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The World Health Organisation (WHO) logo is seen at its headquarters in Geneva - Source: Reuters -
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The first vaccines to combat H1N1 swine flu should be approved
and ready for use in some countries from September, the World
Health Organisation said.
Marie-Paule Kieny, WHO director of the Initiative for Vaccine
Research, also said vaccine production yields were improving,
following a disappointing start that triggered some worries about
supplies.
One of the virus strains used by vaccine makers now seems to be
yielding the same amount as seasonal vaccine, while early
indications were that pandemic H1N1 yields might be only 30% of
normal.
"I don't want to say too early that the question has been resolved
but it really seems that we have found a way to go round this
problem," Kieny told reporters. "We are on track in
development."
First results from clinical trials are expected early next month
and these tests will show whether one or two doses are needed to
provide immunity - another big swing factor in determining how many
people can be vaccinated.
Once initial clinical trial results are in, regulators will be able
to approve the vaccines from next month and the first countries are
expected to start mass vaccination programmes, Kieny added.
The H1N1 flu outbreak, declared a pandemic on June 11, has spread
around the world and could eventually affect two billion people,
according to WHO estimates.
Fears the strain could become resistant to the anti-viral drug
Tamiflu have underscored the need to get vaccines to market
quickly.
The H1N1 vaccines would be given separately from regular
seasonal flu shots.
Leading flu vaccine makers include Sanofi-Aventis, GlaxoSmithKline,
Novartis, Baxter, CSL and Solvay.
WHO Director-General Margaret Chan has said the H1N1 virus is
stable and there were no signs of it mixing with other more
dangerous types of influenza such as the deadly H5N1 bird flu
strain.
At present, patients with mild symptoms generally do not need any
medicines to recover, and Chan has stressed hospital visits are not
necessary unless those infected with flu have certain warning
signs.
These include long-lasting high fever in adults and a lack of alertness in children.
Pregnant women and people with health problems including
diabetes are also vulnerable to more severe effects from the new
flu strain.
Fast-track approval safe
The WHO said vaccines had to be available quickly and in large
quantities to have the greatest impact and it insists that
fast-track approval will not jeopardise safety.
Vaccines arrived too late in the 1957 and 1968 flu pandemics to be
of much use, and flu vaccines had not been developed in the 1918
Spanish flu pandemic which killed an estimated 50 million
people.
Some concerns have been raised because of serious side effects
and 30 deaths seen during a US swine flu vaccination in 1976.
Kieny said vaccine production and purity levels had improved
significantly since but safety issues could arise during a pandemic
when a vaccine is administered on a mass scale, even if they did
not show up in safety trials.
As a result, countries are being advised to conduct intensive
monitoring as the vaccination campaign goes on.
