Influenza vaccine

vaccine against influenza

An influenza vaccinesis a vaccine that protects against infection by influenza viruses.[1]

Versions

change

New versions of the vaccines are developed twice a year, as the influenza virus rapidly changes.[1] While their effectiveness varies from year to year, most provide modest to high protection against influenza.[1][2]

Effects

change

The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that vaccination against influenza reduces sickness, medical visits, hospitalizations, and deaths.[3][4] Immunized workers who do catch the flu return to work half a day sooner on average.[5] Vaccine effectiveness in those over 65 years old remains uncertain due to a lack of high-quality research.[6][7] Vaccinating children may protect those around them.[1]

History

change

Vaccination against influenza began in the 1930s. It started with large-scale availability in the United States since 1945.[8][9] It is on the World Health Organization's List of Essential Medicines.[10]

Safety

change

The vaccines are generally safe; fever occurs in five to ten percent of children vaccinated. Temporary muscle pains or feelings of tiredness may occur. In certain years, the vaccine was linked to an increase in Guillain–Barré syndrome among older people at a rate of about one case per million doses.[1] Although most influenza vaccines are produced using egg proteins, they are still recommended as safe for people who have severe egg allergies,[11] as no increased risk of allergic reaction to the egg-based vaccines has been shown for people with egg allergies.[12] Vaccines produced using other technologies, notably recombinant vaccines and those based on cell culture rather than egg protein, started to become available from 2012 in the US,[13] and later in Europe[14] and Australia.[12] Influenza vaccines are not recommended in those who have had a severe allergy to previous versions of the vaccine itself.[1][11] The vaccine comes in inactive and weakened viral forms. The live, weakened vaccine is generally not recommended in pregnant women, children less than two years old, adults older than 50, or people with a weakened immune system.[1] Depending on the type they can be injected into a muscle, sprayed into the nose, or injected into the middle layer of the skin (intradermal).[1] The intradermal vaccine was not available during the 2018–2019 and 2019–2020 influenza seasons.[15][16][17][18]

References

change
  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 World Health Organization (November 2012). "Vaccines against influenza WHO position paper". Weekly Epidemiological Record. 87 (47): 461–76. hdl:10665/241993. PMID 23210147.
  2. Manzoli L, Ioannidis JP, Flacco ME, De Vito C, Villari P (July 2012). "Effectiveness and harms of seasonal and pandemic influenza vaccines in children, adults and elderly: a critical review and re-analysis of 15 meta-analyses". Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics. 8 (7): 851–62. doi:10.4161/hv.19917. PMC 3495721. PMID 22777099.
  3. Rolfes MA, Foppa IM, Garg S, Flannery B, Brammer L, Singleton JA, et al. (December 9, 2016). "2015–2016 Estimated Influenza Illnesses, Medical visits, and Hospitalizations Averted by Vaccination in the United States". U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Archived from the original on December 2, 2019. Retrieved December 24, 2017.   This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  4. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (16 January 2020). "Benefits of Flu Vaccination During 2018-2019 Flu Season". Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Retrieved 10 April 2020.
  5. Demicheli V, Jefferson T, Ferroni E, Rivetti A, Di Pietrantonj C (February 2018). "Vaccines for preventing influenza in healthy adults". Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. 2020 (2): CD001269. doi:10.1002/14651858.CD001269.pub6. PMC 6491184. PMID 29388196.
  6. Osterholm, Michael T; Kelley, Nicholas S; Sommer, Alfred; Belongia, Edward A (January 2012). "Efficacy and effectiveness of influenza vaccines: a systematic review and meta-analysis". The Lancet Infectious Diseases. 12 (1): 36–44. doi:10.1016/S1473-3099(11)70295-X. PMID 22032844.
  7. Demicheli, Vittorio; Jefferson, Tom; Di Pietrantonj, Carlo; Ferroni, Eliana; Thorning, Sarah; Thomas, Roger E; Rivetti, Alessandro (2018-02-01). Cochrane Acute Respiratory Infections Group (ed.). "Vaccines for preventing influenza in the elderly". Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. 2021 (10): CD004876. doi:10.1002/14651858.CD004876.pub4. PMC 6491101. PMID 29388197.
  8. Compans RW, Orenstein WA (2009). Vaccines for pandemic influenza. Dordrecht: Springer. p. 49. ISBN 978-3-540-92165-3.
  9. Nunnally, Brian K.; Turula, Vincent E.; Sitrin, Robert D. (2014). Vaccine Analysis: Strategies, Principles, and Control. Springer. p. 61. ISBN 978-3-662-45024-6.
  10. World Health Organization (2019). World Health Organization model list of essential medicines: 21st list 2019. Geneva: World Health Organization. hdl:10665/325771. WHO/MVP/EMP/IAU/2019.06. License: CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO.
  11. 11.0 11.1 "Flu Vaccine and People with Egg Allergies". U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). November 25, 2019. Archived from the original on December 2, 2019. Retrieved December 2, 2019.   This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  12. 12.0 12.1 Roberts, Lauren (27 March 2021). "Australia's first cell-based influenza vaccines to roll out this flu season". ABC News. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  13. "Novartis receives FDA approval for Flucelvax, the first cell-culture vaccine in US to help protect against seasonal influenza" (Press release). Novartis. November 20, 2012. Archived from the original on November 28, 2012.
  14. "Supemtek EPAR". European Medicines Agency (EMA). September 15, 2020. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
  15. Grohskopf LA, Alyanak E, Broder KR, Walter EB, Fry AM, Jernigan DB (August 2019). "Prevention and Control of Seasonal Influenza with Vaccines: Recommendations of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices – United States, 2019–20 Influenza Season". MMWR. Recommendations and Reports. 68 (3): 1–21. doi:10.15585/mmwr.rr6803a1. PMC 6713402. PMID 31441906.   This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  16. "Intradermal Influenza (Flu) Vaccination". U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). October 31, 2018. Archived from the original on October 14, 2019. Retrieved October 14, 2019.   This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  17. "Influenza vaccines – United States, 2019–20 influenza season". U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). August 22, 2019. Archived from the original on October 14, 2019. Retrieved October 14, 2019.   This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  18. "Influenza Virus Vaccine Inactivated". The American Society of Health-System Pharmacists. November 19, 2018. Archived from the original on October 14, 2019. Retrieved October 13, 2019.