Vaccine
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To determine the medical costs of laboratory-confirmed rotavirus hospitalizations and emergency department (ED) visits and estimate the economic impact of the rotavirus vaccine program. ⋯ After implementation of rotavirus immunization, the total annual medical costs decreased from $283 million to $96 million, an annual reduction of $187 million.
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Post-partum vaccination of new mothers is currently recommended in Australia to reduce pertussis infection in infants. Internationally, vaccination recommendations now include pregnant women in some countries. Understanding the awareness of pertussis vaccination recommendations among pregnant women, and their willingness to have the vaccine while pregnant is important for informing vaccine program implementation. ⋯ Health care provider recommendation is paramount to raising awareness of pertussis vaccination recommendations among pregnant women. Women's willingness to have the vaccine while pregnant is encouraging, and indicates the potential for high pertussis vaccine coverage among pregnant women, should it be recommended in Australia.
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The quadrivalent and bivalent human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines are now licensed in several countries. We compared the cost-effectiveness of the HPV vaccines to provide evidence for policy decisions. ⋯ Vaccinating pre-adolescent girls against HPV is predicted to be highly cost-effective. If equally priced, the quadrivalent is the most economically desirable vaccine. However, ultimately, the most cost-effective HPV vaccine will be determined by their relative price.
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Comparative Study
Cost-effectiveness of hepatitis B vaccination using HEPLISAV™ in selected adult populations compared to Engerix-B® vaccine.
HEPLISAV™ is an adult hepatitis B vaccine that requires fewer doses over a shorter period of time and elicits higher and earlier seroprotection compared to Engerix-B to reduce the risk of hepatitis B infection. The objective of this analysis was to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of vaccination with HEPLISAV vs. Engerix-B(®) to prevent hepatitis B infection in select populations. ⋯ HEPLISAV is a cost-effective option to provide high rates of seroprotection and early seroprotection across a range of populations from health care workers to patients with chronic or end stage kidney disease.
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Prophylactic vaccines for human papillomavirus (HPV) are being introduced in many countries for the prevention of cervical cancer, the second most important cause of cancer-related death in women globally. This is likely to have a significant impact on the future burden of cervical cancer, particularly where screening is non-existent or limited in scale. Previous research on the challenges of vaccinating girls with the HPV vaccine has focused on evidence from developed countries. ⋯ Our evidence suggests that the range of challenges for poorer countries is significantly greater, not least the challenge of reaching girls for three doses in settings where school attendance is low and/or irregular. Financial and political barriers to HPV vaccine roll-out continue to be significant for many poorer countries. Several demonstration and pilot projects have achieved high rates of acceptability and coverage and lessons learned should be documented and shared.