Influenza-related mortality trends in Japanese and American seniors: evidence for the indirect mortality benefits of vaccinating schoolchildren |
| |
Authors: | Charu Vivek Viboud Cécile Simonsen Lone Sturm-Ramirez Katharine Shinjoh Masayoshi Chowell Gerardo Miller Mark Sugaya Norio |
| |
Institution: | Fogarty International Center, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, United States of America. vcharu@gmail.com |
| |
Abstract: | BackgroundThe historical Japanese influenza vaccination program targeted at schoolchildren provides a unique opportunity to evaluate the indirect benefits of vaccinating high-transmitter groups to mitigate disease burden among seniors. Here we characterize the indirect mortality benefits of vaccinating schoolchildren based on data from Japan and the US.MethodsWe compared age-specific influenza-related excess mortality rates in Japanese seniors aged ≥65 years during the schoolchildren vaccination program (1978–1994) and after the program was discontinued (1995–2006). Indirect vaccine benefits were adjusted for demographic changes, socioeconomics and dominant influenza subtype; US mortality data were used as a control.ResultsWe estimate that the schoolchildren vaccination program conferred a 36% adjusted mortality reduction among Japanese seniors (95%CI: 17–51%), corresponding to ~1,000 senior deaths averted by vaccination annually (95%CI: 400–1,800). In contrast, influenza-related mortality did not change among US seniors, despite increasing vaccine coverage in this population.ConclusionsThe Japanese schoolchildren vaccination program was associated with substantial indirect mortality benefits in seniors. |
| |
Keywords: | |
本文献已被 PubMed 等数据库收录! |
|