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Lancet commentary cautiously optimistic about public health system in Haiti

In this Lancet commentary, John Vertefeuille, Scott Dowell, Jean Domercant and Jordan Tappero of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) examine the state of the public health system in Haiti three years after a 7.0 earthquake struck the country, writing, "Haiti is starting to show that its health services have expanded far beyond those in place before the earthquake occurred."

17 Jan 2013

Experts blame lack of immunization coverage for Pakistan's measles outbreak

In 2012, measles "claimed the lives of more than 300 children in Pakistan," with more than 200 of those deaths from Sindh province, and health experts and the WHO are saying "the huge difference in routine immunization coverage between the provinces, districts and cities is at the root of the measles outbreak," Inter Press Service reports.

16 Jan 2013

Haiti cholera: less than 50% vaccination needed to halt spread

Researchers have used a mathematical model to show that a surprisingly low level of vaccination coverage would stem the spread of cholera in Haiti that has followed the 2010 earthquake.

14 Jan 2013

Less than 45% of children are vaccinated against flu: Study

This year's flu season is in full swing with 41 states now reporting widespread illness. Unfortunately, not enough children are getting the flu shot even though health officials recommend that all children 6 months and older get the vaccine. According to a new study by researchers at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, less than 45 percent of children were vaccinated against the flu during a five-year study period.

11 Jan 2013

Taking early and repeated WBC is critical in determining infants at high risk of pertussis

A study released today from the upcoming issue of the Journal of the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society (JPIDS) found that taking early and repeated white blood cell counts (WBC) is critical in determining whether infants have pertussis and which of those children are at highest risk of death from the disease.

11 Jan 2013

Cholera could be contained in Haiti by vaccinating less than half the population

Cholera could be contained in Haiti by vaccinating less than half the population, University of Florida researchers suggest in a paper to be published Thursday in the journal Scientific Reports.

11 Jan 2013

Public health school deans condemn CIA's use of fake vaccination campaign in letter to Obama

"The deans of the nation's top public health schools sent a letter to President Obama on Monday condemning the Central Intelligence Agency's use of a vaccination campaign ruse in the hunt for Osama bin Laden," the New York Times reports.

9 Jan 2013

EC approves Pfizer’s Prevenar 13 to prevent pneumococcal disease

Pfizer Inc. announced today that the European Commission has approved expanding the use of the company's pneumococcal conjugate vaccine, Prevenar 13(pneumococcal polysaccharide conjugate vaccine [13-valent, adsorbed]), to older children and adolescents aged 6 to 17 years for active immunization for the prevention of invasive disease, pneumonia and acute otitis media caused by vaccine-type Streptococcus pneumoniae.

9 Jan 2013

Support innovative financing mechanisms for global health

"Millions of lives are saved today in developing countries because of bold, innovative financing arrangements over last 10 years.

8 Jan 2013

Study shows timely reminders increase immunization rates among preschool children

New research from the Children's Outcomes Research Program at Children's Hospital Colorado shows that timely reminders by state or local health departments are more effective at increasing immunization rates among preschool children than those from primary care practices.

8 Jan 2013

Editorial, opinion pieces address effects of health worker murders in Pakistan on polio eradication

Several news outlets published opinion pieces regarding the recent murders of polio vaccination and other aid workers in Pakistan.

7 Jan 2013

Killing of polio workers in Pakistan is major setback for global elimination drive

"The brutal assassination of nine grassroots level health workers in Pakistan, who were involved in a door-to-door immunization campaign in an attempt to secure children from crippling polio, adds an unprecedentedly grave dimension to the ongoing carnage in Pakistan," Sania Nishtar, founder of Heartfile, Heartfile Health Financing, and the recently launched Sania Nishtar Health Fund, writes in an opinion piece in the Huffington Post U.K.'s "Impact" blog.

