No signal of interactions between influenza vaccines and drugs used for chronic diseases: a case-by-case analysis of the vaccine adverse event reporting system and vigibase

Interaction between anti-tick vaccine and a macrocyclic lactone improves acaricidal efficacy against Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus (Canestrini) (Acari: Ixodidae) in experimentally infested cattle

The southern cattle fever tick (SCFT) Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus, is considered the most important ectoparasite of livestock in the world because of high financial losses associated with direct feeding and transmission of the hemoparasites Babesia bovis, B. bigemina, and Anaplasma marginale. Unfortunately, SCFT in many parts of the world have evolved resistance to all market-available pesticides thus driving development of new control technologies. Vaccination against ticks using the tick gut protein Bm86 has been shown to be effective against acaricide-resistant ticks. This technique has been successfully implemented in Puerto Rico for the control of acaricide-resistant R. microplus on dairy and beef cattle. Observations from Puerto Rico indicate a potentially positive interaction between anti-tick vaccination when used in conjunction with systemic acaricide treatment. In this project, controlled animal studies were completed directly comparing efficacy of anti-tick vaccination with and without systemic acaricide. Results show that the Bm86 anti-tick vaccine in combination with the macrocyclic lactone, Moxidectin, expressed a synergistic interaction, providing greater and longer efficacy than either treatment alone.

[Vaccination Against COVID-19 in Patients Treated with Psychotropic Drugs]

Vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 have been available in the European Union since December 2020. Persons suffering from mental illness have an increased risk of a severe or fatal course following an infection with SARS-CoV-2. Thus, the question arises to what extent interactions between the newly approved vaccines and psychotropic drugs may be expected. Data on the tolerability and efficacy of vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 under treatment with psychotropic drugs are not available to date - however, potential interactions can be derived from previous investigations on vaccines against other pathogens, such as a reduced immune response with lower clinical efficacy and an increase in drug plasma levels due to the indirect vaccine-mediated inhibition of metabolizing enzymes. On the other hand, depressed patients treated with antidepressant medication show a better immune response.

Influenza Vaccination and Myo-Pericarditis in Patients Receiving Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors: Investigating the Likelihood of Interaction through the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System and VigiBase

Background: Evidence on whether the influenza vaccine could exacerbate immune-related adverse events, including myopericarditis (MP), in patients treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), is still conflicting. We explored this issue through a global real-world approach. Methods: We queried the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) and VigiBase to retrieve cases of MP in which the influenza vaccine and ICIs were recorded as suspect and were concomitantly reported. For the included cases, causality assessment and Drug Interaction Probability Scale (DIPS) algorithms were applied. Results: There were 191 and 399 reports of MP with the influenza vaccine that were retrieved (VAERS and VigiBase, respectively). No case of MP reporting the concomitant use of ICIs and the influenza vaccine was found in VAERS, while three cases of myocarditis were retrieved in VigiBase. All of the cases were unclassifiable for a causality assessment because of the lack of data concerning latency. According to the DIPS, one report was categorized as possible and two as doubtful. Conclusion: The paucity of cases coupled with the doubtful causality assessment make the potential interaction between influenza vaccines and ICIs in cancer patients negligible from clinical and epidemiological standpoints. These findings support the cardiovascular safety of the influenza vaccination, which remains strongly recommended in cancer patients, especially in the current COVID-19 era.