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WHAT'S NEW THIS THURSDAY: THREE ON ROTAVIRUS VACCINATION

Thursday, 1st of November 2012

• THREE ON ROTAVIRUS VACCINATION
• REMOVING THE AGE RESTRICTIONS FOR ROTAVIRUS VACCINATION: A BENEFIT-RISK MODELING ANALYSIS

Manish M. Patel^1*, Andrew D. Clark², Colin F. B. Sanderson², Jacqueline Tate¹, Umesh D. Parashar¹ 

 

Background

Rotavirus causes severe diarrhea and vomiting. It is responsible for a large number of hospitalizations among young children in developed countries (an estimated 60,000 hospitalizations per year in the US in 2005, for example). In poor countries, rotavirus is a major cause of death in children under five. In 1998, the first rotavirus vaccine, called RotaShield, was approved in the US by the Food and Drug Administration. Shortly after the vaccine became widely used, doctors noticed a small increase in a problem called intussusception among the vaccinated infants. Intussusception is a rare type of bowel obstruction that occurs when the bowel telescopes in on itself. Prompt treatment of intussusception normally leads to full recovery, but some children with the condition need surgery, and when the disease is left untreated it can be fatal. Because intussusception is a serious condition and because very few children die from rotavirus infection in the United States, the US authorities stopped recommending vaccination with RotaShield in 1999. The manufacturer withdrew the vaccine from the market shortly thereafter.

Since then, two new vaccines (named Rotarix and RotaTeq) have been developed. Before they were approved in the US and elsewhere, they were extensively tested for any adverse side effects, especially intussusception. No increase in the risk for intussusception was found in these studies, and both are now approved and recommended for vaccination of infants around the world.

Why Was This Study Done?

Since 2006, hundreds of thousands of infants have been vaccinated with Rotarix or RotaTeq, with safety being closely monitored. Some countries have reported a small increase in intussusception (one to four additional cases per 100,000 vaccinated infants, compared with one per 2,000 of cases that occur in unvaccinated children). This increase is much lower than the one seen previously with RotaShield. In response to these findings, authorities in the US and other developed countries as well as the World Health Organization declared that the benefits of the vaccine outweigh the risks of the small number of additional intussusception cases in both developed and poor countries. However, because older infants have a higher risk of naturally occurring intussusception, they decided that the course of vaccination (three oral doses for Rotarix and two for RotaTeq) should be initiated before 15 weeks of age and completed before the age of 32 weeks. This is usually not a problem in countries with easy access to health facilities. However, in many poor countries where delays in infant vaccination are common, giving the vaccine only to very young children means that many others who could benefit from its protection will be excluded. In this study, the researchers examined the risks and benefits of rotavirus vaccination in poor countries where most of the rotavirus deaths occur. Specifically, they looked at the benefits and risks if the age restrictions were removed, with a particular emphasis on allowing infants to initiate rotavirus immunization even if they arrive after 15 weeks of age.

What Did the Researchers Do and Find?

The researchers used the most recent estimates for how well the vaccines protect children in Africa and Asia from becoming infected with rotavirus, how many deaths from rotavirus infection can be avoided by vaccination, how many additional cases of intussusception will likely occur in vaccinated children, and what proportion of children would be excluded from rotavirus vaccination because they are too old when they come to a health facility for their infant vaccination. They then estimated the number of rotavirus deaths prevented and the number of intussusception deaths caused by vaccination in two scenarios. The first one (the restricted scenario) corresponds to previous guidelines from WHO and others, in which rotavirus vaccination needs to be initiated before 15 weeks and the full series completed before 32 weeks. The second one (called the unrestricted scenario) allows rotavirus vaccination of children alongside current routinely administered vaccines up to three years of age, recognizing that most children receive their vaccination by 1 year of life.

The researchers estimated that removing the age restriction would prevent an additional 154 rotavirus deaths for each intussusception death caused by the vaccine. Under the unrestricted scenario, roughly a third more children would get vaccinated, which would prevent an additional approximately 47,000 death from rotavirus while causing approximately 300 additional intussusception deaths.

They also calculated some best- and worst-case scenarios. The worst-case scenario assumed a much higher risk of intussusception for children receiving their first dose after 15 weeks of life than what has been seen anywhere, and also that an additional 20% of children with intussusception would die from it than what was already assumed in their routine scenario (again, a higher number than seen in reality). In addition, it assumes a lower protection from rotavirus death for the vaccine than has been observed in children vaccinated so far. In this pessimistic case, the number of rotavirus deaths prevented was 24 for each intussusception death caused by the vaccine.

What Do These Findings Mean?

If one accepts that deaths caused by a vaccine are not fundamentally different from deaths caused by a failure to vaccinate, then these results show that the benefits of lifting the age restriction for rotavirus vaccine clearly outweigh the risks, at least when only examining mortality outcomes. The calculations are valid only for low-income countries in Africa and Asia where both vaccination delays and deaths from rotavirus are common. The risk-benefit ratio will be different elsewhere. There are also additional risks and benefits that are not included in the study's estimates. For example, early vaccination might be seen as less of an urgent priority when this vaccine can be had at a later date, leaving very young children more vulnerable. On the other hand, when many children in the community are vaccinated, even the unvaccinated children are less likely to get infected (what is known as “herd immunity”), something that has not been taken into account in the benefits here. The results of this study (and its limitations) were reviewed in April 2012 by WHO's Strategic Advisory Group of Experts. The group then recommended that, while early vaccination is still strongly encouraged, the age restriction on rotavirus vaccination should be removed in countries where delays in vaccination and rotavirus mortality are common so that more vulnerable children can be vaccinated and deaths from rotavirus averted.

