Vaccine
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To investigate whether BCG vaccination, in addition to a reduction of active tuberculosis, leads to a reduction of Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection during an outbreak of tuberculosis. ⋯ BCG vaccination was associated with a reduction of M. tuberculosis infection diagnosed by gamma interferon release assay testing in school children during a point source outbreak.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Delaying BCG vaccination from birth to 10 weeks of age may result in an enhanced memory CD4 T cell response.
In most tuberculosis (TB) endemic countries, bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) is usually given around birth to prevent severe TB in infants. The neonatal immune system is immature. Our hypothesis was that delaying BCG vaccination from birth to 10 weeks of age would enhance the vaccine-induced immune response. ⋯ Delaying BCG vaccination from birth to 10 weeks of age enhances the quantitative and qualitative BCG-specific T cell response, when measured at 1 year of age.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Long-lasting immunogenicity of a virosomal vaccine in older children and young adults with type I diabetes mellitus.
To evaluate the long-lasting immunogenicity and reactogenicity of a virosomal influenza vaccine in subjects with type I diabetes, a trial was conducted during the 2007-2008 influenza season in Milan, Northern Italy. One hundred five subjects aged 9-30 years were randomized to receive by intramuscular injection vaccination by a single dose (0.5 ml) of either a virosomal (Inflexal V) (n=52) or a standard subunit (Influvac) (n=53) vaccine. Serum hemagglutinin inhibition antibody titres were determined against the three recommended influenza-like strains, A/H1N1, A/H3N2 and B, at pre-vaccination, and 1 and 6 months post-vaccination. ⋯ All reactions were transient and not severe. The results indicate that in older children and young adults with type I diabetes influenza vaccination with a virosomal or a standard subunit vaccine is safe and adequately immunogenic against the three influenza vaccine strains. In addition, the virosomal vaccine may show better long-lasting immune response than the standard subunit vaccine, especially in subjects without pre-existing antibodies to influenza strains.
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Streptococcus pneumoniae is an important cause of otitis media, sinusitis, pneumonia, and invasive pneumococcal diseases (IPDs) such as meningitis, bacteremia, and bacteremic pneumonia. Globally, pneumonia is the leading cause of death in children aged <5 years. After the implementation of routine immunisation with a seven-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV7) in the United States in 2000, a substantial decline in pneumonia-related hospitalisations among children aged <2 years was observed. In this age group, there was a 39% and 65% reduction in rates of all-cause and pneumococcal pneumonia hospitalisations, respectively, indicating a direct effect of routine immunisation with PCV7.
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Significant morbidity due to pneumococcal co-infection is associated with viral respiratory infections. Pneumonia is the leading cause of death in children worldwide. ⋯ The majority of the mortality associated with the influenza pandemic of 1918 was attributable to bacterial infections, especially the pneumococcus. Vaccination with PCV for children and pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine for adults should be considered essential to pandemic influenza preparedness.