Scientists are hopeful that a new type of skin patch could replace needles as a method of flu vaccination
Islamabad (Pakistan Point News / Online - 19th September, 2019) Scientists are hopeful that a new type of skin patch could replace needles as a method of flu vaccination. When they tested the skin patch on mice, it elicited an appropriate immune response without side effects."Scientists have been studying needle free vaccine approaches for nearly 2 decades," says study author Benjamin L. Miller, Ph.D., "but none of the technologies have lived up to the hype.
"Miller is a professor of dermatology at the University of Rochester Medical Center, NY. He is also one of the two corresponding authors of the study.The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimate that theflu caused 48.8 million illnesses, 959,000 hospitalizations, and 79,400 deaths in the United States during the 2017-2018 season.That season had an unusually high flu burden that was severe across all age groups.Eczema inspires a new method of deliveryProf.
Miller and his colleagues believe that the new flu vaccine skin patch solves many of the problems that other developers have faced.In their study paper, the authors explain how previous attempts to deliver a flu vaccine with skin patches have used techniques such as microneedles and electroporation.However, while enjoying early success, these methods have proved difficult to "implement on a large scale for mass vaccination strategies."
