H1N1 vaccinations scheduled to begin in three weeks in US

Tue Sep 15 10:40:38 PDT 2009

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September 14, 2009
H1N1 vaccinations scheduled to begin in three weeks in US
The American Medical Association<http://ama-assn.org/>
Bloomberg News<http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601124&sid=asYlPo7IOFqw> (9/14, Randall, Gale) reports, "Swine flu vaccinations may begin in three weeks, earlier than previously anticipated, after the first US tests found a single shot to be effective in eight to 10 days, US health officials said. The first shots may be available by the end of this month and administered to patients the first week of October, said Nancy Cox, director of the flu division at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta." Previously, "health officials had...planned for vaccinations to begin in mid-October, requiring two shots administered three weeks apart." The piece continues to describe early outbreaks in the US, and relates the testing procedures that led authorities to determine that a single dose would be sufficient to inoculate patients.

Logistics said to complicate plan to distribute vaccine. The Los Angeles Times<http://www.latimes.com/features/health/la-he-vaccines14-2009sep14,0,7766715.story> (9/14, Maugh) reports on the "key questions" that are still surrounding the plans for "one of the largest vaccination programs ever conducted, the broad outlines of the campaign to vaccinate nearly 100 million Americans against pandemic H1N1 influenza virus by Christmas," noting that "the situation is further complicated by the need to vaccinate about the same number of people against seasonal flu during roughly the same period. One key question was cleared up Friday," however, "when it became apparent that only one dose of the swine flu vaccine will be required. The seasonal flu vaccination effort will be handled as usual, but the 'unprecedented' effort against H1N1 is 'very complicated logistically,' said Dr. Jonathan Fielding, Los Angeles County's health officer." He added that "the only reason it is possible at all...is because the 2003 outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS, and the subsequent fears of an avian flu pandemic led public health officials to prepare plans for a mass vaccination program such as that now being undertaken."

Study indicates peramivir may be as effective against flu as Tamiflu. The AP<http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iiUJb_ax75nQUqaywAJH4bGDJGoAD9AMLVJ80> (9/14, Marchione) reports, "Researchers delivered a double dose of good news Sunday in the fight against flu: successful tests of what could become the first new flu medicine in a decade, and the strongest evidence yet that such drugs save lives, not just shorten illness. A single intravenous dose of the experimental drug, peramivir, cleared up flu symptoms as well as five days of Tamiflu pills did, a large study in Asia found." The piece continues to detail other research presented at an American Society for Microbiology conference in California on Sunday, including studies pointing to the lifesaving utility of Tamiflu. The conference "is the first big meeting of infectious disease specialists since the new H1N1 swine flu emerged in April. Treatment options are getting huge attention because it will take a month or more for people to get swine flu vaccine and have time to develop immunity from the shot."

Study suggests certain ethnic communities may be more susceptible to H1N1. The Chicago Tribune<http://www.chicagotribune.com/health/chi-flu-minorities_olivosep13,0,3555431.story> (9/13, Olivo) reported that findings from recent study released by the CDC indicate that "blacks, Hispanics and Asian-Pacific Islanders had higher rates of hospitalization for H1N1 during the swine flu outbreak last spring. In the report, a map of confirmed cases in Chicago neighborhoods in May documents that the virus had its strongest presence in densely populated ethnic communities where healthcare options are limited and long-term illnesses such as asthma or diabetes are prevalent." But, "epidemiologists want to know if that is the only answer. This fall, they plan to dig deeper and examine whether the higher rates relate to specific ethnic makeups, said Dr. Julie Morita, medical director of the Chicago Department of Public Health, who co-wrote the four-page report."

Researchers probing H1N1's unusual lethality in young, healthy. Bloomberg News<http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601124&sid=aA5k7CsfjJ2o> (9/14, Gale) reports on the efforts of WHO researchers to "determine why the H1N1 swine flu virus, much like the Spanish Flu of 1918, is lethal to a portion of young people in good health. The reason may involve a person's genetics, or simply taking a deep breath just as a nearby infected person sneezes." The piece notes the mechanics of underlying conditions in intensifying the effects of the disease, and notes that "25 percent to 50 percent of severe cases worldwide involve healthy young and middle-aged people. ... It is a statistic that highlights how unpredictable the disease has turned out to be, said Ian Barr, deputy director of the WHO's Collaborating Center for Influenza in Melbourne."

Many younger parents wary of H1N1 vaccine for children. The Los Angeles Times<http://www.latimes.com/features/health/la-he-no-fear14-2009sep14,0,184014.story> (9/14, Healy) reports on the ambivalence of many parents regarding vaccinating their children for the H1N1 virus, noting, "physicians say they are hearing young parents -- many of whom have neither seen nor suffered any of the once-common diseases of childhood -- express doubts about inoculating their children against the novel strain of influenza. This new generation of vaccine skeptics has been forged by the stubbornly persistent belief -- discredited by a welter of studies -- in a link between vaccines and autism. And it is further fueled by a combustible mix of distrust of drug manufacturers, media outlets, and the federal government. And although many pediatricians are readying stern lectures in support of vaccinating children, several in Southern California contacted by The Times acknowledged they have doubts about recommending a vaccine that is still in testing for all of their young patients."

Abid Mogannam &
Brian Potts MD, MBA
Managing Editors, CAL/AAEM News Service
University of California, Irvine
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