The European Commission has granted its first European licence for a pre-pandemic flu vaccine.
GlaxoSmithKline has been granted a marketing authorisation for its H5N1 adjuvanted pre-pandemic vaccine, Prepandrix, in all 27 EU member states.
The World Health Organisation says vaccines are the most important intervention for preventing influenza and reducing its health consequences during a pandemic and there are two types of vaccine that can be used.
Pandemic vaccines are using the specific pandemic influenza strain, so will not be available four to six months after the onset of a pandemic. A pre-pandemic vaccine is produced in advance of a pandemic, based on the currently circulating avian H5N1 influenza virus likely to cause a pandemic, and has the ability to raise immune protection against potential drift H5N1 strains.