it will be progressed to clinical trials.

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Up to 2026, the team will receive a grant supporting lab research and the initial production of 3,000 vaccine doses at the Oxford clinical biomanufacturing facility.

The vaccine could be expanded to larger trials targeting high-risk groups such as current or former smokers aged between 55 and 74 years.

These demographics are eligible for targeted lung health checks in some UK regions.

Researchers estimate that the vaccine could address approximately 90% of all lung cancers.

Cancer Research UK chief executive Michelle Mitchell stated: Projects like LungVax are a really important step forward into an exciting future, where cancer is much more preventable.

Were in a golden age of research and this is one of many projects which we hope will transform lung cancer survival.

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Cancer Research UK and CRIS fund lung cancer vaccine research - Pharmaceutical Technology

The new LungVax vaccine will use technology similar to the Oxford/AstraZeneca COVID vaccine.

Researchers in the UK have been granted1.7 million (1.98 million) to develop a lung cancer vaccine.

The "LungVax" they aim to develop would be the world's first vaccine against lung cancer in people at risk of developing it.

The technology for the new vaccine will be similar to that used for the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine against COVID-19.

The funding will come fromCancer Research UK and the CRIS Cancer Foundation.

"Cancer is a disease of our own bodies and its hard for the immune system to distinguish between whats normal and whats cancer," Professor Tim Elliott, research lead for the LungVax project, said in a statement.

"Getting the immune system to recognise and attack cancer is one of the biggest challenges in cancer research today.

"If we can replicate the kind of success seen in trials during the pandemic, we could save the lives of tens of thousands of people every year in the UK alone," he added.

The team from the University of Oxford, the Francis Crick Institute, and University College London will receive funding over the next two years to carry out laboratory work and manufacture 3,000 doses.

If the lab tests show that the vaccine triggers an immune response, it will move to a clinical trial.

Cancer vaccines work by training the immune system to recognise cancer cells as abnormal.

Michelle Mitchell, chief executive of Cancer Research UK, said the project was a "really important step forward into an exciting future, where cancer is much more preventable".

"Were in a golden age of research and this is one of many projects which we hope will transform lung cancer survival," she added.

Lung cancer accounted for 4.5 per cent of all deaths in the EU and one-fifth of cancer-related deaths in 2020, according to Eurostat. It is the leading cause of cancer death in the EU.

The largest risk factor for lung cancer is cigarette smoking, which is responsible for more than seven out of 10 cases, according to the UK's National Health Service (NHS).

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Scientists in the UK developing the world's first lung cancer vaccine - Euronews

Clinical trials of Spanish tuberculosis (TB) vaccine MTBVAC have begun in India.

Vaccine maker Bharat Biotech is conducting the trials in partnership with Spanish biopharmaceutical company Biofabri that is responsible for clinical and industrial development of the vaccine developed in the laboratory of the University of Zaragoza with Dr. Brigitte Gicquel of the Pasteur Institute, Paris.

MTBVAC is the only vaccine against tuberculosis in clinical trials based on a genetically modified form of the pathogen isolated from humans Mycobacterium tuberculosis which, unlike the BCG vaccine, contains all the antigens present in strains that infect humans. While the trials to evaluate the safety and immunogenicity of MTBVAC in India have begun, a pivotal safety, immunogenicity and efficacy trial is planned in 2025, Bharat Biotech said in an announcement coinciding with World Tuberculosis Day on March 24.

Bharat Biotech will be conducting Phase 3 trial as Biofabri has completed the Phase 1 and 2 trials in other countries, a spokesperson replied to a query.

Our quest for a more effective vaccine against tuberculosis received a big boost today, with clinical trials in India. The MTBVAC vaccine has passed several milestones before entering clinical trials in India, executive chairman Krishna Ella said in a release.

