Vaccine
-
The COVID-19 pandemic has a worldwide impact on all health services, including childhood immunizations. In Canada, there is limited data to quantify and characterize this issue. ⋯ COVID-19 has caused substantial modifications to pediatric immunization services across Ontario. Strategies to mitigate barriers to immunizations during the pandemic need to be implemented in order to avoid immunity gaps that could lead to an eventual increase in vaccine preventable diseases.
-
Clinical trials of the BNT162b2 vaccine, revealed efficacy and safety. We report six cases of myocarditis, which occurred shortly after BNT162b2 vaccination. ⋯ Our report of myocarditis after BNT162b2 vaccination may be possibly considered as an adverse reaction following immunization. We believe our information should be interpreted with caution and further surveillance is warranted.
-
Prevalence and determinants of SARS-CoV-2 vaccine hesitancy in Hong Kong: A population-based survey.
Although vaccination against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the most desired solution to end the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, there are growing concerns that vaccine hesitancy would undermine its potential. We examined the intention to receive vaccination against SARS-CoV-2 and the associated factors in a representative sample of Chinese adults in Hong Kong. ⋯ In a representative sample of Chinese adults in Hong Kong, only 45.3% of the participants intended to vaccinate against SARS-CoV-2 when available. Vaccine hesitancy was associated with inadequate knowledge about SARS-CoV-2 transmission and lower perceived danger of COVID-19, which needed to be addressed to improve vaccination uptake.
-
The objective of this study is to assess cases of thrombocytopenia, including immune thrombocytopenia (ITP), reported to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) following vaccination with mRNA COVID-19 vaccines. ⋯ The number of thrombocytopenia cases reported to VAERS does not suggest a safety concern attributable to mRNA COVID-19 vaccines at this time.
-
The Brighton Collaboration Viral Vector Vaccines Safety Working Group (V3SWG) was formed to evaluate the safety and characteristics of live, recombinant viral vector vaccines. The Modified Vaccinia Ankara (MVA) vector system is being explored as a platform for development of multiple vaccines. This paper reviews the molecular and biological features specifically of the MVA-BN vector system, followed by a template with details on the safety and characteristics of an MVA-BN based vaccine against Zaire ebolavirus and other filovirus strains. ⋯ MVA-BN-Filo as part of a heterologous Ebola vaccination regimen (Ad26. ZEBOV/MVA-BN-Filo) has undergone clinical testing including Phase III in West Africa and is currently in use in large scale vaccination studies in Central African countries. This paper provides a comprehensive picture of the MVA-BN vector, which has reached regulatory approvals, both as MVA-BN backbone for smallpox/monkeypox, as well as for the MVA-BN-Filo construct as part of an Ebola vaccination regimen, and therefore aims to provide solutions to prevent disease from high-consequence human pathogens.