This study aimed to investigate the coverage of hepatitis B vaccine (Hep B) and its completeness and timeliness for birth cohorts from 1999 to 2017 in Zhejiang province, East China. Demographic characteristics and vaccination records of Hep B of children born from 1 January 1999 to 31 June 2017 were extracted from the Zhejiang provincial immunization information system. The timeliness of the first dose of Hep B (Hep B1) was defined as the proportion of children who received the Hep B1 within 24 h after birth among the target population. The completeness of Hep B was defined as the proportion of children who completed the three-dose series of Hep B before 7 years of age. The demographic characteristics of the target population were described. The coverage of each dose of Hep B, the timeliness of Hep B1, and the completeness of Hep B for each birth cohort were described. A logistic regression model was applied to detect the determinants of the timeliness of Hep B1 and the completeness of Hep B vaccination. The coverage of Hep B1 increased from 90.3% to 98.3%, the coverage of Hep B2 increased from 88.8% to 96.1%, and the coverage of Hep B3 increased from 86.4% to 94.2%. The timeliness of Hep B1 increased from 80.3% to 91.3%. The completeness of Hep B increased from 81.3% to 91.5%. The determinants of timeliness of Hep B1 included children’s delivery place, immigration status, maternal education level, and economic development level of resident area. The determinants of completeness of Hep B included children’s delivery place, immigration status, maternal education level, economic development level of resident area, maternal occupation, and frequency of vaccination service. Zhejiang province had achieved significant improvements in the timely administration of Hep B1 and the completeness of Hep B. To accelerate progress toward additional reductions in the transmission of hepatitis B virus, further efforts need to be focused on improving the timeliness of Hep B1 vaccination and reducing the drop-outs among disadvantaged children with the risk factors identified in this study.
Objectives: Exploring determinants underlying disparities in full vaccination coverage (FVC) can contribute to improved immunization interventions. FVC and its risk factors in Zhejiang province have been studied, yet the determinants explaining the rural–urban disparity in FVC have not been studied. This study aimed to disentangle the factors explaining rural–urban disparities in FVC of vaccine doses scheduled during the first year of life in Zhejiang province. Methods: We used data from a vaccination coverage survey among children aged 24–35 months conducted in 2016. The outcome measure was full vaccination status, and the grouping variable was the area of residence. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the FVC and rural–urban residence across the exposure variables. The Fairlie decomposition technique was used to decompose factors contributing to explaining the FVC disparity. Results: There were 847 children included in this study, of which 49.6% lived in a rural area. FVC was 94% in rural areas and 85% in urban areas. A disparity of 9% to the advantage of the rural areas and the exposure variables explained 81.1% of the disparity. Maternal factors explained 49.7% of the explained disparity with education, occupation, and ethnicity being the significant contributors to the explained disparity. Children’s birth order and immigration status contributed somewhat to the explained inequality. Conclusion: There was a significant disparity in FVC in Zhejiang province, a disadvantage to the urban areas. Policy recommendations or health interventions to reduce the inequality should be focused on eliminating poverty and women’s illiteracy, targeted at migrant children or children from minority ethnicities.
The cervical cancer tumor microenvironment is a diverse and complex ecosystem. Tumor-immune cell infiltration (ICI) may influence immune escape and immunotherapeutic responses. However, the relationship between immune cell infiltrations, immune escape, and immunotherapy in cervical cancer has not been fully clarified. Here, Principal component analysis (PCA) and Tumor immune dysfunction and exclusion (TIDE) were applied to calculate individual ICI scores and probabilities of immune escape, respectively. Through the IMvigor210 and the Cancer Immunome Atlas (TCIA) datasets, we validated the different responses to immunotherapy in two subgroups of patients. Furthermore, therapeutic benefits of different patients were predicted by the pRRophetic package. We found that patients with high ICI scores were prone to immune escape due to the activated JAK-STAT signaling pathway, along with lower CD8+ T cells. High ICI scores patients could benefit more from anti-PD-L1 immunotherapy, and individuals with low scores may be better candidates for the anti-CTLA-4 treatment. Combinations of immunotherapies with targeted inhibitors may improve clinical efficacy and reduce the risk of tumor recurrence. The ICI model not only helps us enhance the cognition of immune escape, but also guides the application of immunotherapy in cervical cancer patients.