4 Jan 2013

Pakistan records 306 measles cases in 2012, compared with 64 in 2011, WHO reports

"Measles cases surged in Pakistan in 2012, and hundreds of children died from the disease, an international health body said Tuesday," the Associated Press/CBS News reports. "A spokeswoman for the World Health Organization, Maryam Yunus, said that 306 children died in Pakistan of measles in 2012, compared to 64 the year before," the news agency writes.

4 Jan 2013

Banning thimerosal from vaccines could hinder achievements in global childhood immunization

"Thanks to a herculean effort by health advocates, 78 percent of children in low-income countries receive the basic set of childhood vaccines, covering diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, hepatitis B and haemophilus influenza," a Bloomberg View editorial states.

3 Jan 2013

Sweet solution dulls needle pain in infants

Giving infants small amounts of sugar solution may reduce the pain they feel during injections, show results from a Cochrane systematic review.

28 Dec 2012

Pakistan reports 9th death in polio worker attacks, resumes vaccination campaign under police escort

"Another victim from attacks on U.N.-backed anti-polio teams in Pakistan died on Thursday, bringing the three-day death toll in the wave of assaults on volunteers vaccinating children across the country to nine, officials said," the Associated Press reports (Khan, 12/20). "Four female health workers were killed in Karachi, shot dead by masked men on motorbikes.

21 Dec 2012

International community condemns attacks on polio workers in Pakistan

"U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is calling the killing of health workers trying to vaccinate Pakistani children against polio in a U.N.-backed campaign 'cruel, senseless and inexcusable,'" the Associated Press reports, noting, "Ban said at his year-end news conference on Wednesday that the eight killed were among thousands across Pakistan 'working selflessly to achieve the historic goal of polio eradication.'"

21 Dec 2012

Experts warn banning thimerosal from use in vaccines would harm immunization campaigns in developing world

"A group of prominent doctors and public health experts warns in articles to be published Monday in the journal Pediatrics that banning thimerosal, a mercury compound used as a preservative in vaccines, would devastate public health efforts in developing countries," the New York Times reports.

17 Dec 2012

GSK receives FDA approval for FLUARIX QUADRIVALENT to treat seasonal flu

GlaxoSmithKline plc announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved FLUARIX QUADRIVALENT (Influenza Virus Vaccine) for the immunisation of children (three years and older) and adults to help prevent disease caused by seasonal influenza (flu) virus subtypes A and type B contained in the vaccine.

17 Dec 2012

Increased life expectancy not benefitting everybody equally: U of T

Global lifespans have risen dramatically in the past 40 years, but the increased life expectancy is not benefitting everybody equally, say University of Toronto researchers. In particular, adult males from low- and middle-income countries are losing ground.

17 Dec 2012

Immunization News and Research

Lancet commentary cautiously optimistic about public health system in Haiti

Experts blame lack of immunization coverage for Pakistan's measles outbreak

Haiti cholera: less than 50% vaccination needed to halt spread

Less than 45% of children are vaccinated against flu: Study

Taking early and repeated WBC is critical in determining infants at high risk of pertussis

Cholera could be contained in Haiti by vaccinating less than half the population

Public health school deans condemn CIA's use of fake vaccination campaign in letter to Obama

EC approves Pfizer’s Prevenar 13 to prevent pneumococcal disease

Support innovative financing mechanisms for global health

Study shows timely reminders increase immunization rates among preschool children

Editorial, opinion pieces address effects of health worker murders in Pakistan on polio eradication

Killing of polio workers in Pakistan is major setback for global elimination drive

Pakistan records 306 measles cases in 2012, compared with 64 in 2011, WHO reports

Banning thimerosal from vaccines could hinder achievements in global childhood immunization

Sweet solution dulls needle pain in infants

Pakistan reports 9th death in polio worker attacks, resumes vaccination campaign under police escort

International community condemns attacks on polio workers in Pakistan

Experts warn banning thimerosal from use in vaccines would harm immunization campaigns in developing world

GSK receives FDA approval for FLUARIX QUADRIVALENT to treat seasonal flu

Increased life expectancy not benefitting everybody equally: U of T

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

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