Chinese Experts Question Swine Vaccine Safety

[MikeyBSN]

BEIJING, Sept. 10 (Xinhua) -- As China's Health Ministry has designated Beijing, Shanghai cities and Guangdong Province as the first places to use the newly produced domestic A/H1N1 vaccine, some epidemic disease experts still argue about its safety.

On Wednesday, Beijing began to have free inoculation of the A/H1N1 flu vaccine for people over 60 years old and students at primary and middle schools. The service, which is available for more than 1.8 million residents, will continue until October 31.

The city has designated 486 clinics providing vaccination services to the elderly. Students will be vaccinated at school.

However, Zhong Nanshan, an academician who is respected for his work in China's fight against the outbreak of the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) in 2003, warned that "it still needs some time to prove the reliability of the vaccine."

"The vaccine should be put into mass use only after it has been proved safe through tests in many pilot places," Zhong said.

"Though vaccine inoculation is the basic way for the country to prevent A/H1N1 flu, it needs time to see whether it has side effects on the human body," Zhong said.

On Monday, China's State Food and Drug Administration issued the first warrant for mass inoculation with domestic A/H1N1 flu vaccine, the first country in the world to do so. It announced that the safety and effectiveness of the vaccines had been proved in clinical tests.

But the clinical trial period for the vaccine was less than three months, in sharp contrast with the prevailing practices among the international medical community that it takes several years for a safety test.

[HonestRN]

Several years huh? In a perfect world maybe otherwise in several years the current strain may have mutated and the vaccine ineffective. It's my understanding that the seasonal flu vaccine is not tested every year as they use the same basic formula just add the circulating virus. Do you have a link to the entire article?

[Katnip, RN]

Each year a new seasonal flu vaccine is released. That's not tested for years, either.

[indigo girl]

It's a new strain of flu, but the technology of all of the vaccines approved for use in the US at this time is the same as what they have been doing with seasonal flu.

Vaccine manufacturers and govt officials have kids and families to protect just like we do.The random cases of severe flu occurring in previously healthy people has many of them worried as well because there is no way to predict which families and individuals will be so affected.

But, for those that still do not feel comfortable with this vaccine, just say no. There is no point in putting yourself thru any further angst over this.