To assess the Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccination coverage in Zhejiang province and to investigate predictors of the BCG vaccination, we used data from the 2017 Zhejiang provincial coverage survey. Demographic and immunization data on the selected children, their mothers, and their families were also collected by using a pre-tested questionnaire. BCG scars were verified among children who were available at the moment of survey. Coverage of BCG and other expanded program on immunization (EPI) vaccines scheduled before the first year of life was calculated. BCG coverage through the scar assessment and timeliness of BCG were also presented. Multivariate analyses of the predictors associated with the BCG vaccination and its timeliness were conducted separately. In total, 1393 children agreed to participate in the survey and presented the immunization cards. Of them, the coverage of BCG was 92.0% and 88.3% received the BCG within the first 28 days after birth. Besides this, 1282 out of the 1393 children were screened for the BCG scars and 97.1% of them had developed the scars. The multivariable logistic regression analyses indicated that hospital delivery, higher maternal education, a mother with no job, and a resident child were positively associated with the higher BCG vaccination coverage and its timely administrations. BCG coverage was optimal and it was administered in a timely manner. The majority of children vaccinated with BCG developed scars. Tailored interventions should be more greatly focused on and targeted to children with the risk factors identified in this study.
Objective: The objectives of this study were to determine the degree and risk factors of the inequity in the childhood coverage of full primary immunization (FPI) in Zhejiang province. Method: We used data from two rounds of vaccination coverage surveys among children aged 24–35 months conducted in 2014 and 2017, respectively. The household income per month was used as an index of socioeconomic status for the inequality analysis. The concentration index (CI) was used to quantify the degree of inequality, and the decomposition approach was applied to quantify the contributions from demographic factors to inequality in the coverage of FPI. Results: The coverage rates of FPI were 80.6%, with a CI value of 0.12028 for the 2014 survey, while the coverage rates of FPI were 85.2%, with a CI value of 0.10129 for the 2017 survey. The results of decomposition analysis suggested that 68.2% and 67.1% of the socioeconomic inequality in the coverage of FPI could be explained by the mother’s education level for the 2014 and 2017 survey, respectively. Other risk factors including birth order, ethnic group, mother’s age, maternal employment status, residence, immigration status, GDP per-capita, and the percentage of the total health spending allocated to public health could also explain this inequality. Conclusion: The socioeconomic inequity in the coverage of FPI still remained, although this gap was reduced between 2014 and 2017. Policy recommendations for health interventions on reducing the inequality in the coverage of FPI should be focused on eliminating poverty and women’s illiteracy.
Background: This study was aimed at understanding the attitude on influenza and influenza vaccination among workers of community healthcare centers (CHCs) and investigating the barriers and facilitators for influenza vaccination. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted through an anonymous questionnaire to all workers of CHCs in 22 CHCs. Socio-demographic characteristics, reasons for acceptance or refusal of influenza vaccination, influenza vaccination status, and attitude toward influenza vaccination were collected. Suggested strategies for improving influenza vaccine uptake were also surveyed. Descriptive analyses were conducted depending on the distributions of variables. A logistic regression analysis was implemented to examine the association between influenza vaccination status in the 2022/2023 season and the potential predictors. The adjusted odds ratio (AOR) with 95% confidence interval (CI) was calculated. Results: In total, 2205 workers of CHCs participated in this study. Influenza vaccination coverage in the 2022/2023 season was 1.36%. The reason “To avoid influenza” met with the highest level of agreement for acceptance of influenza vaccination (median = 4.36 for 1–5-point Likert scale), while the reason “Not a high-risk group of influenza and possible complications” met with the highest level of agreement for refusal of influenza vaccination (median = 3.72 for 1–5-point Likert scale). The influenza vaccination status was significantly related to professional categories, regular exercise habits, sources of information on influenza vaccination, and attitude on recommending influenza vaccination to patients. The free influenza vaccination and mandatory vaccination policies were the most frequent suggestions for improving influenza vaccination coverage. Conclusions: A lower influenza vaccination coverage was observed in workers of CHCs, and it might be attributed to several risk factors. It was urgent to take actions on improving their understanding of, awareness of, and confidence in influenza vaccination. Free influenza vaccination and vaccination requirement policies might be helpful for enhancing vaccine uptake, especially for physicians and other healthcare workers.