Dataset Information

Influenza vaccination coverage among high-risk groups in 11 European countries.

ABSTRACT:

Background

National vaccination coverage rates for individuals at increased risk of influenza-related complications represent a useful public health indicator of preparedness. We compared European countries regarding (i) vaccination coverage among high-risk groups and (ii) the likelihood that high-risk individuals reported influenza vaccination compared with those at lower risk.

Methods

We used data from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) collected in 2004-05. Adults aged ? 50 years from 11 countries provided self-reports of an influenza vaccination in the previous year (n = 16,913). We defined four high-risk groups (age ? 65 years, presence of vascular disease, chronic lung disease or diabetes) and calculated vaccination coverage with 95% confidence intervals for each country. Country-specific multivariable logistic regression was used to estimate odds ratios (ORs) for membership in a high-risk group and vaccination.

Results

The Netherlands had the highest influenza vaccination coverage in high-risk groups (? 75% in any group) while Greece had the lowest (<27% in any group). Older age was positively associated with report of vaccination in all countries, but the strength of this association varied from an OR of <2 (Germany) to >13 (The Netherlands). The ORs for the chronic disease groups was ? 4 for The Netherlands and were considerably lower (and often not statistically significant) for the other countries.

Conclusion

Influenza vaccination coverage among high-risk groups varies considerably between European countries. Our findings highlight potential opportunities for reducing influenza-related complications through support for vaccination programs that target high-risk individuals more effectively.

SUBMITTER: Loerbroks A

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3402715 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Influenza vaccination coverage among high-risk groups in 11 European countries.

Loerbroks Adrian A Stock Christian C Bosch Jos A JA Litaker David G DG Apfelbacher Christian J CJ

European journal of public health 20110712 4

<h4>Background</h4>National vaccination coverage rates for individuals at increased risk of influenza-related complications represent a useful public health indicator of preparedness. We compared European countries regarding (i) vaccination coverage among high-risk groups and (ii) the likelihood that high-risk individuals reported influenza vaccination compared with those at lower risk.<h4>Methods</h4>We used data from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) collected in 20 ...[more]

PMID: 21750011

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Project description:BackgroundThe expansion of childhood vaccination programs in low and middle income countries has been a substantial public health success story. Indicators of the performance of intervention programmes such as coverage levels and numbers covered are typically measured through national statistics or at the scale of large regions due to survey design, administrative convenience or operational limitations. These mask heterogeneities and 'coldspots' of low coverage that may allow diseases to persist, even if overall coverage is high. Hence, to decrease inequities and accelerate progress towards disease elimination goals, fine-scale variation in coverage should be better characterized.MethodsUsing measles as an example, cluster-level Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) data were used to map vaccination coverage at 1?km spatial resolution in Cambodia, Mozambique and Nigeria for varying age-group categories of children under five years, using Bayesian geostatistical techniques built on a suite of publicly available geospatial covariates and implemented via Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) methods.ResultsMeasles vaccination coverage was found to be strongly predicted by just 4-5 covariates in geostatistical models, with remoteness consistently selected as a key variable. The output 1?×?1?km maps revealed significant heterogeneities within the three countries that were not captured using province-level summaries. Integration with population data showed that at the time of the surveys, few districts attained the 80% coverage, that is one component of the WHO Global Vaccine Action Plan 2020 targets.ConclusionThe elimination of vaccine-preventable diseases requires a strong evidence base to guide strategies and inform efficient use of limited resources. The approaches outlined here provide a route to moving beyond large area summaries of vaccination coverage that mask epidemiologically-important heterogeneities to detailed maps that capture subnational vulnerabilities. The output datasets are built on open data and methods, and in flexible format that can be aggregated to more operationally-relevant administrative unit levels.

Dataset Information

Influenza vaccination coverage among high-risk groups in 11 European countries.

Background

Methods

Results

Conclusion

Publications

Influenza vaccination coverage among high-risk groups in 11 European countries.

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