Studying the safety, immunogenicity and efficacy of the vaccine in the most populated country and the one with the highest number of cases of the infectious disease is key to continue advancing this vaccine. MTBVAC has been being developed to be a more effective and potentially longer-lasting vaccine than BCG for newborns and for prevention of TB in adults and adolescents, for whom there is currently no effective vaccine, the Hyderabad-based company said.

It is a giant step to test in adults and adolescents in the country where 28% of the worlds TB cases accumulate, Biofabri CEO Esteban Rodriguez said. BCG is an attenuated variant of the bovine TB pathogen and more than a hundred years old with a limited effect on pulmonary tuberculosis that is responsible for transmission of the disease, he said.

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Clinical trials of Spanish tuberculosis vaccine MTBVAC begin in India - The Hindu

(Reuters) - BioNTech (NASDAQ:) said on Monday the U.S. National Institutes of Health has sent a notice to the German company regarding default on the payment of royalties and other amounts related to its COVID-19 vaccine.

BioNTech, which partnered with U.S. pharma giant Pfizer (NYSE:) for its COVID-19 vaccine, however, said it disagreed with the positions being taken by the NIH and intends to defend against all allegations of breach.

Spokespersons for the U.S. NIH did not immediately respond to Reuters' request for a comment.

BioNTech has taken the license for certain patents from the NIH, among other entities, due to which the U.S. government is owed certain royalty payments, according to the German company's annual report.

The German government had granted BioNTech 375 million euros ($445 million) for its COVID19 vaccine development program in September 2020.

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BioNTech gets US agency notice over default on COVID vaccine royalties By Reuters - Investing.com

Pediatric infectious disease doctor Paul Offit isnt vaccinated against measles. Like many of his peers, he caught the virus as a child in the 1950s, roughly a decade before a vaccine was created. At that time the highly contagious and potentially fatal disease sickened an estimated three million to four million Americans each year. Offit has been immune ever since and likely will be for life.

For those who havent undergone the full-body rash, swollen eyeballs and plethora of other unpleasant symptoms of measles in order to earn a lifelong defense against the disease, the vaccine is key. After widespread adoption of the two-shot vaccine regimen in the 1990s, disease transmission decreased so much that the U.S. declared measles eliminated from the country in 2000.

But this year the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reported 58 measles cases in outbreaks across 17 statesa case number equal to the total measles infections reported in all of 2023. As of last week, the states with documented measles cases in 2024 are Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Washington. The CDC has not reported any deaths, and several outbreaks are still considered active. An outbreak in Chicago that has involved at least 15 casesseveral of which were among people staying in a migrant shelter in the neighborhood of Pilsenhas triggered a strong joint response from the citys department of public health, the CDC and other local health centers to isolate infected individuals and vaccinate people who are susceptible to the disease.

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Florida also reported measles infections among several students at an elementary school near Miami last month. The outbreak garnered significant media attention after the states surgeon general Joseph Ladapo said in a public statement that unvaccinated children could continue to attend school despite potential for exposure. The Florida Department of Health said that no measles infections have been reported from the school since February 16, although it has not publicized the exact number of cases in the outbreak. The department did not respond to Scientific Americans request for comment.

Some measles transmission each year is expected despite the nations herd immunity, which is achieved when the majority of a populationin this case, 95 percentis immune to a disease. But the high number of infections so early in 2024 has some public health experts concerned about what this bodes for the rest of the year and how vaccine misinformation and disinformationexacerbated by COVIDmay be affecting vaccination rates. During the pandemic there were obviously a number of people who didnt like that they were being mandated to receive COVID vaccines, and now that mindsets spilled over into the [measles] vaccine, says Offit, who is director of the Vaccine Education Center at the Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia. But people can forget that measles is exponentially more contagious than COVID..., and its a nightmare.

