Search results for "VACCINES"

The 2014 lifetime immunization schedule approved by the Italian scientific societies. Italian Society of Hygiene, Preventive Medicine, and Public Hea…

2014

Pneumococcus infections: Is the burden still as heavy?

2012

EA MERS CT3 Enjeu 3; International audience; The death rate of invasive pneumococcal infections decreased by 100 fold in one century. This tremendous improvement was due mainly to antibiotic use and multiple attempts at antipneumococcal vaccinations; thus, this was true only for developed countries. However, in France, the incidence has increased, over the last 10 years, in all age classes except for children vaccinated by the heptavalent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine. The incidence of these infections remains high, when associated to some risk factors such as HIV infection, malignant blood diseases, solid cancers, bronchial diseases, or alcohol abuse. The pneumococcal vaccine should be pr…

Experts’ Opinion for Improving Pertussis Vaccination Rates in Adolescents and Adults: A Call to Action

2022

This article highlights the importance of diphtheria-tetanus-acellular pertussis (with reduced antigen content, dTap) vaccination in preventing pertussis, a respiratory infection that is still widespread and easily transmitted. In particular, it highlights the need to receive a booster vaccination throughout life to maintain high antibody levels, which decrease through time. This document collects the opinions that emerged from the comparison between major Italian experts in the field of vaccination. This working group was created to promote a “call to action”, aimed at raising awareness among all institutions, public health authorities, and health workers involved in the vaccination proces…

Hepatitis B vaccination of relatives of hepatitis B virus DNA positive carriers: an experience with plasma-derived vaccine.

1989

We assessed in a western population the efficacy of a plasma-derived hepatitis B vaccine in relatives of highly infectious hepatitis B virus (HBV) carriers. A consecutive group of 103 HbsAg, anti-HBs and anti-HBc negative household relatives of 45 HBV-DNA positive chronic carriers received a 5 micrograms dose of plasma-derived vaccine at 0, 1, 2 and 12 months. Protective levels of immunity developed in 101 subjects (97.8%) 3 months after boosting. Low responders to the vaccine were mostly found among parents and spouses of carriers, whilst offspring and siblings were usually high responders. The main discriminant in predicting a good response was age below 12 years. Hyporesponsiveness did n…

Comparison of the immunogenicity and safety ofCervarix™ andGardasil®human papillomavirus (HPV) cervical cancer vaccines in healthy women aged 18–45 y…

2009

This observer-blind study compared the prophylactic human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines, Cervarix (GlaxoSmithKline) and Gardasil (Merck), by assessing immunogenicity and safety through one month after completion of the three-dose vaccination course. Women (n = 1106) were stratified by age (18-26, 27-35, 36-45 years) and randomized (1:1) to receive Cervarix (Months 0, 1, 6) or Gardasil (Months 0, 2, 6). At Month 7 after first vaccination, all women in the according-to-protocol cohort who were seronegative/DNA negative before vaccination for the HPV type analyzed had seroconverted for HPV-16 and HPV-18 serum neutralizing antibodies, as measured by pseudovirion-based neutralization assay (PBNA…

Determinants of seasonal influenza vaccination in pregnant women in Valencia, Spain

2016

Background: In most countries the coverage of seasonal influenza vaccination in pregnant women is low. We investigated the acceptance, reasons for rejection and professional involvement related to vaccine information in pregnant women in Valencia, Spain. Methods: Observational retrospective study in 200 pregnant women, 100 vaccinated and 100 unvaccinated, were interviewed during the 2014/2015 vaccination campaign. Electronic medical records, immunization registry and telephone interviews were used to determine reasons for vaccination and immunization rejection. Results: 40.5% of pregnant women in the health department were vaccinated. The midwife was identified as source of information for …

Reply to “Caution in underrepresentation of older adults in clinical trials on COVID-19 vaccines”

2021

We would like to thank Chen et al. for their comments on our recently published paper in Ageing Research Reviews (Veronese et al., 2021). In this reply we would like to answer to the points raised in their letter. Regarding the first question, we decided to run our search only in PubMed/Medline and ClinicalTrials.gov since the phase II-III randomized controlled trials of SARS-CoV 2 vaccines, considering the urgency for interventions to ameliorate the pandemic situation, received a great deal of interest. Therefore, they were usually published in high impact factor journals, reported in PubMed, and their protocols were usually reported in clinicaltrials.gov. However, following the suggestion…

Factors Affecting Hesitancy to mRNA and Viral Vector COVID-19 Vaccines among College Students in Italy

2021

Vaccine hesitancy (VH) may be significant in jeopardizing efforts to mass containment of COVID-19. A cross-sectional survey was carried out on a sample of 2667 Italian college students, before the COVID-19 vaccines became available for this age group (from 7 May to 31 May 2021). An online survey was created to obtain information about socio-demographic, health-related, and psychological factors linked to mRNA and viral vector COVID-19 vaccines. Statistically significant higher VH (30.4%) and vaccine resistance (12.2%) rates were found for viral vector than mRNA COVID-19 vaccines (7.2% and 1.0%, respectively; p < 0.001). Factors related to viral vector VH were partially different from tho…

COVID-19 Vaccination in Pregnancy, Paediatrics, Immunocompromised Patients, and Persons with History of Allergy or Prior SARS-CoV-2 Infection: Overvi…

2021

To date, four vaccines have been authorised for emergency use and under conditional approval by the European Medicines Agency to prevent COVID-19: Comirnaty, COVID-19 Vaccine Janssen, Spikevax (previously COVID-19 Vaccine Moderna) and Vaxzevria (previously COVID-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca). Although the benefit–risk profile of these vaccines was proven to be largely favourable in the general population, evidence in special cohorts initially excluded from the pivotal trials, such as pregnant and breastfeeding women, children/adolescents, immunocompromised people and persons with a history of allergy or previous SARS-CoV-2 infection, is still limited. In this narrative review, we critically overv…

Molecular mechanisms of hookworm disease: stealth, virulence, and vaccines.

2012

Hookworms produce a vast repertoire of structurally and functionally diverse molecules that mediate their long-term survival and pathogenesis within a human host. Many of these molecules are secreted by the parasite, after which they interact with critical components of host biology, including processes that are key to host survival. The most important of these interactions is the hookworm's interruption of nutrient acquisition by the host through its ingestion and digestion of host blood. This results in iron deficiency and eventually the microcytic hypochromic anemia or iron deficiency anemia that is the clinical hallmark of hookworm infection. Other molecular mechanisms of hookworm infec…