Flu vaccination with a virosomal vaccine does not affect clinical course and immunological parameters in scleroderma patients

Safety and efficacy of adjuvanted vaccines in autoimmune individuals raises growing clinical and scientific interest. Protection from influenza would bring particular benefits in these patients with common cardiac and respiratory impairment. This study evaluates efficacy, clinical safety and immune effects of the administration of a single dose of a virosomal flu vaccine in 46 scleroderma patients. The following parameters were evaluated before and after administration of Inflexal: clinical conditions, inflammation and autoimmunity parameters, humoral response, lymphocyte proliferation and cytokine production upon flu antigen Stimulation by specific and non-specific cells. Inflexal was found effective in scleroderma patients. In no subject was worsening of clinical conditions, inflammation and immunological parameters observed. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.