Unadjuvanted H1N1 vaccine for pregnant women

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Unadjuvanted H1N1 vaccine for pregnant women

Updated Fri. Sep. 4 2009 3:39 PM ET

The Canadian Press

TORONTO -- Canada plans to buy some unadjuvanted swine flu vaccine to offer to

pregnant women who might otherwise choose not to be vaccinated.

Chief Public Health Officer Dr. - says Canada will buy 1.2

million doses of unadjuvanted pandemic vaccine for pregnant women, who are at

higher risk of becoming severely ill and dying if they contract the virus.

The vaccine will be supplied by GlaxoKline, Canada's pandemic vaccine

manufacturer, and is expected to be available at the same time as the country's

other supplies of vaccine.

Adjuvants are compounds that boost the immune system's response to vaccine,

allowing smaller doses to be used per person.

None of the currently licensed flu vaccines in Canada contains an adjuvant and

there are no data on the use of adjuvanted flu vaccine in pregnant women.

A World Health Organization advisory panel on vaccines recommended in June that

unadjuvanted vaccine be used for pregnant women if it is available.

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