Measles is an airborne respiratory disease that spreads when a sick person breathes, coughs, sneezes and touches surfaces. Symptoms usually begin 10 to 14 days after an initial exposure. They include a red, splotchy rash that originates on the face and neck, fever, puffy and watery eyes and common-cold-like features. Anyone can catch measles, but childrenparticularly those two years old or younger with a still-developing immune systemare the most susceptible. There is no specific treatment for measles, and in some cases the disease can cause ear infections, diarrhea, pneumonia and encephalitis (swelling of the brain that can lead to a permanent disability); occasionally it can result in death.

In the early 1900s the U.S. was reporting an average of 6,000 measles-related deaths each year. By mid-century, developments in medical treatments helped reduce complications and deaths. And peoples natural antibodies, which can be passed from mothers to their babies and provide short-term protection, made infant infections less common. Still, nearly everyone contracted measles by the time they turned 15. Approximately 48,000 people were hospitalized annually, and 400 to 500 died.

As someone who had a natural measles infection, I can tell you that its seriously no fun, Offit says. Now they ask old people like me to come down to the emergency room to look at people with fever and a rash because Ive seen so much of it, and I can tell them within 30 seconds whether or not its measles.

Biochemist John Enders and physician Thomas Peebles created the first measles vaccine, approved in 1963, after successfully extracting and isolating the virus from an infected 13-year-old boy. Microbiologist Maurice Hilleman refined the shot in 1968, and it was distributed across the U.S. This version of the vaccine, called MMR, also protects people against two other infectious diseases, mumps and rubella, and is the shot most commonly used today.

The MMR shot is 93 percent effective at preventing measles, and its use drastically reduced infections. But a notable number of outbreaks were still occurring as of 1989, so at that time, U.S. public health organizations began recommending that people receive one dose of the vaccine around their first birthday and a second dose when they are four to six years old, which provides 97 percent effective protection for a lifetime.

In the early 2000s, however, MMR vaccination rates in the U.S. dipped after British physician Andrew Wakefield published a scientific study claiming that the vaccine could cause autism. His research was debunked after further review but not before it incited fear and skepticism across the U.S. and in other countries. Its really hard to unring a bell, Offit says. Once people are scared of something, its tricky to ease them, and so a bunch of measles started showing up again around 2004 and 2005.

MMR vaccination rates have been steadily rising since then, and today most public and private schools require children be vaccinated before enrolling. But measles cases are once again popping up around the country, and Offit worries that a surge in antivaccine sentiment that began during the COVID pandemic may be partially responsible.

The most common reasons parents might opt their child out of MMR and other vaccine requirements are for religious or medical accommodations, although some states allow parents to cite personal beliefs as their basis for exemption. According to a CDC report published last November, vaccine exemption rates among kindergartners rose nationally to 3 percent during the 20222023 school yeara 0.4 percent jump from the previous yearand in 10 states, more than 5 percent of them had exemptions. Coverage can vary greatly across counties and municipalities, too, says Jerne Shapiro, an instructional assistant professor of epidemiology at University of Florida, and within them, every private institution can also have its own specific criteria for vaccinations.

Measles outbreaks can also start when people who are infected come to the U.S. from abroad. If sick travelers come in contact with unvaccinated or immunocompromised Americans, secondary measles cases can emerge, Shapiro says. One person with measles infects, on average, 12 to 18 others, Offit adds.

With measles outbreaks likely increasing, Offit and Shapiro both urge Americansespecially spring break travelersto check their MMR vaccination status and seek vaccine and outbreak information only from physicians and government-certified sources, including the CDC, World Health Organization and the National Institutes of Health. There is so much misinformation about vaccines in general, Shapiro says. But this vaccine has been administered for decades and decades. Most of us are fortunate enough not to know what most vaccine-preventable diseases look like, and sometimes we can take that for granted.

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Why Measles Outbreaks in the U.S. Are Happening, and How Vaccination Keeps Us Safe - Scientific American

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A new study from the School of Nursing and Midwifery, Trinity College Dublin has explored the effects of stopping universal Bacillus Calmette-Gurin (BCG) vaccination in Ireland. The study was recently published in the journal Vaccine in time for World TB Day 2024 (24th March).

