How do age and biological sex influence vaccine responses and public health guidelines?
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.58445/rars.165Keywords:
immunity, age, biological sex, vaccine responseAbstract
Vaccines are biological substances that are used to protect against many viruses. Vaccinations play an important role in public health and society because they prevent the spread of infectious and even deadly diseases. There are many factors that can influence vaccine responses. In this research review, I will be discussing two universal factors that play a role in vaccine efficacy—age and biological sex. Specifically, I will cover how these topics influence public health policies and side effects. By gaining a better understanding of how age and biological sex affect vaccination, we can improve overall vaccine effectiveness and reach herd immunity.
References
World Health Organization, (2020, December 8). How do vaccines work? World Health Organization. Retrieved February 5, 2023, from https://www.who.int/news-room/feature-stories/detail/how-do-vaccines-work#:~:text=How%20vaccines%20help,rather%20than%20the%20antigen%20itself.
Riedel, S. (2005, January). Edward Jenner and the history of smallpox and vaccination. Proceedings (Baylor University. Medical Center). Retrieved February 5, 2023, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1200696/
Najera, R. (2019). History of Vaccines. History of Vaccines RSS. Retrieved February 5, 2023, from https://historyofvaccines.org/
Manning, C. (2022, February 17). Birth-18 years immunization schedule. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved February 5, 2023, from https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/schedules/hcp/imz/child-adolescent.html
Ciarambino, T., Para, O., & Giordano, M. (2021). Immune system and COVID-19 by sex differences and age. Women's health (London, England). Retrieved February 5, 2023, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8188967/#:~:text=Several%20studies%20have%20described%20that,immune%20responses%20compare%20to%20males.&text=Sex%20steroids%20can%20have%20a,regulation%20of%20the%20immune%20response.
Staff, G. (2023, February 2). Why we will always need vaccinations. Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance. Retrieved February 5, 2023, from https://www.gavi.org/vaccineswork/why-we-will-always-need-vaccinations?gclid=CjwKCAiAkfucBhBBEiwAFjbkr_ZlK5iJGbjif1iOd7_Odff398gRgkH7zWgmHr8h7eNf5kO7vqsXdxoCKo8QAvD_BwE
Center for Women's Health (2022). Autoimmune Disease 101. OHSU. Retrieved February 5, 2023, from https://www.ohsu.edu/womens-health/autoimmune-disease-101#:~:text=%E2%80%9CResearch%20has%20shown%20that%20women,of%20that%20stronger%20immune%20response.%E2%80%9D
Rodenas, M. C., Cabas, I., Gómez-González, N. E., Arizcun, M., Meseguer, J., Mulero, V., & García-Ayala, A. (2017, June 12). Estrogens promote the production of natural neutralizing antibodies in fish through G protein-coupled estrogen receptor 1. Frontiers. Retrieved February 5, 2023, from https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2017.00736/full
Siliezar, J. (2022, January 20). Harvard study looks at covid-19 sex disparities. Harvard Gazette. Retrieved February 5, 2023, from https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2022/01/harvard-study-looks-at-covid-19-sex-disparities/#:~:text=Early%20in%20the%20pandemic%2C%20scientists,hormones%20or%20the%20immune%20response.
Ramírez-de-Arellano, A., Gutiérrez-Franco, J., Sierra-Diaz, E., & Pereira-Suárez, A. L. (2021, December). The role of estradiol in the immune response against COVID-19. Hormones (Athens, Greece). Retrieved February 5, 2023, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8210971/
Block, J. P., Boehmer, T. K., Forrest, C. B., Carton, T. W., Lee, G. M., Ajani, U. A., Christakis, D. A., Cowell, L. G., Draper, C., Ghildayal, N., Harris, A. M., & Kappelman, M. D. (2022, April 7). Cardiac complications after SARS-COV-2 infection and mrna COVID-19 vaccination - pcornet, United States, January 2021–January 2022. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved February 5, 2023, from https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/71/wr/mm7114e1.htm
Zintel, S., Flock, C., Arbogast, A. L., Forster, A., von Wagner, C., & Sieverding, M. (2021, March 18). Gender differences in the intention to get vaccinated against COVID-19 - A systematic review and meta-analysis. SSRN. Retrieved February 5, 2023, from https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3803323
Career Expert, Z. (2022, September 9). Nurse demographics and statistics [2023]: Number of nurses in the US. Nurse Demographics and Statistics [2023]: Number Of Nurses In The US. Retrieved February 5, 2023, from https://www.zippia.com/nurse-jobs/demographics/#:~:text=After%20extensive%20research%20and%20analysis,nurse%20is%2044%20years%20old.
Lee, J. T., Althomsons, S. P., Wu, H., Budnitz, D. S., Kalayil, E. J., Lindley, M. C., Pingali, C., Bridges, C. B., Geller, A. I., Fiebelkorn, A. P., Graitcer, S. B., Singleton, J. A., & Patel, S. A. (2021, July 29). Disparities in covid-19 vaccination coverage among health care personnel working in long-term care facilities, by Job Category, National Healthcare Safety Network - United States, March 2021. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved February 20, 2023, from https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/70/wr/mm7030a2.htm#:~:text=Vaccination%20coverage%20was%20highest%20among%20physicians%20and%20advanced%20practice%20providers,%25
WriterBookmark, B. M. S. N. (2019, October 1). These medical specialties have the biggest gender imbalances. American Medical Association. Retrieved February 5, 2023, from https://www.ama-assn.org/medical-students/specialty-profiles/these-medical-specialties-have-biggest-gender-imbalances
Hilton, L., (2021, September 22). What's causing COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among nurses? Nurse.com Blog. Retrieved February 5, 2023, from https://www.nurse.com/blog/whats-causing-covid-19-vaccine-hesitancy-among-nurses/
Centers for Disease Control (2022, February 17). Birth-18 years immunization schedule. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved February 5, 2023, from https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/schedules/hcp/imz/child-adolescent.html#birth-15
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2016, November 15). State vaccination requirements. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved February 5, 2023, from https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/imz-managers/laws/state-reqs.html
Montecino-Rodriguez, E., Berent-Maoz, B., & Dorshkind, K. (2013, March). Causes, consequences, and reversal of immune system aging. The Journal of clinical investigation. Retrieved February 5, 2023, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3582124/#:~:text=The%20effects%20of%20aging%20on,as%20robustly%20as%20the%20young.
Williams II, R. D., Shah, A., Doty, M. M., Fields, K., & FitzGerald, M. (2021, September 15). The impact of covid-19 on older adults. Impact of COVID-19 on Older Adults: 2021 International Survey | Commonwealth Fund. Retrieved February 5, 2023, from https://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/surveys/2021/sep/impact-covid-19-older-adults
Elflein, J. (2023, February 3). Covid-19 deaths by age U.S. 2023. Statista. Retrieved February 5, 2023, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/1191568/reported-deaths-from-covid-by-age-us/
Elflein, J. (2022, July 27). Influenza deaths by age group U.S. 2019-2020. Statista. Retrieved February 5, 2023, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/1127698/influenza-us-deaths-by-age-group/
NHS. (2021, June 9). How long do babies carry their mother's immunity? NHS choices. Retrieved February 5, 2023, from https://www.nhs.uk/common-health-questions/childrens-health/how-long-do-babies-carry-their-mothers-immunity/
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2016, November 22). Recommended vaccines by age. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved February 5, 2023, from https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vpd/vaccines-age.html
Additional Files
Posted
Categories
License
Copyright (c) 2023 Samiya Guru
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.