May 3, 2010
Australian study finds waste with multidose vaccine vials
To gauge Australian doctors' use of pandemic flu vaccine in multidose vials, not routinely used in that country, researchers polled general practices in Sydney and found that about 42% of vaccine was wasted in the first month of the campaign. Less waste occurred with 10-dose vials than with 20-dose vials. There was no difference between solo and group practices. The group concluded that the vials are inefficient for general practice use and that greater use of 10-dose vials could reduce waste.
http://www.mja.com.au/public/issues/192_09_030510/letters_030510_fm-1.html
May 3 Med J Aust letter
H1N1 infected 20% of Nicaraguan kids
Researchers who studied flu in a cohort of 4,391 Nicaraguan children found that 20.1% of the group had pandemic flu in 2009, compared with seasonal flu attack rates of 11.9% in 2007, when influenza A dominated, and 24.2% in 2008, when types A and B were both common. Children who had pandemic flu were more likely to have sore throat, lower respiratory symptoms, and gastrointestinal problems, including nausea and loss of appetite.
http://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/abs/10.1086/652647
Clin Infect Dis abstract