BCG remains the only vaccine for prevention of tuberculosis (TB) providing up to 70% protection from severe disease in children. Ireland had a policy of universal BCG infant vaccination since 1949 but was recommended to change to a selective vaccination program targeting those at higher risk of infection in 2013.

But before a selective program could be implemented, vaccination was discontinued entirely due to a lack of vaccine supply in 2015. A selective BCG vaccination strategy was published in 2022 but the vaccination program is not yet operational.

This study retrospectively analyzed TB notifications aged 06 years old reported to the Irish National TB Surveillance System between 2011 and 2021. Key epidemiological characteristics and temporal trends in TB age specific incidence rates (ASIRs) were compared between 0 and 6 year old cases born during a period of universal BCG vaccination (20072015) and 06 year old cases born after BCG vaccination ceased (20152021).

Overall researchers found the epidemiology of cases in both birth cohorts remained similar. While this study did not find a significant increase in pediatric TB cases aged 06 years old, interruption of the previously declining trend in this age group during universal vaccination may be an early warning of a future increase. Modeling studies conducted elsewhere suggest that full effects of moving from universal to selective programs may take up to 15 years to emerge.

Findings emphasize the need for timely surveillance of pediatric TB cases to monitor for the emergence of increasing trends or emergent risk groups in this mainly unvaccinated population, and to evaluate the longer-term effects. Robust systems for the identification of, and service delivery to, populations being targeted by the selective program are also needed to enable sufficient vaccination uptake and ensure a selective policy does not result in a practice of no vaccination.

Sarah Jackson, Ph.D. candidate, School of Nursing and Midwifery, and lead author of the study said, "Although work had been done to predict future effects of stopping universal BCG vaccination in Ireland, it had not been retrospectively assessed until this study. Our findings support the introduction of a selective BCG program to prevent severe pediatric TB and support the global TB elimination goal."

Professor Catherine Comiskey, School of Nursing and Midwifery, and supervisor of the study said, "Furthermore, I urge the relevant health authorities to make the selective BCG vaccination available. We have learned from our recent past dealing with COVID-19 and measles cases how important vaccination is to protect our younger, older, and at-risk populations. When best practice and national and international evidence advises us who to vaccinate, we all need to listen and get our relevant immunizations."

More information: Sarah Jackson et al, Retrospective cohort study exploring the impact of universal Tuberculosis (TB) vaccination cessation on the epidemiology of paediatric TB in Ireland, 20112021, Vaccine (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2024.02.061

Journal information: Vaccine

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Study shows impact of cessation of universal BCG vaccination on pediatric TB epidemiology in Ireland - Medical Xpress

Canada is seeing a resurgence of measles, with cases in the first quarter of 2024 already far surpassing the total for all of 2023. There were 12 cases last year, and more than three times that number so far in 2024, with 38 reported as of March 19.

Most of these cases (28) are in Qubec, and eight are in Ontario, while Saskatchewan and British Columbia have each reported one case.

As an immunologist with a focus on host-microbe interactions and antiviral immunity, I have been following recent measles outbreaks.

Measles (also known as rubeola) is a serious but vaccine-preventable disease caused by an RNA virus of the family Paramyxoviridae.

Measles usually begins with fever, runny nose, conjunctivitis (red watery eyes), sore throat and coughing. These can be initially mistaken for common cold or flu.

However, these non-specific signs and symptoms are typically followed by clinical manifestations that are characteristic of measles. These include Koplik spots (tiny white specks with bluish-white centres in the inner lining of the cheeks), and subsequently a measles rash appearing on the face before spreading downward to other areas of the body.

