Predominance of a Drifted Influenza A (H3N2) Clade and its Association with Age-specific Influenza Vaccine Effectiveness Variations, Influenza Season 2018–2019

Vaccines

for the Israeli Influenza Surveillance Network (IISN)¹  Ital Nemet²  Lital Keinan-Boker³  Rakefet Pando³  Hanna Sefty³  Alina Rosenberg³  Aharona Glatman-Freedman³  Michal Mandelboim⁴  Itay Omer⁴  Yaron Drori⁴  Ella Mendelson⁴ 

[1] ;Central Virology Laboratory, Sheba Medical Center, Israel Ministry of Health, Tel Hashomer, Ramat Gan 5265601, Israel;Israel Center for Disease Control, Israel Ministry of Health, Tel Hashomer, Ramat Gan 5265601, Israel;School of Public Health, Tel Aviv University Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 6997801, Israel;

关键词: influenza vaccine;    vaccine effectiveness;    influenza a (h3n2);    drift;   

DOI  :  10.3390/vaccines8010078

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

Background: Influenza A (H3N2) clade 3C.3a was the predominant influenza virus in Israel throughout the 2018-2019 season, constituting a drift from the influenza A (H3N2) vaccine. We estimated the end-of season vaccine effectiveness (VE) by age, among community patients with influenza-like illness (ILI), considering the hemagglutinin (HA) gene mutations and amino acid substitutions of influenza A (H3N2) viruses detected. Methods: Nose-throat samples were analyzed for the presence of influenza virus, type/subtype, and HA gene sequence. HA gene sequences and amino acid substitutions were compared to the influenza A/Singapore/INFIMH-16-0019/2016 (H3N2)-like 2018-2019 vaccine virus, and a phylogenetic tree was generated. Influenza VE against influenza A (H3N2) was estimated using the test-negative design. VE was estimated by age group and by 15 year moving age intervals. Results: In total, 90% of the influenza A (H3N2) viruses belonged to the 3C.3a clade, constituting a unique situation in the northern hemisphere. Adjusted all-age influenza A (H3N2) VE was −3.5% (95% CI: −51.2 to 29.1). Although adjusted VEs were very low among infants, children, and young adults, a VE of 45% (95% CI: −19.2 to 74.6) was estimated among adults aged ≥45 years old. Conclusions: The higher VE point estimates among older adults may be related to previous exposure to similar influenza viruses.

【 授权许可】

Unknown