Browsing by Author "Riccardo, Flavia"
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- Characteristics of SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern B.1.1.7, B.1.351 or P.1: data from seven EU/EEA countries, weeks 38/2020 to 10/2021Publication . Funk, Tjede; Pharris, Anastasia; Spiteri, Gianfranco; Bundle, Nick; Melidou, Angeliki; Carr, Michael; Gonzalez, Gabriel; Garcia-Leon, Alejandro; Crispie, Fiona; O’Connor, Lois; Murphy, Niamh; Mossong, Joël; Vergison, Anne; Wienecke-Baldacchino, Anke K.; Abdelrahman, Tamir; Riccardo, Flavia; Stefanelli, Paola; Di Martino, Angela; Bella, Antonino; Lo Presti, Alessandra; Casaca, Pedro; Moreno, Joana; Borges, Vítor; Isidro, Joana; Ferreira, Rita; Gomes, João Paulo; Dotsenko, Liidia; Suija, Heleene; Epstein, Jevgenia; Sadikova, Olga; Sepp, Hanna; Ikonen, Niina; Savolainen-Kopra, Carita; Blomqvist, Soile; Möttönen, Teemu; Helve, Otto; Gomes-Dias, Joana; Adlhoch, CorneliaWe compared 19,207 cases of SARS-CoV-2 variant B.1.1.7/S gene target failure (SGTF), 436 B.1.351 and 352 P.1 to non-variant cases reported by seven European countries. COVID-19 cases with these variants had significantly higher adjusted odds ratios for hospitalisation (B.1.1.7/SGTF: 1.7, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.0-2.9; B.1.351: 3.6, 95% CI: 2.1-6.2; P.1: 2.6, 95% CI: 1.4-4.8) and B.1.1.7/SGTF and P.1 cases also for intensive care admission (B.1.1.7/SGTF: 2.3, 95% CI: 1.4-3.5; P.1: 2.2, 95% CI: 1.7-2.8).
- Estimated number of lives directly saved by COVID-19 vaccination programmes in the WHO European Region from December, 2020, to March, 2023: a retrospective surveillance studyPublication . Meslé, Margaux M.I.; Brown, Jeremy; Mook, Piers; Katz, Mark A.; Hagan, José; Pastore, Roberta; Benka, Bernhard; Redlberger-Fritz, Monika; Bossuyt, Nathalie; Stouten, Veerle; Vernemmen, Catharina; Constantinou, Elisabet; Maly, Marek; Kynčl, Jan; Sanca, Ondrej; Krause, Tyra Grove; Vestergaard, Lasse Skafte; Leino, Tuija; Poukka, Eero; Gkolfinopoulou, Kassiani; Mellou, Kassiani; Tsintziloni, Maria; Molnár, Zsuzsanna; Aspelund, Gudrun; Thordardottir, Marianna; Domegan, Lisa; Kelly, Eva; O'Donell, Joan; Urdiales, Alberto-Mateo; Riccardo, Flavia; Sacco, Chiara; Bumšteinas, Viktoras; Liausediene, Rasa; Mossong, Joël; Vergison, Anne; Borg, Maria-Louise; Melillo, Tanya; Kocinski, Dragan; Pollozhani, Enkela; Meijerink, Hinta; Costa, Diana; Gomes, João Paulo; Leite, Pedro Pinto; Druc, Alina; Gutu, Veaceslav; Mita, Valentin; Lazar, Mihaela; Popescu, Rodica; Popovici, Odette; Musilová, Monika; Mrzel, Maja; Socan, Maja; Učakar, Veronika; Limia, Aurora; Mazagatos, Clara; Olmedo, Carmen; Dabrera, Gavin; Kall, Meaghan; Sinnathamby, Mary; McGowan, Graham; McMenamin, Jim; Morrison, Kirsty; Nitzan, Dorit; Widdowson, Marc-Alain; Smallwood, Catherine; Pebody, Richard; WHO European Respiratory Surveillance NetworkBackground: By March, 2023, 54 countries, areas, and territories (hereafter CAT) in the WHO European Region had reported more than 2·2 million COVID-19-related deaths to the WHO Regional Office for Europe. Here, we estimated how many lives were directly saved by vaccinating adults in the WHO European Region from December, 2020, to March, 2023. Methods: In this retrospective surveillance study, we estimated the number of lives directly saved by age group, vaccine dose, and circulating variant-of-concern (VOC) period, regionally and nationally, using weekly data on COVID-19 mortality and infection, COVID-19 vaccination uptake, and SARS-CoV-2 virus characterisations by lineage downloaded from The European Surveillance System on June 11, 2023, as well as vaccine effectiveness data from the literature. We included data for six age groups (25-49 years, 50-59 years, ≥60 years, 60-69 years, 