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Microorganisms
Special Issues
Influenza Prevention: Exploring the Progress and Persevering through Challenges
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Influenza Prevention: Exploring the Progress and Persevering through Challenges

A special issue of Microorganisms (ISSN 2076-2607). This special issue belongs to the section "Medical Microbiology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 July 2024) | Viewed by 1949

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Filippo Ansaldi

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Health Sciences, University of Genoa, 16132 Genoa, Italy
Interests: pneumococcal vaccines; Streptococcus pneumoniae; haemophilus influenzae glpq protein; Wart Virus Vaccine; papillomaviridae; vaccination; Influenza B Virus; human influenza; hemagglutinins
Dr. Daniela Amicizia

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Health Sciences, University of Genoa, 16132 Genoa, Italy
Interests: vaccines; epidemiological Modeling; epidemiology and public Health; public health; infectious diseases
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Influenza is a viral infection accountable for seasonal epidemics worldwide, leading to a considerable disease burden throughout the world. The infection can trigger mild symptoms, but also causes severe complications, resulting in hospitalization or even death.

It is well known that seasonal influenza vaccination is among the most effective public health means to prevent and reduce the epidemiological, clinical, socio-economic burden of disease.

As recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO), it is important to expand immunization programs for seasonal influenza vaccination for the following target populations: healthcare workers, individuals with comorbidities and underlying medical conditions, older adults, pregnant women, children, and other groups at a high risk of severe influenza in congregate-living settings. Despite its proven effectiveness and policy recommendations, seasonal influenza vaccination coverage rates in most industrialized countries are still low. Increasing seasonal vaccination within priority groups is a key strategy to lessen the burden of influenza.

This Special Issue focuses on the importance of influenza prevention in human health, and the advances in research leading to the development of better preventive strategies, exploring the latest innovations and challenges in tackling this important health issue.

Dr. Filippo Ansaldi
Dr. Daniela Amicizia
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Microorganisms is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • vaccine
  • immunization
  • preventive strategies
  • influenza

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

9 pages, 815 KiB  
Article
Impact of Smoking Cessation and Charlson Comorbidity Index on Influenza Vaccination Efficacy in COPD Patients
by Hui-Chuan Chang and Shih-Feng Liu
Microorganisms 2024, 12(7), 1437; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms12071437 - 16 Jul 2024
Viewed by 598
Abstract
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients are particularly susceptible to respiratory infections like influenza, which exacerbate symptoms and increase healthcare utilization. While smoking cessation and influenza vaccination are recommended preventive measures, their combined impact on healthcare resource utilization is underexplored. The Charlson Comorbidity [...] Read more.
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients are particularly susceptible to respiratory infections like influenza, which exacerbate symptoms and increase healthcare utilization. While smoking cessation and influenza vaccination are recommended preventive measures, their combined impact on healthcare resource utilization is underexplored. The Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI) assesses comorbidity burden in COPD patients and may influence healthcare outcomes. We conducted a retrospective analysis of 357 COPD patients, evaluating smoking cessation success over one year and influenza vaccination receipt, stratifying patients by CCI scores. Healthcare utilization outcomes included emergency room visits, hospitalizations, and medical expenses. Results showed that 51.82% of patients quit smoking and 59.66% received influenza vaccination, with higher comorbidity prevalence in advanced COPD stages (p = 0.002). Both smoking cessation and influenza vaccination independently correlated with decreased emergency room visits, hospital admissions, days, and costs. Patients who both quit smoking and received influenza vaccination exhibited the lowest healthcare utilization rates. In conclusion, smoking cessation and influenza vaccination significantly reduce healthcare resource utilization in COPD patients, with the combination yielding synergistic benefits, particularly in those with lower CCI scores. Integrating these interventions and comorbidity management in COPD strategies is essential for optimizing patient outcomes and healthcare efficiency. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Influenza Prevention: Exploring the Progress and Persevering through Challenges)
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20 pages, 11978 KiB  
Article
Identification of Causal Relationships between Gut Microbiota and Influenza a Virus Infection in Chinese by Mendelian Randomization
by Qijun Liao, Fuxiang Wang, Wudi Zhou, Guancheng Liao, Haoyang Zhang, Yuelong Shu and Yongkun Chen
Microorganisms 2024, 12(6), 1170; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms12061170 - 8 Jun 2024
Viewed by 951
Abstract
Numerous studies have reported a correlation between gut microbiota and influenza A virus (IAV) infection and disease severity. However, the causal relationship between these factors remains inadequately explored. This investigation aimed to assess the influence of gut microbiota on susceptibility to human infection [...] Read more.
Numerous studies have reported a correlation between gut microbiota and influenza A virus (IAV) infection and disease severity. However, the causal relationship between these factors remains inadequately explored. This investigation aimed to assess the influence of gut microbiota on susceptibility to human infection with H7N9 avian IAV and the severity of influenza A (H1N1)pdm09 infection. A two-sample Mendelian randomization analysis was conducted, integrating our in-house genome-wide association study (GWAS) on H7N9 susceptibility and H1N1pdm09 severity with a metagenomics GWAS dataset from a Chinese population. Twelve and fifteen gut microbiotas were causally associated with H7N9 susceptibility or H1N1pdm09 severity, separately. Notably, Clostridium hylemonae and Faecalibacterium prausnitzii were negative associated with H7N9 susceptibility and H1N1pdm09 severity, respectively. Moreover, Streptococcus peroris and Streptococcus sanguinis were associated with H7N9 susceptibility, while Streptococcus parasanguini and Streptococcus suis were correlated with H1N1pdm09 severity. These results provide novel insights into the interplay between gut microbiota and IAV pathogenesis as well as new clues for mechanism research regarding therapeutic interventions or IAV infections. Future studies should concentrate on clarifying the regulatory mechanisms of gut microbiota and developing efficacious approaches to reduce the incidence of IAV infections, which could improve strategy for preventing and treating IAV infection worldwide. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Influenza Prevention: Exploring the Progress and Persevering through Challenges)
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