Title
Influenza in Latin America: A report from the Global Influenza Initiative (GII)
Date Issued
06 May 2019
Access level
metadata only access
Resource Type
review
Author(s)
Publisher(s)
Elsevier Ltd
Abstract
The Global Influenza Initiative (GII)is a global expert group that aims to raise acceptance and uptake of influenza vaccines globally and provides recommendations and strategies to address challenges at local, national, regional, and global levels. This article provides a consolidated estimation of disease burden in Latin America, currently lacking in published literature, and delivers the GII recommendations specific to Latin America that provide guidance to combat existing vaccination challenges. While many countries worldwide, especially in the tropics and subtropics, do not have a seasonal influenza policy, 90% of Latin American countries have a seasonal influenza policy in place. Local governments in the Latin American countries and The Pan American Health Organization's Technical Advisory Group on Vaccine-preventable Diseases play a major role in improving the vaccination coverage and reducing the overall disease burden. Influenza seasonality poses the biggest challenge in deciding on optimal timing for vaccination in Latin America, as in temperate climates seasonal influenza activity peaks during the winter months (November–February and May–October)in the northern and southern hemispheres, respectively, while in the tropics and subtropical regions it usually occurs throughout the year, but especially during the rainy season. Besides this, vaccine mismatch with circulating strains, misconception concerning influenza vaccine effectiveness, and poor disease and vaccine awareness among the public are also key challenges that need to be overcome. Standardization of clinical case definitions is important across all Latin American countries. Surveillance (mostly passive)has improved substantially in the Latin American countries over the past decade, but more is still required to better understand the disease burden and help inform policies.
Start page
2670
End page
2678
Volume
37
Issue
20
Language
English
OCDE Knowledge area
Epidemiología
Inmunología
Subjects
Scopus EID
2-s2.0-85063968077
PubMed ID
Source
Vaccine
ISSN of the container
0264410X
Sponsor(s)
The authors are Steering Committee members of the GII, which is funded by an educational grant from Sanofi Pasteur. The GII is not influenced in any way by Sanofi Pasteur. GII members hold the full right to determine meeting agenda items and to lead the discussions and outputs. Sanofi Pasteur representatives might have attended the meetings, but as observers only, and they do not influence the findings of the group. NB was a member of the Advisory Board and presented in symposia organized by Sanofi Pasteur. JPT presented in a symposium organized by Sanofi Pasteur. The other authors do not have any conflict of interest. All authors had full access to the study data and take full ownership for the integrity of the data and the accuracy of the data analysis. All authors agreed to submit this manuscript for publication.
Sources of information:
Directorio de Producción Científica
Scopus