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Changing Face of Vaccination in Immunocompromised Hosts

O'Shea, Daire ; Widmer, Lukas ; Stelling, Jörg ; Egli, Adrian

In: Current Infectious Disease Reports, 2014, vol. 16, no. 9, p. 1-11

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    Title
    • Changing Face of Vaccination in Immunocompromised Hosts
    Author
    • O'Shea, Daire. Division of Infectious Diseases, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
    • Widmer, Lukas. Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering (D-BSSE), ETH Zurich, Basel, Switzerland
    • Stelling, Jörg. Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering (D-BSSE), ETH Zurich, Basel, Switzerland
    • Egli, Adrian. Infection Biology, Department Biomedicine, University of Basel, Hebelstrasse 4, 4031, Basel, Switzerland
    Document Type
    • Postprint
    Language
    • English
    Published in
    • Current Infectious Disease Reports, 2014, vol. 16, no. 9, p. 1-11. Springer US; http://www.springer-ny.com
    Other Version
    OAI-PMH Identifier
    • oai:doc.rero.ch:325628
    Summary
    Infection prevention is a key component of care and an important determinant of clinical outcomes in a diverse population of immunocompromised hosts. Vaccination remains a fundamental preventative strategy, and clear guidelines exist for the vaccination of immunocompromised individuals and close contacts. Unfortunately, adherence to such guidelines is frequently suboptimal, with consequent missed opportunities to prevent infection. Additionally, vaccination of immunocompromised individuals is known to produce responses inferior to those observed in immunocompetent hosts. Multiple factors contribute to this finding, and developing improved vaccination strategies for those at high risk of infectious complications remains a priority of care providers. Herein, we review potential factors contributing to vaccine outcomes, focusing on host immune responses, and propose a means for applying modern, innovative systems biology technology to model critical determinants of vaccination success. With influenza vaccine in solid organ transplants used as a case in point, novel means for stratifying individuals using a host "immunophenotype” are explored, and strategies for individualizing vaccine approaches tailored to safely optimize vaccine responses in those most at risk are discussed.