In most cases, measles resolves on its own. However, severe complications may arise, especially in immunocompromised individuals. Complications can include pneumonia, encephalitis (brain inflammation and swelling), blindness, deafness and permanent neurological consequences. When measles occurs during pregnancy, it can result in miscarriage, premature labour, stillbirth, birth defects or even fetal death. The most severe cases of measles can be fatal.

Also of note, infection with the measles virus can weaken the immune system for months or years, increasing the risk of infections with a wide range of microbes. While measles-associated immunosuppression has been documented for decades, we are only beginning to decipher its underlying mechanisms. For example, a phenomenon called immune amnesia is thought to contribute, at least partially, to unrelated infections in the aftermath of measles.

The naturally occurring (wild-type) strains of measles virus can target, infect and kill memory B and T lymphocytes, which are instrumental to antimicrobial defence. This is because one of the three measles virus receptors, called CD150, happens to be abundantly present on the surface of these lymphocytes.

Long-lived memory cells, which accumulate as a result of immunizations and infections over time, remain in a poised state to mount rapid and rigorous recall responses when we re-encounter microbes. B cells orchestrate the production of antibodies that neutralize extracellular microbes, and T cells work to destroy infected cells. Therefore, when people lose their precious memory cells to measles, the immune system is set back to a default mode, as if it has never seen any microbes or vaccines in the past.

To add insult to injury, measles virus may also eliminate memory-like innate T cells, which also express CD150, thus removing yet another potent weapon from our antimicrobial arsenal. Therefore, collectively, the ability of measles virus to find and kill memory and memory-like lymphocytes can lead to adaptive and innate immune amnesia, rendering a measles patient or survivor prone to many opportunistic infections.

Measles virus spreads easily through airborne droplets released by infected people when they breathe, talk, laugh, cough or sneeze. In addition, measles virus infectious particles can remain active in the air and on contaminated surfaces for up to two hours.

Measles virus is one of the most contagious respiratory pathogens known, with each person with measles passing on their infection to 12 to 18 other people in a susceptible population. Measles virus is more transmissible than influenza viruses and SARS-CoV-2 variants.

Measles vaccines are safe, affordable and extremely effective. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), measles claimed 2.6 million lives each year before 1963 when a measles vaccine became available. Since then, widespread immunization programs have saved millions of lives, including an estimated 56 million just between 2000 and 2021.

Measles vaccines contain a live measles virus strain that has been attenuated so that it does not inflict harm; yet, it is sufficient to generate protective immune responses.

The measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine or the measles-mumps-rubella-varicella (MMRV) vaccine is routinely administered to children in two doses, with a first dose being given after the first birthday, typically between 12-15 months of age, followed by a booster dose recommended after 18 months of age and before attending school. This should afford lifelong protection against measles in most people.

According to the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), one and two doses of the MMR vaccine are 93 per cent and 97 per cent effective in preventing measles, respectively.

Teens and adults should also remain up to date with regard to measles immunization since measles can affect anyone. There are blood tests that can be ordered by health-care providers to determine immunity to measles.

The MMR vaccine can be given at any time during ones lifespan, but the MMRV vaccine is authorized in Canada only between one and 13 years of age.

Recent years have witnessed a rise in measles outbreaks within and outside Canada. This is primarily due to an alarming decline in measles vaccination caused by delayed childhood immunizations amid COVID-19 lockdowns, vaccine hesitancy creating vulnerable societal pockets, anti-vaccine sentiments and digital misinformation spread through online social media, and the resumption of global travel post-COVID.

Measles outbreaks occur soon after herd immunity is compromised. Herd immunity is achieved when an adequately large proportion of a population becomes immune to a specific pathogen through prior infections or vaccination. As a result, the probability of an infectious case encountering a susceptible person drops dramatically.

For measles, the necessary threshold for herd immunity is 95 per cent. This means when 95 per cent of people in a population are immune, the remaining five per cent (including newborns, unvaccinated or undervaccinated children and immunodeficient people who cannot receive a measles vaccine) are also indirectly protected since the risk of measles virus transmission is significantly minimized.

