Preparing well in advance for the upcoming flu season, 2008-2009, the FDA issued an all clearance to vaccines including;
• GlaxoSmithKline Plc's Fluarix;
• FluLaval by ID Biomedical Corporation of Quebec
• Novartis AG's Fluvirin;
• Sanofi Aventis SA's Fluzone;
• CSL Ltd's Afluria.
A nasal spray, FluMist manufactured by AstraZeneca Plc unit MedImmune also received the FDA clearance.
Reportedly making an ‘unusual occurrence’, the FDA said it changed all three strains for this year's vaccine as against only one or two strains updated year to year.
Two strains from Type A, an H1N1 and an H3N2 version, and one for Type B have been included in the new vaccines, experts highlight.
"One of the biggest challenges in the fight against influenza is producing new vaccines every year," Dr. Jesse L. Goodman, director of FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research stated.
Explaining the mechanism behind the development of new vaccines, year to year experts from leading health agencies namely, the FDA, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the World Health Organization, among other health institutions, study virus samples and patterns of circulating strains.
Based on the calculations and predictions, the FDA issues guidelines to drug manufacturers which then upgrade vaccines each year.
However, unfortunately, at times the predictions fall short, as was the case during the past flu season of 2007-08.
Nearly 5 percent to 20 percent of the U.S. population gets the flu each year, CDC estimates. While, over 200,000 require medical intervention for clearing flu complications, about 36,000 people die from the infection each year.
While typical symptoms of the infection include chills, fever, sore throat, muscle pains, severe headache, coughing, weakness and general overall discomfort, the infection raises the risk of other serious complications in elderly, young children and those with weakened immune systems.
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