HPV vaccines: a controversial issue?

Controversy still exists over whether the benefits of the available HPV vaccines outweigh the risks and this has suppressed uptake of the HPV vaccines in comparison to other vaccines. Concerns about HPV vaccine safety have led some physicians, healthcare officials and parents to withhold the recommended vaccination from the target population. The most common reason for not administering the prophylactic HPV vaccines are concerns over adverse effects. The aim of this review is the assessment of peer-reviewed scientific data related to measurable outcomes from the use of HPV vaccines throughout the world with focused attention on the potential adverse effects. We found that the majority of studies continue to suggest a positive risk-benefit from vaccination against HPV, with minimal documented adverse effects, which is consistent with other vaccines. However, much of the published scientific data regarding the safety of HPV vaccines appears to originate from within the financially competitive HPV vaccine market. We advocate a more independent monitoring system for vaccine immunogenicity and adverse effects to address potential conflicts of interest with regular systematic literature reviews by qualified individuals to vigilantly assess and communicate adverse effects associated with HPV vaccination. Finally, our evaluation suggests that an expanded use of HPV vaccine into more diverse populations, particularly those living in low-resource settings, would provide numerous health and social benefits.

Tuberculose ganglionar em pacientes co-infectados pelo HIV-1: estudo clínico e laboratorial / Ganglionic tuberculosis in patients co-infected by HIV-1: clinical and laboratorial study

Estudos clínicos e laboratoriais apontam diferenças marcantes entre pacientes soropositivos para HIV-1 e imunocompetentes. A tuberculose ganglionar é uma forma freqüente de apresentaçäo extrapulmonar nestes pacientes. A apresentaçäo histopatológica é muito diferente dos pacientes imunocompetentes, com mais de 70 por cento dos casos de várias séries näo apresentando granulomas ou, quando presentes, malformados, com extensa necrose caseosa, raras células gigantes e presença de muitos bacilos álcool-ácido resistentes, denotando uma resposta imune incompleta. Estudamos os diversos aspectos clínicos e laboratoriais, incluídos exames microbiológicos e histopatológicos de 27 pacientes encaminhados para tratamento e diagnóstico no Hospital Evandro Chagas/FIOCRUZ. De acordo com o diagnóstico histopatológico, os casos foram subdivididos em três grupos: Grupo I (n = 7): tuberculose ganglionar sem infecçäo pelo HIV - 1; Grupo II (n = 9): tuberculose ganglionar em pacientes co-infectados por HIV - 1; Grupo III (n = 11): linfadenite reativa associada à AIDS. No grupo de pacientes co-infectados em relaçäo aos imunocompetentes, verificou-se grannulomas malformados, verificou-se granulomas malformados, extensa necrose e grande riqueza bacilar, além de queda acentuada de hemácias e linfócitos e grande freqüência de infecçöes oportunísticas denotando grave defeito na resposta imune, explicando a apresentaçäo de formas bem mais severas e nao usuais de tuberculose nos pacientes com AIDS.