# 8404
Helen Branswell has the story on a PLoS One study, published yesterday, that found an unusual `production issue’ with last year’s seasonal flu vaccine that resulted in a disappointing level of protection against the H3N2 virus.
The open access study is called:
Danuta M. Skowronski mail, Naveed Z. Janjua, Gaston De Serres, Suzana Sabaiduc, Alireza Eshaghi, James A. Dickinson, Kevin Fonseca, Anne-Luise Winter, Jonathan B. Gubbay, Mel Krajden, Martin Petric, Hugues Charest, Nathalie Bastien, [ ... ], Yan Li
As you might imagine, this is a fairly complex report, so we can be thankful that Helen does such a terrific job deciphering it all for us. Follow the link to read:
Flu vaccine production issue may be behind last year's modest protection: study
Helen Branswell / The Canadian Press
March 25, 2014 02:20 PMORONTO - The 2012-13 influenza season was a harsh one, and one in which flu vaccine offered disappointingly modest protection against the main circulating strain, H3N2.
The limited protection — around 41 per cent for healthy adults and a mere nine per cent for seniors — was surprising, given that the H3N2 viruses causing illness were a close match for one the World Health Organization had selected for inclusion in that winter's vaccine.
New Canadian research is offering an explanation for that puzzling and unfortunate phenomenon. It reveals that the H3N2 component that went into the vaccine wasn't exactly what the WHO's experts ordered.
In her report, Helen quotes Michael Osterholm of Director of CIDRAP, who has long held that that big changes are needed in the way we manufacture vaccines.
These issues were the topic of a blog back in the 2012 called CIDRAP: The Need For `Game Changing’ Flu Vaccines – which looked at a truly impressive 160-page CIDRAP report that emphasizes the need for a revolution in vaccine technology.
The Compelling Need for Game-Changing Influenza Vaccines
An Analysis of the Influenza Vaccine Enterprise and Recommendations for the Future
Michael T. Osterholm, PhD, MPH, Nicholas S. Kelley, PhD, Jill M. Manske, PhD, MPH, Katie S. Ballering, PhD, Tabitha R. Leighton, MPH, Kristine A. Moore, MD, MPH
For those not ready to commit to reading a 160-page report, there is a 12-page Executive summary available.
