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Sridhar S, Fico A, Preza I, Hatibi I, Sulo J, Kissling E, Daja R, Ibrahim R, Lemos D, Rubin-Smith J, Schmid A, Vasili A, Valenciano M, Jorgensen P, Pebody R, Lafond KE, Katz MA, Bino S. COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness among healthcare workers in Albania (COVE-AL): protocol for a prospective cohort study and cohort baseline data. BMJ Open 2022; 12:e057741. [PMID: 35321895 PMCID: PMC8943479 DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2021-057741] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Critical questions remain about COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness (VE) in real-world settings, particularly in middle-income countries. We describe a study protocol to evaluate COVID-19 VE in preventing laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection in health workers (HWs) in Albania, an upper-middle-income country. METHODS AND ANALYSIS In this 12-month prospective cohort study, we enrolled HWs at three hospitals in Albania. HWs are vaccinated through the routine COVID-19 vaccine campaign. Participants completed a baseline survey about demographics, clinical comorbidities, and infection risk behaviours. Baseline serology samples were also collected and tested against the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein, and respiratory swabs were collected and tested for SARS-CoV-2 by RT-PCR. Participants complete weekly symptom questionnaires and symptomatic participants have a respiratory swab collected, which is tested for SARS-CoV-2. At 3, 6, 9 months and 12 months of the study, serology will be collected and tested for antibodies against the SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid protein and spike protein. VE will be estimated using a piecewise proportional hazards model (VE=1-HR). BASELINE DATA From February to May 2021, 1504 HWs were enrolled. The median age was 44 (range: 22-71) and 78% were female. At enrolment, 72% of participants were seropositive for SARS-CoV-2. 56% of participants were vaccinated with one dose, of whom 98% received their first shot within 4 days of enrolment. All HWs received the Pfizer BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION The study protocol and procedures were reviewed and approved by the WHO Ethical Review Board, reference number CERC.0097A, and the Albanian Institute of Public Health Ethical Review Board, reference number 156. All participants have provided written informed consent to participate in this study. The primary results of this study will be published in a peer-reviewed journal at the time of completion. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER NCT04811391.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shela Sridhar
- Global Health Program, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | | | - Iria Preza
- Institute of Public Health, Tirana, Albania
| | | | - Jonilda Sulo
- Southeast European Center for Surveillance and Control of Infectious Disease, Tirana, Albania
| | | | | | - Rawi Ibrahim
- World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Diogo Lemos
- World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Julia Rubin-Smith
- Global Health Program, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Alexis Schmid
- Global Health Program, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | | | | | - Pernille Jorgensen
- World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Richard Pebody
- World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | | | - Mark A Katz
- World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Silvia Bino
- Institute of Public Health, Southern European Centre for Surveillance and Control of Infectious Diseases (SECID), Tirana, Albania
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Thompson MG, Levine MZ, Bino S, Hunt DR, Al-Sanouri TM, Simões EAF, Porter RM, Biggs HM, Gresh L, Simaku A, Khader IA, Tallo VL, Meece JK, McMorrow M, Mercado ES, Joshi S, DeGroote NP, Hatibi I, Sanchez F, Lucero MG, Faouri S, Jefferson SN, Maliqari N, Balmaseda A, Sanvictores D, Holiday C, Sciuto C, Owens Z, Azziz-Baumgartner E, Gordon A. Underdetection of laboratory-confirmed influenza-associated hospital admissions among infants: a multicentre, prospective study. Lancet Child Adolesc Health 2019; 3:781-794. [PMID: 31492594 DOI: 10.1016/s2352-4642(19)30246-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2019] [Revised: 07/09/2019] [Accepted: 07/10/2019] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Since influenza often presents non-specifically in infancy, we aimed to assess the extent to which existing respiratory surveillance platforms might underestimate the frequency of severe influenza disease among infants. METHODS The Influenza and Respiratory Syncytial Virus in Infants (IRIS) study was a prospective observational study done at four hospitals in Albania, Jordan, Nicaragua, and the Philippines. We included acutely ill infants aged younger than 1 year admitted to hospital within 10 days or less of illness onset during two influenza seasons (2015-16 and 2016-17) in Albania, Jordan, and Nicaragua, and over a continuous 34 week period (2015-16) in the Philippines. We assessed the frequency of influenza virus