title: Efficacy of influenza vaccination in patients with cirrhosis and inactive carriers of hepatitis B virus infection.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Influenza can causes morbidity and mortality that are greatly enhanced in patients with underlying chronic diseases such as Cirrhotic patients. This study was performed to assess the immunogenicity of Influenza vaccination in patients with cirrhosis and inactive carriers of Hepatitis B virus infection.
  
  
  METHODS
  In this clinical study 93 enrolled subjects divided into 3 groups: Cirrhotic (N=28), Inactive carriers of Hepatitis B (N=31) and subjects (N=34). All the participants were vaccinated by Influenza vaccine (Influvac®). Serum samples were taken before and 4 weeks after vaccination and the Humoral Immunogenicity was assessed by the Hemagglutination Inhibition (HI) test.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Four weeks after vaccination, seroconversion rates of vaccine strains ranged between 71.4% and 100% in Group 1, 70.6% and 94.1% in Group 2, and 58.1% and 80.7% in Group 3. No significant differences were seen in the rates of Seroconversion and antibody Geometric Mean Titers (GMTs) against Influenza A (H1N1 and H3N2) vaccine components in the three groups (P>0.05).The rates of Seroconversion and antibody GMTs against Influenza B vaccine component were significantly higher in Cirrhotic and inactive carriers of Hepatitis B than healthy subjects (P<0.005). No significant (P>0.05) differences in the rates of Seroprotection were observed within the three groups. Antibody GMTs against all three strains of Influenza vaccine increased significantly (P<0.001) after vaccination in three groups.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Influenza vaccination is effective in Cirrhotic patients and inactive carriers of Hepatitis B as well as healthy individuals. It means that vaccination should be considered in such patients in order to reduce the morbidity and mortality of Influenza.
authors.affiliation: Kermanshah Liver Diseases and Hepatitis Research Center, Kermanshah University of medical Sciences, Kermanshah, Iran.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Sayyad
authors.forename: S M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Alavian
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Najafi
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Mokhtari Azad
authors.forename: M H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Ari Tabarestani
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shirvani
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Behnava
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Afshrian
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Vaziri
authors.forename: A R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Janbakhsh
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Mansouri
authors.forename: Sh
authors.initials: Sh
authors.lastname: Kaviani
keywords: Cirrhosis; Hepatitis B; Influenza; Vaccination