H1N1 vaccine far from foolproof

As India goes into overdrive to have indigenous H1N1 — or swine flu — vaccines ready by April 2010, there comes a warning from the US: not only does the new vaccine have the usual side effects associated with flu vaccines, it may also not provide good protection to most of the high-risk groups. Toufiq Rashid examines...

As India goes into overdrive to have indigenous H1N1 — or swine flu — vaccines ready by April 2010, there comes a warning from the US: not only does the new vaccine have the usual side effects associated with flu vaccines, it may also not provide good protection to most of the high-risk groups.

The packaging inserts for H1N1 vaccines on the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) website say the vaccines can cause Guillain Barre Syndrome (GBS), a paralysing disorder. GBS was one of the side effects of the swine flu vaccine that reportedly killed 25 people in the US in 1976.

The USFDA website inserts — by manufacturers Novartis, CSL, Sanofi Pasteur and Med-Immune LLC — say the H1N1 vaccines are less effective in high-risk groups such as the elderly and those with HIV, cancer, or people who’ve had an organ transplant. Its safety and effectiveness in pregnant women, nursing mothers and children below 4 years has also not been established.

Manufacturers Novartis, Glaxo SmithKline, Baxter, and Sanofi Pasteur have agreed to do trials in India but are waiting for guarantee of purchase.