U.S. IMMUNIZATION NEWS

[Guest guest]

July 05, 2005

***************************************************************************

" Injections, Without the 'Ouch' "

" Whooping Cough Booster Is Recommended for Youths "

" Hunt for Vaccine Yields New Technique "

" Delaware Approves Phase Out of Mercury in Vaccines "

" Bird-Flu Virus Tightens Grip on Asia "

" Indonesian Polio Cases Reach 111 as Outbreak Continues to Spread "

" Meningococcal B Vaccine May Be Working Already "

" Polio Case Found in Angola--UN Health Agency "

" Fed: Government Promises Free Hepatitis A Vaccine to Indigenous Children "

" Western Kazakh Region Ends Plague Vaccination "

***************************************************************************

U.S. IMMUNIZATION NEWS

" Injections, Without the 'Ouch' "

Wall Street Journal

(http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB112052702369077020,00.html) (07/05/05)

P. D3

Needle-free devices propel liquids at high speeds to puncture the skin.

Though the technology was developed in the 1940s, it is not used on a

large-scale basis due to the costs involved and the possibility that the

devices could be contaminated with bodily fluids. The contamination

problem has been resolved by the use of disposable covers, but additional

research is needed to determine whether patients would be less hesitant to

undergo certain procedures if needle-free devices were used. Needle-free

devices are presently being used for the growth hormone Saizen; the HIV

drug Serostim; and self-administered drugs that treat diabetes, multiple

sclerosis, and hepatitis-C. According to Dr. Belshe of Saint Louis

University School of Medicine's Center for Vaccine Development, needle-free

devices are most practical for vaccines and numbing medications that are

injected into skin rather than muscle.

" Whooping Cough Booster Is Recommended for Youths "

Washington Post

(www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/06/30/AR2005063001751.ht

ml) (07/01/05) P. A11

The number of reported cases of whooping cough in adults 20 years of age

and older in the United States nearly doubled to 5,365 in 2004 compared to

the previous year. As a result, a Centers for Disease Control and

Prevention (CDC) advisory panel is urging that a pertussis booster shot be

administered at 11 to 18 years of age. Typically, children in the United

States receive whooping cough vaccines through age six; however, the

vaccine's protection wanes over time, leaving individuals susceptible. The

CDC panel suggested including whooping cough vaccine in the tetanus and

diphtheria booster vaccine that youth receive at or after 11 years of age.

The Food and Drug Administration has approved two whooping cough booster

vaccines in recent months.

" Hunt for Vaccine Yields New Technique "

Boston Globe

(www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2005/07/01/hunt_for_vaccine_

yields_new_technique/) (07/01/05); Neergaard, n

Researchers at Chiron have used " multiple genome screening " to develop

a

vaccine against potentially all strains of Group B streptococcus, a germ

found in up to 40 percent of women that usually causes no symptoms in adult

hosts but which is the leading cause of blood infection and meningitis in

newborns, killing between 80 and 100 each year. " This is a very, very

elegant, potentially usable avenue to go after that whole concept of

universal vaccines, " says National Institute of Allergy and Infectious

Diseases director Dr. Fauci of the development. The vaccine has

proven effective in mice, and Chiron is in negotiations with U.S. health

authorities to begin human clinical testing. Researchers are using the

same technique to identify the genes in various strains of E. coli,

bacterial pneumonia, and burkholderia.

" Delaware Approves Phase Out of Mercury in Vaccines "

Dow Newswires (www.djnewswires.com) (07/01/05)

Due to a new Delaware law taking effect on Jan. 1, 2006, physicians in the

state must stop administering vaccines containing more than a trace amount

of mercury, with the exception of the flu vaccine, to pregnant women and

children under the age of eight years. On Jan. 1, 2007, the law will apply

to the flu vaccine, and in 2008, it will prohibit any vaccine containing

even a trace of mercury, except during epidemics or emergencies.

INTERNATIONAL IMMUNIZATION NEWS

" Bird-Flu Virus Tightens Grip on Asia "

Wall Street Journal (ONLINE)

(online.wsj.com/article_print/0,,SB112047130426476449,00.html) (07/05/05)

Health officials at a three-day U.N. conference on avian flu that opened

this week in Kuala Lumpur are warning that the H5N1 strain of the virus

could be on the verge of mutation to a form easily transmittable among

humans. " The virus has behaved in ways that suggests it remains as

unstable, unpredictable and versatile as ever, " said Dr. Shigeru Omi of the

World Health Organization. " Judging by its performance today we need to be

on constant alert for surprises. " Health experts are urging governments to

launch mass vaccine campaigns to immunize poultry in impacted areas. Last

month, 6,000 wild migratory birds were killed by the disease in a remote

province of China, sparking fears of further contagion as migratory geese

and gulls fly south to Pakistan and India for the summer. Another concern

is the use of the human antiviral drug amantadine by Chinese farmers on

poultry, reducing its benefit to infected humans.

" Indonesian Polio Cases Reach 111 as Outbreak Continues to Spread "

Agence France Presse (asia.news./050705/ap/d8b568r01.html)

(07/05/05)

The World Health Organization confirmed on Tuesday numerous new polio

infections in Indonesia and reported that the country's polio outbreak now

numbers 111 infections. The spread of polio in Indonesia is growing

despite mass polio immunization campaigns, with most new cases appearing in

the western region of Java island. More than 6.5 million children in

Indonesia have received polio vaccinations and another 24 million children

are expected to receive vaccines in the next few months.

" Meningococcal B Vaccine May Be Working Already "

New Zealand Herald (www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?ObjectID=10333978)

(07/03/05)

According to Environmental Science and Research data, the number of

meningococcal B infections in New Zealand decreased about 33 percent in

2004 from 2003, with the rate of infection among Pacific Island children

under the age of one year dropping by about 66 percent during that period.

The drop in infections is most likely related to a new meningococcal B

vaccination program for children in the country, but a definitive link

between the decreasing number of infections and the vaccine program

requires more research, said Dr. Nikki of the Immunization Advisory

Center.

" Fed: Government Promises Free Hepatitis A Vaccine to Indigenous Children "

Australian Associated Press (AAP) (aap.com.au) (06/28/05)

Australia has launched a new program that will provide free hepatitis A

vaccinations to indigenous children. Health Minister Tony Abbott says the

program aims to inoculate around 30,000 children five years of age and

under living in Western and South Australia, Queensland, and the Northern

Territory. The project, which health officials plan to launch in Alice

Springs, will be carried out in two rounds--the first to be administered

from 12 months of age, followed by the second six months later. The

program will cost about A$1.6 million over the next four years.

________________________________________

PeoplePC Online

A better way to Internet

http://www.peoplepc.com