Vaccine Update & a Warning

Be sure to read all the way down for the update on some of the difficulties faced in the making of a vaccine for this particular type of flu, and a warning from the experts not to underestimate this virus, as is not going away by itself. Worth a read, I thought.

INFLUENZA A(H1N1) - WORLDWIDE (37)
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A ProMED-mail post

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International Society for Infectious Diseases


In this update:
[1] Vaccine development delay
[2] Vaccination policy

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[1] Vaccine development delay
Date: Wed 20 May 2009
Source: Los Angeles Times [edited]



The World Health Organization (WHO) said Tuesday [19 May 2009] that
it was taking longer than anticipated to prepare the seed stock
needed to manufacture a vaccine for the H1N1 influenza virus. At a
week long meeting in Geneva to discuss the outbreak of the so-called
swine flu, the global health agency said the virus wasn't growing
very quickly in the laboratory. That means vaccine makers won't be
able to start production until mid-July 2009 at the earliest. WHO
officials originally said they would be able to deliver the seed
stock to manufacturers by the end of the month [May 2009]. Once the
companies have it in hand, it takes about 4-6 months to produce the vaccine.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta
intends to have its own H1N1 seed stock ready to distribute to
vaccine makers by the end of May 2009, and those efforts are "still
on track," spokesman Tom Skinner said Tuesday [19 May 2009]. Small
lots of H1N1 vaccine could be available for human clinical trials as
early as late July or August 2009, he said.

Neither the WHO nor the CDC have given the go-ahead for manufacturers
to begin production of an H1N1 vaccine.

--
Communicated by:
ProMED-mail Rapporteur Mary Marshall

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[2] Vaccination policy
Date: Mon 18 May 2009
Source: FluTrackers.com [edited]



World renowned virologist Professor Albert Osterhaus told
participants at Europe's largest conference on infectious diseases
that the outbreak of influenza A (H1N1) is without question one of
the most important events of the past 40 years in human influenza.
And he stressed that the current H1N1 threat is a serious one.

Professor Osterhaus, who is Head of Virology at the Erasumus Medical
Centre in Rotterdam and led efforts to identify human infection with
the avian influenza strain (H5N1) in 1997, outlined the 3
cornerstones of medical preparedness in the face of swine-origin flu:
Good surveillance and diagnostics; effective treatment/antiviral
therapy; and vaccination, the foundation of prevention. But he also
cautioned that we must be prepared to expect the unexpected as the
course of this influenza virus unfolds.

Osterhaus was speaking at a late breaker session jointly organized by
the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases
(ESCMID) and The Lancet that was added to the program of the European
Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ECCMID)
taking place in Helsinki.

Addressing the issue of an A (H1N1) vaccination, Dr Osterhaus
stressed that there was room for improvement in the production of all
influenza vaccines. "We have to do better," he told representatives
from the scientific, medical and pharmaceutical industry. "We must
improve the influenza vaccine production systems and capacity,
regardless of whether we develop an A (H1N1) vaccine. Currently, we
have capacity to produce doses that could protect an estimated 1-2
billion people, yet with a global population of some 6.7 billion,
clearly there is not enough for all."

Focusing on the outbreak from a clinician's perspective, Professor
Javiar Garau, the new President of ESCMID and Head of Medicine at the
Hospital Mutua Terrassa in Barcelona, highlighted priorities in the
treatment of swine origin flu. "We know from experience that
secondary infections -- which in the case of influenza include
pneumonia -- can be deadly, which means that adequate stockpiles of
antibiotics, as well as antivirals, must be included as part of our response."

A WARNING

The editor of The Lancet Infectious Diseases, John McConnell, said:
"We must not underestimate this virus. As Professor Osterhaus
reminded us, this outbreak is unlikely to disappear spontaneously, so
we must be vigilant in monitoring the spread of the virus."

Video highlights from the session will be available from Wed 20 May
2009 at The Lancet's H1N1 Flu resource Centre at
Click on title above to go there;
http://www.TheLancet.com/H1N1-flu

--
Communicated by:
ProMED-mail

[see also:
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (36): case counts, amended 20090519.1882
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (35): case counts 20090518.1867
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (34) 20090518.1863
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (33): case counts 20090517.1848
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (32): case counts 20090517.1845
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (31) 20090516.1835
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (30): case counts 20090516.1831
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (29) 20090515.1824
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (28): case counts 20090515.1822
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (27): case counts 20090514.1800
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (26) 20090514.1798
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (25): case counts 20090513.1785
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (24): case counts 20090512.1772
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (23) 20090511.1764
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (22): case counts 20090511.1759
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (21) 20090510.1749
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (20): case counts 20090510.1741
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (10): case counts 20090504.1675
Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide 20090430.1636]
............................cp/msp/mpp

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