Monthly update: June 2024

Influenza: 

• ACIP  reaffirms the recommendation for routine annual influenza vaccination of all persons aged ≥6 months who do not have contraindications. ACIP recommends high-dose inactivated (HD-IIV3) and adjuvanted inactivated (aIIV3) influenza vaccines as acceptable options for influenza vaccination of solid organ transplant recipients aged 18 through 64 years who are on immunosuppressive medication regimens, without a preference over other age-appropriate IIV3s or RIV3.
• The NITAG of Belgium published the recommendations of Vaccination against seasonal influenza for the Winter season 2024-2025. The report is available in French here.

COVID-19: 

• ACIP  recommends 2024-2025 COVID-19 vaccines as authorized or approved by FDA in persons ≥6 months of age.
• NIAC (Irish NITAG) recommends a COVID-19 vaccine to be administered in the Autumn for:
  • those aged 60 years and older
  • those aged 6months-59years with immunocompromise associated with a suboptimal response to vaccination
  • those aged 6 months-59 years with medical conditions associated with a higher risk of COVID-19 hospitalisation, severe disease or death
  • those aged 18-59 years living in long term care facilities for older adults
  • health and care workers. 

For pregnant adolescents and adults, a COVID-19 vaccine once in pregnancy is recommended, if it is more than six months since their previous COVID-19 vaccine or infection. COVID-19 vaccine can be given at any stage in pregnancy, ideally given between 20-34 weeks’ gestation.

RSV: 

• Australia  updated the chapter of RSV in the immunisation handbook following ATAGI’s recommendation. Guidance available here.
• ACIP  recommends adults 75 years of age and older receive a single dose of RSV vaccine and recommends adults 60–74 years of age and older who are at increased risk of severe RSV disease receive a single dose of RSV vaccine. RSV vaccination is recommended as a single lifetime dose only. Persons who have already received RSV vaccination are NOT recommended to receive another dose. These recommendations supplant the current recommendation that adults 60 years of age and older may receive RSV vaccination, using shared clinical decision-making. Adults 60–74 years of age who are not at increased risk of severe RSV disease are NOT recommended to receive RSV vaccination.
• The French NITAG recommends seasonal vaccination of subjects aged 75 and over against RSV, in order to reduce the number of acute lower respiratory tract infections linked to RSV. HAS considers that the Arexvy vaccine and the Abrysvo vaccine can be used within the framework of this recommendation. In addition, the HAS recommends vaccination in subjects aged 65 and over with chronic respiratory pathologies (particularly COPD) or cardiac pathologies (particularly heart failure) likely to decompensate during an RSV infection; the Arexvy vaccine can be administered concomitantly with inactivated seasonal influenza vaccines (standard dose without adjuvant, high dose without adjuvant, or standard dose with adjuvant) and the Abrysvo vaccine with the seasonal influenza vaccine ( tetravalent vaccine, surface antigen, inactivated, with adjuvant). Recommendations available here.
• The French NITAG recommends vaccinating pregnant women against RSV in order to reduce the burden linked to RSV infections in infants. She considers that the Abrysvo vaccine can be used as part of this vaccination strategy. However, while awaiting additional pharmacovigilance data and in order to limit the consequences given a potential increased risk of premature births (not significant for this vaccine, but having led to the cessation of the development of a competing vaccine), and given the lack of vaccine effectiveness data for premature newborns, the NITAG recommends, as a precaution, that the vaccine be administered only between 32 and 36 weeks of gestation. Recommendations available here.

Pneumococcal vaccines:

• ACIP recommends PCV21 as an option for adults aged ≥19 years who currently have a recommendation to receive a dose of PCV.

SAGE:

• SAGE Ebola meeting report is available here.
• A call for experts to the WHO Technical Advisory Group (TAG) on clinical and policy considerations for new Tuberculosis (TB) vaccines is open. The closing date is 12 July 2024.  Please do share far and wide within your communities and networks. Detail information is in this link 

Dates for your diary:

• The next SAGE meeting is scheduled in September 23-26 2024. Note that any NITAG member can listen in. Please send an email to myself and Dilber (gunlud@who.int)  to be added on the SAGE mailing list.
• The next face-to-face GNN meeting will be in 28-30 April 2025.