Pediatric Flu Vaccine Is Safe And Effective in Very Young Children ------------

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Pediatric Flu Vaccine Is Safe And Effective in Very Young Children

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WESTPORT, CT (Reuters Health) Dec 25 - A specially packaged influenza vaccine

appears to be both safe and effective for use in children age 3 years and

younger, in whom influenza can be a potentially serious infection.

Dr. A. , of Aventis Pasteur International, in Lyon, France, and

colleagues there and in Montevideo, Uruguay, examined the safety and efficacy

of a purified, inactivated, triton split influenza vaccine in 65 children

ages 6 months to 3 years. The children were given two vaccinations, 1 month

apart, using prefilled syringes of 0.25 mL. Sixteen of those who received the

first injection did not complete the study.

" Immunogenicity results surpassed the European Community recommendations for

a 0.50 mL dose of vaccine in adults, " the investigators report in the

December issue of Archives of Diseases in Childhood. Specifically, 81.6% to

93.9% of the children achieved protective antibody concentrations by 30 days

after the second injection. In general, antibody titers against influenza

antigens in the children increased by a factor of 9.8 to 13.3 after

vaccination compared with pre-vaccination levels.

In addition, the influenza vaccine was well tolerated, Dr. 's group

adds. Only nine immediate reactions (characterized by an allergic rash)

occurred, all after the second dose was administered. Delayed local reactions

occurred in 7% of children after the first vaccination and in 6% after the

second vaccination, while systemic reactions after the two vaccinations were

reported in 16% and 18% of cases, respectively. Importantly, none of these

reactions was severe and " all subsided spontaneously. "

" The convenient presentation of the vaccine in a prefilled, 0.25 mL syringe

will allow medical personnel to give the exact dose recommended for young

children, while avoiding errors in manipulation and eliminating product

wastage, " they point out. Until now, healthcare workers have immunized

children using influenza vaccines packaged for adults, in which they

delivered half the dose and wasted the residual product.

Arch Dis Child 2000;83:488-491.

[Guest guest]

LSRandKCR@... wrote:

>

> Dr. A. , of Aventis Pasteur International, in Lyon, France, and

> colleagues there and in Montevideo, Uruguay, examined the safety and efficacy

> of a purified, inactivated, triton split influenza vaccine in 65 children

> ages 6 months to 3 years. The children were given two vaccinations, 1 month

> apart, using prefilled syringes of 0.25 mL. Sixteen of those who received the

> first injection did not complete the study.

So basically, 49 kids were followed up, but for how long? Any self-respecting

scientist (who isn't paid off by pharmaceutical companies) knows that that

number

is WAY too small to find any statistical significance in the results. The rate

of

reactions would have to be more than 1/49 for them to see anything, and if the

follow-up period wasn't very long (and I'm assuming it wasn't), of course

they're

not going to see many, if any, reactions!

>

>

>