Vaccine production. Textbook of Influenza. Oxford: Blackwell Science; Effect of formalin, beta-propiolactone, merthiolate, and ultraviolet light upon influenza virus infectivity chicken cell agglutination, hemagglutination, and antigenicity. Appl Microbiol. Immunity to influenza in older adults with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

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Immunization of elderly people with two doses of influenza vaccine. J Clin Microbiol. Parenteral influenza vaccination influences mucosal and systemic T cell-mediated immunity in healthy adults. Immunogenicity and protective efficacy of influenza vaccination. Virus Res. Prevention and control of influenza. Immunogenicity of a monovalent, aluminum-adjuvanted influenza whole virus vaccine for pandemic use.

Pandemic preparedness: lessons learnt from H2N2 and H9N2 candidate vaccines. Med Microbiol Immunol Berl ; —8. Genetic reassortment of influenza A viruses in the intestinal tract of ducks. The role of serum haemagglutination-inhibiting antibody in protection against challenge infection with influenza A2 and B viruses.

J Hyg Lond ; 70 — Acute and chronic airway responses to viral infection: implications for asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Proc Am Thorac Soc. Prophylactic use of influenza vaccine in patients with chronic bronchitis. A pilot trial. The virosome concept for influenza vaccines. J Virol. Original antigenic sin. A confounding issue?

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Ortomyxoviridae: the viruses and their replication. Fields Virology. Phiadelphia: Lippincott-Raven Publishers; The unmet need in the elderly: designing new influenza vaccines for older adults. Comparison of single versus booster dose of influenza vaccination on humoral and cellular immune responses in older adults.

Antibody response to whole-virus and split-virus influenza vaccines in successful ageing. Influenza infection and disease, — Mucosal immunity to viruses. Mucosal Immunology. London: Elsevier Academic Press; Temperature-sensitive mutants of influenza virus. Further characterization of the ts-1 E influenza A recombinant H3N2 virus in man.

Philadelphia: Lippincott-Raven Publishers; Epidemiology of influenza. Complications of influenza and benefits of vaccination. Relation between influenza vaccination and outpatient visits, hospitalization, and mortality in elderly persons with chronic lung disease.

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Lancet Infect Dis. The epidemiology of influenza. Occup Med Lond ; 52 —7. Characterization of an avian influenza A H5N1 virus isolated from a child with a fatal respiratory illness. Intranasal immunization with formalin-inactivated virus vaccine induces a broad spectrum of heterosubtypic immunity against influenza A virus infection in mice.

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Anyone 6 months through 18 years of age on long-term aspirin treatment they could develop Reye Syndrome if they got influenza. Residents of nursing homes and other chronic-care facilities. Anyone who lives with or cares for people at high risk for influenza-related complications: Health care providers. Household contacts and caregivers of children from birth up to 5 years of age. Household contacts and caregivers of - people 50 years and older, or - anyone with medical conditions that put them at higher risk for severe complications from influenza.

Health care providers may also recommend a yearly influenza vaccination for: People who provide essential community services. People living in dormitories, correctional facilities, or under other crowded conditions, to prevent outbreaks. People at high risk of influenza complications who travel to the Southern hemisphere between April and September, or to the tropics or in organized tourist groups at any time.

Influenza vaccine is also recommended for anyone who wants to reduce the likelihood of becoming ill with influenza or spreading influenza to others.

The most common side effects following RIV administration include tenderness and pain over the injection site. Recipients may also experience headache, fatigue, muscle pain and joint pain. What are the possible side effects following live attenuated influenza vaccine LAIV administration?

The most common adverse reactions following LAIV administration are nasal congestion or runny nose in all ages , fever in children and sore throat in adults. The safety in pregnant women has not been established. Can seasonal influenza vaccination cause GBS? GBS is a rare neurological disorder causing paralysis and even respiratory difficulties. Most people recover completely but some have chronic weakness.

GBS can develop following a variety of infections, including influenza. So far, there is no conclusive evidence supporting a causal relationship between seasonal influenza vaccine and GBS. As it is unknown whether seasonal influenza vaccination is causally associated with increased risk of recurrent GBS, precaution should be made to ascertain the temporal relationship if there is a history of GBS.

Please consult your doctor for advice. Does seasonal influenza vaccine cause influenza? The viruses in inactivated influenza vaccine are killed viruses and the haemagglutinin contained in recombinant influenza vaccine is a surface protein of the influenza virus, therefore both vaccines cannot cause influenza.

