[Anti-flu Vaccine: tailor made solutions in large-scale distribution].

Abstract

Influenza is a public health problem with a strong impact from an epidemiological, clinical and economic point of view. Many factors contribute: ubiquity and contagiousness of the disease, antigenic variability of the viruses and the possibility of serious complications. Influenza rarely causes complications in healthy subjects. On the contrary complications can occur and be severe in people with fragile conditions. More susceptible to infection are: children, elderly, pregnant women, people with chronic conditions or undergoing immunosuppressive therapies. Vaccine is an important preventive measure. It allows to protect both the vaccinated person and those at risk. Thanks to the presence of diversified vaccines, we can offer targeted prevention. Vaccine innovations also involved production methods, allowing GPs to choose a quadrivalent cell-derived in addition to the quadrivalent egg-derived and the trivalent vaccine. Age, existing pathologies and immune system reactivity are fundamental elements guiding the customized choice of GPs. Recent years innovations concerning the increased immunogenicity (adjuvated and high-dose vaccines) and the protection against a greater number of strains (quadrivalent vaccine) in addition to new production methods (cell derived vaccine) allow us to trust in further possibilities for the future.