Four-strain flu vaccine a first for 2016

Influenza (flu) vaccines that provide protection against four strains of the flu virus (quadrivalent vaccines) are being introduced into the National Immunisation Program (NIP) for the first time in 2016.
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) will be supplying the quadrivalent vaccine on the NIP for eligible children and adults aged three years and over.¹ Sanofi Pasteur will supply the vaccine used for eligible babies and toddlers aged from six months to less than three years.¹ GSK is one of the largest supplier of vaccines to the Department of Health and its National Immunisation Programs, across a number of preventative disease areas.
People eligible for funded influenza vaccine on the NIP are all adults 65 years and older, pregnant women at any stage of pregnancy, children (> 6 months) and adults with certain medical conditions which increase the risk of influenza complications, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders aged 6 months to <5 years of age and ³ 15 years of age.²
Associate Professor Michael Nissen, Director of Scientific Affairs and Public Health, GSK, said: “GSK has provided vaccines to the Australian government for many years and we are proud to have been selected as a provider of an influenza vaccine to the National Immunisation Program. We are a committed partner with the Department of Health and other stakeholders to ensure Australians are protected against influenza via the NIP.”
Four-strain flu vaccines include an additional B strain of influenza, compared with three-strain vaccines, and this is the first time quadrivalent vaccines have been used on the NIP to help protect against flu during the peak season. The four-strain flu vaccines are indicated for the prevention of influenza disease caused by the influenza virus types A and B contained in the vaccine.¹
In 2015, there were a record 100,571 cases of laboratory-confirmed influenza in Australia³, with influenza B viruses estimated to account for over 60 per cent of these cases.^4,5
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the USA say that getting a flu vaccine during the northern winter this season (where the quadrivalent vaccine is being used in conjunction with other forms of flu vaccines) has “reduced the risk of having to go to the doctor because of flu by nearly 60 percent”.⁶
Professor Robert Booy, immunisation and infectious diseases expert, University of Sydney, said: “Year to year, influenza is unpredictable. The most common A and B flu strains can change each year, and different strains can circulate in different states. Sometimes, as occurred in the 2015 influenza season, there is a high proportion of disease due to influenza B viruses, and there may be a switch of the dominant B strain during the season. So the introduction of quadrivalent flu vaccines is a welcome addition to the NIP in 2016.”
As strains included in influenza vaccines can change from year to year, and immunity provided by the vaccine gradually decreases over time, influenza vaccination is required every year.²
References:

1. Approved Product Information for  the quadrivalent influenza vaccines manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline and Sanofi Pasteur (Junior formulation)


2. Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI) information on influenza vaccines for individuals 2016. Accessed online 15/3/16. https://www.immunise.health.gov.au/internet/immunise/publishing.nsf/Content/CEFAEED02F595802CA257F6A001E7ECB/$File/ATAGI-Annual-Influenza-Vaccine-Statement-consumer2016.pdf
   


3. Australian Government Department of Health, National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System. Accessed online 15/03/15. http://www9.health.gov.au/cda/source/rpt_3.cfm
   


4. Department of Health. Australian Influenza Surveillance Report.  10 (15); reporting period 26 Sept- 9 Oct  2015. Accessed online 15/3/16. http://www.health.gov.au/flureport
   


5. Department of Health (2015) press release: New flu protection following high season Accessed online 08/03/16 https://www.health.gov.au/internet/ministers/publishing.nsf/Content/C7AB79123821BDDFCA257EF400774822/$File/SL133.pdf
   


6. Centre for Disease Control and Prevention. Press release: Flu Vaccine Nearly 60 Percent Effective. Accessed online 11/3/16. http://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2016/flu-vaccine-60-percent.html
   


7. Department of Health. Influenza (flu) fact sheet. Accessed online 15/3/16. https://www.immunise.health.gov.au/internet/immunise/publishing.nsf/Content/immunise-influenza
   


8. Department of Health. Australian Immunisation Handbook; Influenza (Chapter 4.7): 10^th ed. (updated June 2015).  Accessed online 15/3/16. http://www.immunise.health.gov.au/internet/immunise/publishing.nsf/Content/Handbook10-home~handbook10part4~handbook10-4-7