FDA commissioner Scott Gottlieb issues statement on influenza vaccine

Influenza Vaccine is one of the best ways known to protect against the flu. However, because of the severity of this season, there have been questions raised about how well this year’s flu vaccine worked. Although the initial report of 36 percent overall efficacy for this year’s vaccine in the United States that has been reported by  colleagues at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is better than some might have predicted, there is still clearly significant room for improvement.

Seasonal flu has been widespread this year, impacting millions of people across the country. It has been an especially challenging season, with high rates of hospitalization for both influenza and its complications, which include pneumonia and the exacerbation of chronic conditions such as asthma and congestive heart failure.

much of the illness has been caused by one strain of influenza A called H3N2, with another strain of influenza A called H1N1 and strains of influenza B contributing to lesser extents. The flu is a respiratory illness caused by several types and strains of influenza virus that infect the respiratory tract in humans, which includes the nose, throat, and lungs.

The FDA remains committed to collaborating with other public health agencies and manufacturers to use the lessons that we are learning—and will continue to learn–from this year’s flu outbreak to prepare for the next one. FDA is collaborating with federal partners and with industry to improve the manufacturing of the current generation of influenza vaccines. In particular, our scientists are interested in looking at continuous manufacturing technologies for cell based and recombinant vaccines, which could facilitate much more agility in responding to changes in influenza strains