WHO Influenza Vaccine Recommendations for the Southern Hemisphere for 2005

The WHO annual consultation on the composition of influenza vaccines for the Southern Hemisphere, 2005 took place for the first time Canberra, Australia on the 21-23 September 2004. The following recommendations were made from this meeting.


It is recommended that vaccines to be used in the 2005 season (southern hemisphere winter) contain the following:


an A/New Caledonia/20/99(H1N1)-like virus;
an A/Wellington/1/2004(H3N2)-like virus;
a B/Shanghai/361/2002-like virus*


*Currently used vaccine viruses include B/Shanghai/361/2002, B/Jilin/20/2003 and B/Jiangsu/10/2003



For full details see: http://www.who.int/csr/disease/influenza/en/2005southinfluenza2.pdf