70-79 years, and ≥80 years). To be included in the analysis, CAT needed to have reported both COVID-19 vaccination and mortality data for at least one of the four older age groups. Only CAT that reported weekly data for both COVID-19 vaccination and mortality by age group for 90% of study weeks or more in the full study period were included. We calculated the percentage reduction in the number of expected and reported deaths. Findings: Between December, 2020, and March, 2023, in 34 of 54 CAT included in the analysis, COVID-19 vaccines reduced deaths by 59% overall (CAT range 17-82%), representing approximately 1·6 million lives saved (range 1·5-1·7 million) in those aged 25 years or older: 96% of lives saved were aged 60 years or older and 52% were aged 80 years or older; first boosters saved 51% of lives, and 60% were saved during the Omicron period. Interpretation: Over nearly 2·5 years, most lives saved by COVID-19 vaccination were in older adults by first booster dose and during the Omicron period, reinforcing the importance of up-to-date vaccination among the most at-risk individuals. Further modelling work should evaluate indirect effects of vaccination and public health and social measures.
- National immunization strategies targeting migrants in six European countriesPublication . Giambi, Cristina; Del Manso, Martina; Dalla Zuanna, Teresa; Riccardo, Flavia; Bella, Antonino; Caporali, Maria Grazia; Baka, Agoritsa; Caks-Jager, Nuska; Melillo, Tanya; Mexia, Ricardo; Petrović, Goranka; Declich, Silvia; Ali, Karam Adel; Dente, Maria Grazia; Iannazzo, Stefania; Kaić, Bernard; Napoli, Christian; Panagiotopoulos, Takis; Pereira, Filipa; CARE working group for the National Immunization SurveyOver the last three years an unprecedented flow of migrants arrived in Europe. There is evidence that vaccine preventable diseases have caused outbreaks in migrant holding centres. These outbreaks can be favored by a combination of factors including low immunization coverage, bad conditions that migrants face during their exhausting journey and overcrowding within holding facilities. In 2017, we conducted an online survey in Croatia, Greece, Italy, Malta, Portugal and Slovenia to explore the national immunization strategies targeting irregular migrants, refugees and asylum seekers. All countries stated that a national regulation supporting vaccination offer to migrants is available. Croatia, Italy, Portugal and Slovenia offer to migrant children and adolescents all vaccinations included in the National Immunization Plan; Greece and Malta offer only certain vaccinations, including those against diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis, poliomyelitis and measles-mumps-rubella. Croatia, Italy, Malta and Portugal also extend the vaccination offer to adults. All countries deliver vaccinations in holding centres and/or community health services, no one delivers vaccinations at entry site. Operating procedures that guarantee the migrants' access to vaccination at the community level are available only in Portugal. Data on administered vaccines is available at the national level in four countries: individual data in Malta and Croatia, aggregated data in Greece and Portugal. Data on vaccination uptake among migrants is available at national level only in Malta. Concluding, although diversified, strategies for migrant vaccination are in place in all the surveyed countries and generally in line with WHO and ECDC indications. Development of procedures to keep track of migrants' immunization data across countries, development of strategies to facilitate and monitor migrants' access to vaccinations at the community level and collection of data on vaccination uptake among migrants should be promoted to meet existing gaps.