Region-wide assessment of National Immunization Technical Advisory Groups (NITAGs) using the NITAG Maturity Assessment Tool (NMAT) - Experience from the Eastern Mediterranean Region of the World Health Organization, 2023.

National Immunization Technical Advisory Groups (NITAGs) are independent bodies that help improve national immunization programmes in decision making on immunization policy. The new NITAG Maturity Assessment Tool (NMAT) provided an opportunity to conduct a region-wide assessment to improve NITAG capacity and foster institutional growth. We share experience of the Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR) of the World Health Organization (WHO) in using NMAT and the use of findings to develop improvement plans.

The Brighton collaboration standardized module for vaccine benefit-risk assessment.

Vaccine Benefit-Risk (B-R) assessment consists of evaluating the benefits and risks of a vaccine and making a judgment whether the expected key benefits outweigh the potential key risks associated with its expected use. B-R supports regulatory and public health decision-making throughout the vaccine's lifecycle. In August 2021, the Brighton Collaboration's Benefit-Risk Assessment of VAccines by TechnolOgy (BRAVATO) Benefit-Risk Assessment Module working group was established to develop a standard module to support the planning, conduct and evaluation of structured B-R assessments for vaccines from different platforms, based on data from clinical trials, post-marketing studies and real-world evidence.

A summary of the Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices (ACIP) use of a benefit-risk assessment framework during the first year of COVID-19 vaccine administration in the United States.

To inform Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices (ACIP) COVID-19 vaccine policy decisions, we developed a benefit-risk assessment framework that directly compared the estimated benefits of COVID-19 vaccination to individuals (e.g., prevention of COVID-19-associated hospitalization) with risks associated with COVID-19 vaccines.

Acute hepatitis of unknown aetiology among children around the world.

By 26 August 2022, the number of cases of acute hepatitis of unknown etiology (AHUA) has drastically increased to 1115 distributed in 35 countries that fulfill the World Health Organization definition. Several hypotheses on the cause of AHUA have been proposed and are being investigated around the world. In the recent United Kingdom (UK) report, human adenovirus (HAdV) with adeno-associated virus (AAV) co-infection is the leading hypothesis.