The viruses in live attenuated influenza vaccine LAIV are weakened and cannot cause influenza in immunocompetent individuals. However, LAIV is not recommended for close contacts and caregivers of severely immunosuppressed persons who require a protective environment because of the theoretical risk of transmission of the live attenuated vaccine viruses to the severely immunosuppressed persons and cause disease. Is the seasonal influenza vaccine safe for breastfeeding mothers and their infants?

Seasonal influenza vaccine is safe for breastfeeding mothers and their infants. Women who receive the influenza vaccination while pregnant or breastfeeding can develop antibodies against influenza that can be passed to their infants through their breast milk and provide some protection against influenza for infants.

Do the seasonal influenza vaccines in Hong Kong contain a mercuric compound or aluminum? The influenza vaccines currently supplied for use in Hong Kong do not contain a mercuric compound e.

Does the seasonal influenza vaccine work right away? It takes about two weeks after vaccination for antibodies to develop in the body and provide protection against influenza virus infection. For prevention against influenza, vaccinated individuals should maintain good personal and environmental hygiene practices, balanced diet, regular exercise, adequate rest and no smoking.

When should I get vaccinated? Since it takes about two weeks after vaccination for antibodies to develop in the body and provide protection against influenza virus infection, it is advised to get vaccinated at least two weeks before the arrival of winter influenza season, which usually begin in January in Hong Kong.

However, even if seasonal influenza vaccination is not received before the winter influenza season, it can still be received as soon as possible. How much protection does the seasonal influenza vaccine provide? Is it necessary to get vaccinated against seasonal influenza every year? The circulating seasonal influenza strains may change from time to time. In accordance with the circulating strains, the seasonal influenza vaccine composition is updated every year to enhance protection.

The immunity built up in a vaccinated person in the prior season will decrease over time and may become too low to provide protection in the next season. In addition, the vaccine compositions of the seasonal influenza vaccine are different from those in season. How many doses of seasonal influenza vaccine SIV will my child need? To ensure adequate immunity against seasonal influenza, children under 9 years of age who have never received any seasonal influenza vaccination before are recommended to receive 2 doses of SIV with a minimum interval of 4 weeks in the season.

Children below 9 years of age who have received at least one dose of SIV before are recommended to receive one dose of SIV in the season. For persons aged 9 years or above, only one dose of SIV is required in each influenza season. If a child under the age of 9 years is getting seasonal influenza vaccination for the first time and requires 2 doses, does the same type of vaccine have to be used for both doses?

No, the first and second doses do not have to be the same type. Influenza flu is a very common and highly infectious disease caused by a virus.

It is much more severe than the common cold and often results in at least days in bed, leading to missed work and school days. For some at-risk groups, flu can be very dangerous. Flu complications lead to tens of thousands of hospital stays and an average of deaths in the UK every year. In the UK the flu vaccine is available each year from late September or early October onwards.

It is recommended to get the flu vaccine in the autumn, before outbreaks of flu have started. It takes up to two weeks after vaccination for you to be protected against flu.

The inactivated flu vaccine does not contain any live flu viruses and cannot give you flu. In the season, three different types of inactivated flu vaccine will be offered in the UK, as well as the nasal flu vaccine. Babies under 6 months old are too young to receive a flu vaccine. This is because they have maternal antibodies passed on from their mother which prevent the vaccine from working so well.

As well as protecting pregnant women themselves, this also helps to protect their newborn babies from flu. Protection from the flu virus varies for different age groups. However, in the over 65 age group the inactivated flu vaccine worked less well than it did in other adults and children.

In , the data suggest that the inactivated flu vaccine did not work at all in people aged over 65, whilst in it resulted in slightly better results in that age group. Due to the lower effectiveness of the inactivated flu vaccine in older people, a vaccine containing an adjuvant was introduced for the season.

This is a substance that strengthens and lengthens the immune response to the vaccine and resulted in better prevention of flu in people aged 65 or over in flu seasons since The adjuvanted vaccine is still recommended for this age group in the season. It is not understood why flu vaccines do not work so well in older adults. However, this reinforces the importance of vaccinating children and healthcare workers, both of whom can help to stop the spread of flu to older adults.

Gigi ended up in intensive care after coming down with flu and has been left with long-term effects.