BMJ  2004;329 (18 September), doi:10.1136/bmj.329.7467.0-b

Hib infections are as common as ever

Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) infections in adults decreased after routine immunisation of infants was introduced in 1992 but this has not been sustained. Surveying the English population between 1991 and 2003, McVernon and colleagues (p 655) found that after an initial decrease in 1998, numbers of Hib infections rebounded. The resurgence was associated with an increase in cases in children and evidence of reduced immunity in older unimmunised people. The unanticipated reduction in herd immunity highlights the need for surveillance of vaccine preventable diseases across all age groups, say the authors.

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Trends in Haemophilus influenzae type b infections in adults in England and Wales: surveillance study

Jodie McVernon, Caroline L Trotter, Mary P E Slack, and Mary E Ramsay
BMJ 2004 329: 655-658. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

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