Finland still has millions of doses of swine flu vaccine

H1N1 could cause problems in coming flu season

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Finland continues to have at least 1.5 million unused doses of vaccine for the H1N1, or swine flu virus.
      In addition, the National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) calculates that cities and municipalities have hundreds of thousands of doses.
      Finland paid the pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline EUR 37 million for 5.28 million doses, which means that the remaining vaccines are worth at least EUR 10 million. The vaccines still in store reach their use-by date in the autumn of 2011.
     
The vaccine is still being offered to the public, even though the World Health Organisation declared on Tuesday last week that the pandemic was over.
      The WHO says that the virus is still expected to spread around the world in the manner of an ordinary flu.
      Last week cases were reported in New Zealand and India, for instance, where the flu season is under way. There is no way of predicting which flu virus will arrive in Finland in the coming winter.
     
Research professor Petri Ruutu at THL says that the vaccine has proven to be beneficial.
      “For instance, there were very few cases of serious illnesses among pregnant women. Before the vaccine was introduced, there were many cases of people falling ill [on a global scale].”
      In the autumn, the swine flu component will be part of the ordinary seasonal flu vaccine. However, the swine flu vaccine on its own is still available. About half of the Finnish population was vaccinated during the pandemic.
     
The WHO and THL recommend that the H1N1 vaccine be taken, especially by those in high-risk groups, as the virus can cause as serious illness for young people especially. There are also regional differences in vaccine coverage in Finland.
      There are no plans to give booster shots to those who have already been vaccinated for swine flu, but the seasonal flu shot can be taken by those who have already had the swine flu shot.
     
Finland is not the only country with a stockpile of H1N1 vaccines that are growing old. The Netherlands reported in late July that it was destroying more than 17 million doses of the ageing vaccine. About 11 million doses were administered in the country last year.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Health officials say WHO pandemic pronouncement does not alter Finland´s preparations for swine flu (12.6.2009)
  Swine flu shots found to cause mild symptoms of disease (22.10.2009)
  Swine flu vaccinations to start in late October (18.9.2009)

Links:
  WHO: Influenza A(H1N1)

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