infections by real-time RT-PCR (rRT-PCR) and serology. The main study outcome was seroconversion, defined as convalescent antibody titres more than or equal to four-fold higher than acute sera antibody titres, and convalescent antibody titres of 40 or higher. Seroconverison was confirmed by haemagglutination inhibition assay for influenza A viruses, and by hemagglutination inhibition assay and microneutralisation for influenza B viruses. FINDINGS Between June 27, 2015, and April 21, 2017, 3634 acutely ill infants were enrolled, of whom 1943 were enrolled during influenza seasons and had complete acute-convalescent pairs and thus were included in the final analytical sample. Of the 1943 infants, 94 (5%) were influenza-positive by both rRT-PCR and serology, 58 (3%) were positive by rRT-PCR-only, and 102 (5%) were positive by serology only. Seroconversion to at least one of the influenza A or B viruses was observed among 196 (77%) of 254 influenza-positive infants. Of the 254 infants with influenza virus, 84 (33%) only had non-respiratory clinical discharge diagnoses (eg, sepsis, febrile seizures, dehydration, or other non-respiratory viral illness). A focus on respiratory diagnoses and rRT-PCR-confirmed influenza underdetects influenza-associated hospital admissions among infants by a factor of 2·6 (95% CI 2·0-3·6). Findings were unchanged when syndromic severe acute respiratory infection criteria were applied instead of clinical diagnosis. INTERPRETATION If the true incidence of laboratory-confirmed influenza-associated hospital admissions among infants is at least twice that of previous estimates, this substantially increases the global burden of severe influenza and expands our estimates of the preventive value of maternal and infant influenza vaccination programmes. FUNDING US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mark G Thompson
- Influenza Division, National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Disease, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA.
| | - Min Z Levine
- Influenza Division, National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Disease, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Silvia Bino
- Department of Epidemiology and Control of Infectious Diseases, Institute of Public Health, Tirana, Albania
| | | | - Tareq M Al-Sanouri
- The Eastern Mediterranean Public Health Network (EMPHNET), Amman, Jordan
| | - Eric A F Simões
- Center for Global Health, Department of Epidemiology, Colorado School of Public Health, Aurora, CO, USA
| | - Rachael M Porter
- Influenza Division, National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Disease, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Holly M Biggs
- Division of Viral Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Lionel Gresh
- Sustainable Sciences Institute, Managua, Nicaragua
| | - Artan Simaku
- Department of Epidemiology and Control of Infectious Diseases, Institute of Public Health, Tirana, Albania
| | - Illham Abu Khader
- The Eastern Mediterranean Public Health Network (EMPHNET), Amman, Jordan
| | - Veronica L Tallo
- Research Institute for Tropical Medicine, Department of Health, Muntinlupa, Philippines
| | | | - Meredith McMorrow
- Influenza Division, National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Disease, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Edelwisa S Mercado
- Research Institute for Tropical Medicine, Department of Health, Muntinlupa, Philippines
| | - Sneha Joshi
- Influenza Division, National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Disease, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Nicholas P DeGroote
- Division of Viral Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Iris Hatibi
- Department of Epidemiology and Control of Infectious Diseases, Institute of Public Health, Tirana, Albania
| | - Felix Sanchez
- Hospital Infantil Manuel de Jesus Rivera, Ministry of Health, Managua, Nicaragua
| | - Marilla G Lucero
- Research Institute for Tropical Medicine, Department of Health, Muntinlupa, Philippines
| | - Samir Faouri
- Al Bashir Hospital, Ministry of Health, Amman, Jordan
| | - Stacie N Jefferson
- Influenza Division, National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Disease, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Numila Maliqari
- General Pediatrics Unit, University Hospital Center "Mother Teresa", Tirana, Albania
| | - Angel Balmaseda
- Laboratorio Nacional de Virologia, Centro Nacional de Diagnostico y Referencia, Ministry of Health, Managua, Nicaragua
| | - Diozele Sanvictores
- Research Institute for Tropical Medicine, Department of Health, Muntinlupa, Philippines
| | - Crystal Holiday
- Influenza Division, National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Disease, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | | | - Zachary Owens
- Influenza Division, National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Disease, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Eduardo Azziz-Baumgartner
- Influenza Division, National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Disease, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Aubree Gordon
- Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
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