AIM To assess the efficacy and effectiveness of seasonal influenza vaccines in healthy children up to the age of 18 years. METHODS MedLine, EMBASE, CENTRAL, CINAHL, WHOLIS, LILACS, and Global Health were searched for randomized controlled trials and cohort and case-control studies investigating the efficacy or effectiveness of influenza vaccines in healthy children up to the age of 18 years. ...

In 2014, the European Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) published a draft regulatory guideline for the evaluation of influenza vaccines. Following a public consultation round, the final guidance will be published in the near future. Here, we highlight the main changes in the clinical section in this guideline and discuss the background to these changes and whether the new co...

Main results 20 trials were included (14 RCTs) evaluating 3 types of vaccine: live attenuated aerosol (n=26 369), inactivated aerosol (n=1506), and inactivated parenteral (n=23 628). Live aerosol vaccines were not effective for preventing either type of clinically defined influenza (2 trials). Inactivated vaccines were effective in preventing influenza: both inactivated aerosol and inactivated ...

© 2010 The Authors. doi: 10.2340/00015555-0950 Journal Compilation © 2010 Acta Dermato-Venereologica. ISSN 0001-5555 The first case of a novel influenza infection was reported in Mexico in April 2009. The swH1N1 influenza A strain, which is an amalgamation of swine, bird and human influenza (1), has subsequently spread across the world, creating the first influenza pandemic since 1968. H1N1 vac...

Cases of H7N9 human infection were caused by a novel, avian-origin H7N9 influenza A virus that emerged in eastern China in 2013. Clusters of human disease were identified in many cities in China, with mortality rates approaching 30%. Pandemic concerns were raised, as historically, influenza pandemics were caused by introduction of novel influenza A viruses into immunologically naïve human popul...

Years ago, intramuscular influenza vaccines were the only option for those who wanted to arm themselves against the flu. Today there are alternatives, including intradermal injections and intranasal sprays. In order to select the right influenza vaccine for their patients, pharmacists, and other healthcare professionals must have a basic understanding of the immune system. Influenza vaccines el...

The World Health Organization (WHO) convenes technical consultations in February/March and September each year to recommend viruses for inclusion in influenza vaccines for the northern and southern hemisphere influenza seasons, respectively. This recommendation relates to the influenza vaccines for use in the forthcoming southern hemisphere 2018 influenza season. A recommendation will be made i...

Routine use of covid-19 vaccines could strain health budgets if pricing follows the pattern seen with influenza vaccines, say Reshma Ramachandran and colleagues

UNLABELLED New vaccine technologies are being investigated for their ability to elicit broadly cross-protective immunity against a range of influenza viruses. We compared the efficacies of two intranasally delivered nonreplicating influenza virus vaccines (H1 and H5 S-FLU) that are based on the suppression of the hemagglutinin signal sequence, with the corresponding H1N1 and H5N1 cold-adapted (...