MedImmune flu vacc sees strong infant data

US drugmaker MedImmune says that data from a pivotal Phase III study of its next-generation, investigational influenza vaccine, CAIV-T (cold adapted influenza vaccine, trivalent), showed it to be 55% more effective than the trivalent injectable inactivated influenza vaccine in reducing illness caused by any influenza strain in children six months to 59 months of age.

According to the San Francisco-headquartered company, the study also showed that CAIV-T provided statistically-significant improvements in reducing influenza illness caused by both matched and mismatched A strains as compared to the flu shot. MedImmune says it will submit the data to domestic regulators in June, seeking an expanded label for the product to include children aged from five years to as young as six months.