objective this is the first report of cns involvement by the new influenza virus (influenza a [h1n1]) in iran. the patient was a 10-year-old boy with chief complaints of fever, malaise, and cranial nerve involvement, resulting in respiratory muscle paralysis and intubation. this shows that the new influenza virus, as well as the seasonal flu, can cause neurologic complications; however, the sev...

The recent worldwide spread of the swine-origin H1N1 2009 influenza outbreak has resulted in its designation as a pandemic by the World Health Organization. While it appears to result in mild symptoms, concern still exists that a more severe influenza pandemic with a high case fatality ratio might arise by reassortment or mutation of the currently circulating avian influenza (H5N1) virus. Given...

Background Vaccine effectiveness (VE) estimates for 2015-2016 seasonal influenza vaccine are reported from Canada's Sentinel Practitioner Surveillance Network (SPSN). This season was characterized by a delayed 2009 pandemic influenza A(H1N1) virus (A[H1N1]pdm09) epidemic and concurrent influenza B(Victoria) virus activity. Potential influences on VE beyond antigenic match are explored, includin...

There is a need for a fast and simple method for vaccine production to keep up with the pace of a rapidly spreading virus in the early phases of the influenza pandemic. The use of whole viruses produced in chicken eggs or recombinant antigens purified from various expression systems has presented considerable challenges, especially with lengthy processing times. Here, we use the killed but meta...

We have previously shown that broadly neutralizing antibodies reactive to the conserved stem region of the influenza virus hemagglutinin (HA) were generated in people infected with the 2009 pandemic H1N1 strain. Such antibodies are rarely seen in humans following infection or vaccination with seasonal influenza virus strains. However, the important question remained whether the inactivated 2009...

OBJECTIVE In SLE, a decreased antibody response on influenza vaccination has been reported. In this study, we assessed whether a booster vaccination could improve antibody responses, as determined by seroprotection rates, in SLE patients. METHODS SLE patients (n = 52) with quiescent disease (SLEDAI < or =4) and healthy controls (HCs) (n = 28) received subunit influenza vaccine in October-Dece...

BACKGROUND The effectiveness of currently licensed vaccines against influenza has not been clearly established, especially among individuals at increased risk for complications from influenza. We used a test-negative approach to estimate influenza vaccine effectiveness (IVE) against hospitalization with laboratory-confirmed influenza based on data collected from the Global Influenza Hospital Su...

BACKGROUND Data about influenza mortality burden in northern China are limited. This study estimated mortality burden in Beijing associated with seasonal influenza from 2007 to 2013 and the 2009 H1N1 pandemic. METHODS We estimated influenza-associated excess mortality by fitting a negative binomial model using weekly mortality data as the outcome of interest with the percent of influenza-posi...

BACKGROUND Though recommended by many and mandated by some, influenza vaccination rates among health care workers, even in pandemics, remain below optimal levels. The objective of this study was to assess vaccination uptake, attitudes, and distinguishing characteristics (including doctor-nurse differences) of health care workers who did and did not receive the pandemic H1N1 influenza vaccine in...

The rapid dissemination of the 2009 pandemic influenza virus underscores the need for universal influenza vaccines that elicit protective immunity to diverse viral strains. Here, we show that vaccination with plasmid DNA encoding H1N1 influenza hemagglutinin (HA) and boosting with seasonal vaccine or replication-defective adenovirus 5 vector encoding HA stimulated the production of broadly neut...