About H1N1 vaccine, H1N1vaccine production, H1N1 vaccine manufacturers

More than 690,000 Americans have already received this season’s flu vaccine from their doctor, according to SDI’s VaccineTrack® data through Sept. 4. VaccineTrack® provides syndicated weekly vaccine usage by physicians based on medical office electronic healthcare reimbursement claims data.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently announced an unprecedented campaign to combat seasonal flu through a universal vaccination strategy. CDC removed many restrictions and currently supports seasonal influenza vaccination for all persons 6 months of age and older based on the recommendation of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, which advises CDC on vaccine issues. Read more…

PORTSMOUTH, Va. (NNS) — Navy and Marine Corps Public Health Center (NMCPHC) experts underscored the importance of mandatory influenza vaccination Sept. 9 and clarified how and why a new vaccine is developed and produced annually.

“Early annual immunization is the best method to help combat the effects of influenza as no two influenza strains are exactly alike,” said Cmdr. Chris Clagett, Navy physician and head of NMCPHC preventive medicine.
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Shots flu

Seasonal flu shots have arrived in Northeast Ohio.

Retail pharmacies throughout the region are promoting the availability of the 2010-11 seasonal flu vaccine, which will include protection against H1N1 influenza, also known as swine flu.

For the first time, a national advisory panel for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) this year is recommending all Americans 6 months and older get inoculated against seasonal flu.

Previous recommendations focused on high-risk groups, including children, the elderly and people with chronic illnesses that make them more at risk for complications from the flu.

Public health experts have determined a universal vaccination strategy will provide better protection for at-risk people, said Dr. Marguerite Erme, the Summit County Health District’s medical director.

”Because the population as a whole is in contact with many of these subgroups, the CDC and the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices has said everyone over the age of 6 months should be vaccinated,” she said.

The thought is to place a ”ring of protection” around high-risk groups, Erme said.

”If my son who is 13 gets vaccinated, he is less likely to get the disease and spread it to my 87-year-ancient mother-in-law, who is much more susceptible to getting the disease,” she said. Read more…

PUNE: The number of H1N1 vaccine doses supplied in the state till date is 9.57 lakh. Among the cities, Pune tops the list. But, other cities which were not hit hard by the contagion are also not lagging behind.

“People’s response towards vaccination has been very positive,” Rajeev Dhere, senior director and head of the Serum Institute of India’s H1N1 vaccine project, told TOI on Friday. Pune has been supplied 5,55,645 doses followed by Kolhapur (70,113) and Nagpur (66,820). Mumbai has been supplied 1.55 lakh doses so far, he added.
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The Finnish National Institute for Health (THL) proposed suspending vaccinations for H1N1 swine flu, due to suspected links to increased narcolepsy in children and adolescents, the body announced this week.

Six cases of narcolepsy, a chronic disorder causing excessive daytime sleepiness and extreme fatigue, have been reported after patients had been receiving the Pandemrix vaccine. Read more…

Faced with an acute shortage of nasal syringes for delivering the intra-nasal H1N1 vaccine, Nasovac, the Serum Institute of India (SII) has questioned all its suppliers to increase production capacity with immediate effect.

The company went into a supply shortage situation last week with nasal syringes running out of stock. Consequently, suppliers were questioned to increase their production capacity at the earliest, Adar Poonawalla, co-owner and executive director SII said.Nasovac kit is sold for Rs158 each. Read more…