Statistical, epidemiological, and risk-assessment approaches to evaluating safety of vaccines throughout the life cycle at the Food and Drug Administration

Pediatrics. 2011 May:127 Suppl 1:S31-8. doi: 10.1542/peds.2010-1722F. Epub 2011 Apr 18.

Abstract

The public health community faces increasing demands for improving vaccine safety while simultaneously increasing the number of vaccines available to prevent infectious diseases. The passage of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Amendment Act of 2007 formalized the concept of life-cycle management of the risks and benefits of vaccines, from early clinical development through many years of use in large numbers of people. Harnessing scientific and technologic advances is necessary to improve vaccine-safety evaluation. The Office of Biostatistics and Epidemiology in the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research is working to improve the FDA's ability to monitor vaccine safety by improving statistical, epidemiologic, and risk-assessment methods, gaining access to new sources of data, and exploring the use of genomics data. In this article we describe the current approaches, new resources, and future directions that the FDA is taking to improve the evaluation of vaccine safety.

Publication types

  • Meta-Analysis
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Communicable Disease Control / standards
  • Drug Approval / legislation & jurisprudence*
  • Drug Design
  • Drug Evaluation
  • Drug Evaluation, Preclinical
  • Drug Stability*
  • Drug-Related Side Effects and Adverse Reactions
  • Humans
  • Product Surveillance, Postmarketing
  • Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic
  • Risk Assessment
  • Safety Management
  • United States
  • United States Food and Drug Administration*
  • Vaccination / adverse effects
  • Vaccination / statistics & numerical data*
  • Vaccines / adverse effects
  • Vaccines / pharmacology*

Substances

  • Vaccines