By receiving two doses of a measles vaccine, one protects not only themselves but also the vulnerable members of their community. The only way to avoid measles and its serious complications, including proneness to a broad spectrum of unrelated infections, is to vaccinate widely, to engage those who are hesitant to have their children immunized in a respectful dialogue, and to educate the public regarding the unparalleled benefits of measles vaccines.

Read more: How better conversations can help reduce vaccine hesitancy for COVID-19 and other shots

It is also crucial to isolate infected individuals for four days after the appearance of a measles rash to prevent measles virus transmission to others.

In Canada, measles has been a nationally notifiable disease since 1924 (except between 1959 and 1968), and the Canadian Measles and Rubella Surveillance System (CMRSS) ensures the weekly collection of measles data from every province and territory, including zero report submissions.

Read more:

Measles is highly contagious, but vaccine-preventable: A primer on recent outbreaks, transmission, symptoms and ... - The Conversation Indonesia

This article appeared on our sister site, Drug Topics.

Earlier this month, the FDAs Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee recommended that all US flu vaccines transition from quadrivalent to trivalent vaccines for the 2024-2025 flu season.1

The trivalent vaccines formula will still contain the influenza A(H1N1), A(H3N2), and B/Victoria-lineage vaccine virus, but omit the influenza B/Yamagata virus because it is no longer actively circulating.

FDA has been engaging and interacting with manufacturers of FDA-approved seasonal flu vaccines and providing scientific and regulatory advice to them to facilitate the timely availability of approved safe and effective trivalent seasonal flu vaccines for the 2024-2025 US flu season, said the FDA in a news release.2 FDA anticipates that there will be an adequate and diverse supply of approved trivalent seasonal flu vaccines for the United States in the coming season.

Each year, scientists review and update the composition of the US flu vaccine to target the strains predicted to be most prevalent in the coming flu season. Based on past reviews, this will not be the first time that patients seeking flu shots will be given trivalent vaccines.

Starting with the 1978-1979 season through the 2012-2013 season, US flu vaccines contained 3 vaccine viruses: influenza A(H1N1), A(h3N2), and a B-lineage vaccine virus either from the B/Yamagata or B/Victoria lineage.1 Quadrivalent flu vaccines first became available in the US during the 2013-2014 flu season and have remained as the standard composition until the current flu season (2023-2024).1

Transitioning from quadrivalent to trivalent vaccines will increase the current production capability by 200 million doses, allowing more patients to be vaccinated from the flu.3 This expansion in access may help alleviate the substantial health burden that the flu exacts on the US this past flu season was classified as moderate severity for adults and high severity for children by the CDC4as well as mitigate vaccine shortages and distribution inequities often experienced by developing countries.3

Each year, the virus causes millions of infections, hundreds of thousands hospitalized, and billions of dollars lost in health care costs and missed days of work.3

Vaccines, which have been long considered a first-line defense against the flu, have been recommended in the US for more than 50 years for everyone 6 months and older, with rare exception.1 They have been clinically proven to reduce the severity of the virus and the risk of developing potentially serious complications.

Some experts say that public health measures to curb the spread of SARS-COV-2 during the COVID-19 pandemic, such as lockdowns, travel restrictions, and mask mandates, might have unintentionally reduced the spread of Yamagata B.3 The strain had not been detected to be actively circulating in global surveillance after March 2020,1 suggesting these measures may have halted its circulation entirely.

Since changes in vaccine composition can sometimes lead to confusion or misinformation, effective communication, such as that conducted through public health campaigns or physician-patient discussions, is crucial to promote vaccine uptake.5 Health care providers and public health officials can ensure patient safety by explaining the rationale behind the composition change and emphasizing trivalent vaccines continued effectiveness against the flu.

Read more from the original source:

The US Will Transition to Trivalent Vaccines for Next Year's influenza Season - Contagionlive.com