Recent polio outbreaks in Ukraine and Mali, caused by a vaccine-derived form of poliovirus, don’t mean the vaccine isn’t working. On the contrary, they are a reminder to keep up vaccination rates.
Hepatitis B vaccines have been available for over 20 years but the virus is still endemic in Africa, with the continent carrying over one third of the globe’s case load.
The anti-vaccination movement is not the cause of falling vaccination rates. It is a symptom of the public’s growing distrust in the government and the medical profession.
Viruses cause all kinds of infections from relatively mild cases of the flu to deadly outbreaks of Ebola. Clearly, not all viruses are equal and one of these differences is when you can infect others.
When the measles vaccine was introduced, it was associated with reductions in more childhood disease deaths than were actually caused by the measles. How does that work?
During World War II the US military forged partnerships with industry and academia that translated laboratory findings into working products at an unprecedented pace.
Understanding public opinion can help officials target messages during a health crisis. But current survey methods aren’t good at generating representative samples. Can Twitter fill in the gaps?
Aeron Hurt, WHO Collaborating Centre for Reference and Research on Influenza
It’s that time of year again when scientists and doctors make predictions about the impending flu season and we must decide whether to go out and get the flu vaccine.
The government believes innovation will be crucial to our future productivity, yet it is threatening cuts to research infrastructure that is instrumental to promoting innovation and new technologies.
Prior to the 1970s, almost all Phase I and II drug trials were conducted on prisoners. Our standards have gotten better since then, but still need revision.
Dean Faculty of Health Sciences and Professor of Vaccinology at University of the Witwatersrand; and Director of the SAMRC Vaccines and Infectious Diseases Analytics Research Unit, University of the Witwatersrand