• CASE-CONTROL STUDY OF THE ETIOLOGY OF INFANT DIARRHEAL DISEASE IN 14 DISTRICTS IN MADAGASCAR

‘[C]ross sectional studies of enteropathogens and their spatial distribution, including diarrheal and non diarrheal subjects, are interesting tools in order to advise regional policies . . .’ 

PLoS One. 2012;7(9):e44533. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0044533. Epub 2012 Sep 17.

 

Randremanana R, Randrianirina F, Gousseff M, Dubois N, Razafindratsimandresy R, Hariniana ER, Garin B, Randriamanantena A, Rakotonirina HC, Ramparany L, Ramarokoto CE, Rakotomanana F, Ratsitorahina M, Rajatonirina S, Talarmin A, Richard V.

Source

Epidemiologic Unit, Institut Pasteur in Madagascar, Antananarivo, Madagascar.

Abstract below; full text is at http://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0044533

BACKGROUND:

Acute diarrhea is a major cause of childhood morbidity and mortality worldwide. Its microbiological causes and clinico-epidemiological aspects were examined during the rainy seasons from 2008 to 2009 in 14 districts in Madagascar.

METHODS:

Stool specimens of 2196 children with acute diarrhea and 496 healthy children were collected in a community setting. Intestinal parasites were diagnosed by microscopy and bacteria by culturing methods. Rota-, astro and adenoviruses were identified using commercially available ELISA kits and rotaviruses were confirmed using reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR).

RESULTS:

Intestinal microorganisms were isolated from 54.6% of diarrheal patients and 45.9% of healthy subjects (p = <0.01). The most common pathogens in diarrheic patients were intestinal parasites (36.5%). Campylobacter spp. and Rotavirus were detected in 9.7% and 6.7% of diarrheic patients. The detection rates of Entamoeba histolytica, Trichomonas intestinalis and Giardia lamblia were much greater in diarrheal patients than in non diarrheal subjects (odds ratios of 5.1, 3.2, 1.7 respectively). The abundance of other enteropathogens among the non diarrheal group may indicate prolonged excretion or limited pathogenicity.

CONCLUSION:

In developing countries, where the lack of laboratory capacities is great, cross sectional studies of enteropathogens and their spatial distribution, including diarrheal and non diarrheal subjects, are interesting tools in order to advise regional policies on treatment and diarrheic patient management.

• HUMAN ROTAVIRUS VACCINE ROTARIX™ PROVIDES PROTECTION AGAINST DIVERSE CIRCULATING ROTAVIRUS STRAINS IN AFRICAN INFANTS: A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL

Steele AD, Neuzil KM, Cunliffe NA, Madhi SA, Bos P, Ngwira B, Witte D, Todd S, Louw C, Kirsten M, Aspinall S, Van Doorn LJ, Bouckenooghe A, Suryakiran PV, Han HH.

 

BMC Infect Dis. 2012 Sep 13;12:213. doi: 10.1186/1471-2334-12-213.

Source

Rotavirus Vaccine Program, PATH, 2201 Westlake Ave, Seattle, WA, 98121, USA. duncan.steele@gatesfoundation.org.

Abstract below; full text is at http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2334/12/213

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND:

Rotaviruses are the most important cause of severe acute gastroenteritis worldwide in children <5 years of age. The human, G1P[8] rotavirus vaccine Rotarix™ significantly reduced severe rotavirus gastroenteritis episodes in a Phase III clinical trial conducted in infants in South Africa and Malawi. This paper examines rotavirus vaccine efficacy in preventing severe rotavirus gastroenteritis, during infancy, caused by the various G and P rotavirus types encountered during the first rotavirus-season.

METHODS:

Healthy infants aged 5-10 weeks were enrolled and randomized into three groups to receive either two (10 and 14 weeks) or three doses of Rotarix™ (together forming the pooled Rotarix™ group) or three doses of placebo at a 6,10,14-week schedule. Weekly home visits were conducted to identify gastroenteritis episodes. Rotaviruses were detected by ELISA and genotyped by RT-PCR and nucleotide sequencing. The percentage of infants with severe rotavirus gastroenteritis caused by the circulating G and P types from 2 weeks post-last dose until one year of age and the corresponding vaccine efficacy was calculated with 95% CI.

RESULTS:

Overall, 4939 infants were vaccinated and 4417 (pooled Rotarix™ = 2974; placebo = 1443) were included in the per protocol efficacy cohort. G1 wild-type was detected in 23 (1.6%) severe rotavirus gastroenteritis episodes from the placebo group. This was followed in order of detection by G12 (15 [1%] in placebo) and G8 types (15 [1%] in placebo). Vaccine efficacy against G1 wild-type, G12 and G8 types were 64.1% (95% CI: 29.9%; 82%), 51.5% (95% CI:-6.5%; 77.9%) and 64.4% (95% CI: 17.1%; 85.2%), respectively. Genotype P[8] was the predominant circulating P type and was detected in 38 (2.6%) severe rotavirus gastroenteritis cases in placebo group. The remaining circulating P types comprised of P[4] (20 [1.4%] in placebo) and P[6] (13 [0.9%] in placebo). Vaccine efficacy against P[8] was 59.1% (95% CI: 32.8%; 75.3%), P[4] was 70.9% (95% CI: 37.5%; 87.0%) and P[6] was 55.2% (95% CI: -6.5%; 81.3%)

CONCLUSIONS:

Rotarix™ vaccine demonstrated efficacy against severe gastroenteritis caused by diverse circulating rotavirus types. These data add to a growing body of evidence supporting heterotypic protection provided by Rotarix™.

TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER:

NCT00241644.