Comparison of antibody response between boys and girls after infant and childhood vaccinations in the Netherlands.

Vaccine

Centre for Immunology of Infectious Diseases and Vaccines - Centre for Infectious Disease Control, National Institute for Public Health and the Environment, Bilthoven, the Netherlands.

Published: July 2019

Background: Infectious diseases can differ by sex in their incidence, prevalence, or severity of disease. These differences may be induced by sex-dependent immune responses and resulting protection, for example after vaccination. Therefore, this study aims to assess possible sex-differences in immunoglobulin levels (IgG) after infant and childhood vaccination.

Methods: Data from a national cross-sectional serosurvey conducted in 2006/2007 were used (Pienter 2). We compared IgG levels against measles, mumps, rubella, diphtheria, tetanus, poliomyelitis, pertussis, Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib), and Neisseria meningitidis serogroup C (MenC) between girls and boys both short term (1 month to 1 year) and long term (1-3 year) after infant and childhood vaccinations, using linear regression analysis. Proportions of boys and girls reaching a protective IgG level were compared using Fishers exact test.

Results: Differences in IgG were found at specific time points after vaccination against measles, mumps, rubella, MenC, and polio. The geometric mean concentration or titer (GMC/T) girls:boys ratios ranged between 1.10 for polio type 1 <1 year after the first childhood booster to 1.90 for MenC <1 year after infant vaccination, indicating higher antibody levels in girls. No significant differences were found between boys and girls for diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, and Hib at either time point. Proportions with protective levels differed only at 1-3 years after infant vaccination for mumps (82.5% boys vs. 91.9% girls, p = 0.046), and at the same time point for MenC (7.0% boys vs. 18.2% girls, p = 0.015), and polio type 1 (87.8% boys vs. 95.9% girls, p = 0.047).

Conclusion: Differences in IgG between boys and girls were generally small and not consistent, neither between pathogens nor within pathogens. If differences were observed, girls were favored over boys. On the whole, the results suggest that there are no major sex differences in protection from the studied pathogens in the Netherlands.

Download full-text PDF

Source
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.vaccine.2019.06.055DOI Listing

Publication Analysis

Top Keywords

infant childhood
12
boys girls
8
childhood vaccinations
8
measles mumps
8
mumps rubella
8
comparison antibody
4
antibody response
4
response boys
4
girls infant
4
vaccinations netherlands
4

Similar Publications

Background: The vital statistics in the third world countries are poor and have witnessed minimal improvement over the years with childhood mortality in Nigeria remaining one of the highest among the developing countries despite various child survival programmes. Child survival strategies can only be efficient if the major reasons for morbidity are known. The objective of this retrospective study was to review the patterns of childhood mortality at the emergency room of the Federal Teaching Hospital, Ido-Ekiti (FETHI).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Exercise capacity and the psychosocial effect in preterm born infants - Should we do more?

Paediatr Respir Rev

January 2025

Department of Respiratory Medicine, The Children's Hospital at Westmead, Westmead, Sydney, New South Wales 2145, Australia; Discipline of Paediatrics and Child Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Sydney, Camperdown, Sydney, New South Wales 2006, Australia.

Physical activity is crucial for children's physical, cognitive, and social development, reducing the risk of non-communicable diseases and improving overall well-being. A major legacy of extremely preterm delivery is respiratory limitation with reduced lung function and decreased exercise capacity which can be further exacerbated by inactivity and deconditioning. Strategies to increase incidental physical activities in early childhood and participation in sport and more formal exercise programmes in middle childhood have the potential to optimize cardiopulmonary function, improve quality of life, and foster social interactions in childhood and beyond, thereby providing benefits that extend far beyond the physical domain.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introduction: The global prevalence of people living with overweight has tripled since 1975 and more than 40% of Danish women enter pregnancy being overweight. With the increasing rates of obesity observed in children, adolescents and adults, there is an urgent need for preventive measures. Risk factors for childhood obesity include maternal overweight or obesity before conception and excessive weight gain during pregnancy.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Neonatal and Pediatric Pulmonary Vascular Disease.

Radiol Clin North Am

March 2025

Department of Radiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, 3333 Burnet Avenue, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA.

Pediatric patients are affected by a wide variety of pulmonary vascular diseases ranging from congenital anomalies diagnosed at birth to acquired diseases that present later in childhood and into adolescence. While some pulmonary vascular diseases present similarly to those seen in adults, other forms are unique to children. Knowledge of the characteristic imaging features of these diseases is essential to facilitate prompt diagnosis and guide clinical management.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?

Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!