Influenza is the leading vaccine-preventable infection that affects Canadian of all ages yearly. While it is known that females typically exhibit a stronger immune response following vaccination, there has been limited investigation of how this affects vaccine efficacy (reduction in disease incidence under optimal conditions), effectiveness (reduction in disease incidence in the “real world”), and adverse events following immunization.
This study sought to review the existing literature in a systematic way and perform new analyses of data from influenza vaccination trials, stratified by sex and vaccine type. Our team determined the magnitude in the difference of vaccination response between males and females to examine how this is translated in public health recommendations.