Twinrix Paediatric

उत्पाद अवलोकन

About Twinrix Paediatric

Twinrix Paediatric is a vaccine, which is available as a suspension for injection. It contains inactivated (killed) hepatitis A viruses and parts of the hepatitis B virus as active substances. It is available in a 0.5-ml vial and in a 0.5-ml prefilled syringe.

What it is used for

Twinrix Paediatric is used to protect against hepatitis-A and hepatitis-B infection (diseases that affect the liver). It is used in infants, children and adolescents aged between one and 15 years who are not already immune to these two diseases and who are at risk of contracting both of them. The medicine can only be obtained with a prescription.

How it is used

The recommended vaccination schedule for Twinrix Paediatric is three doses with a gap of one month between the first two doses and a gap of five months between the second and third. It should be given by injection into the muscle of the upper arm or the thigh. It is recommended that individuals who receive the first dose should complete all three doses of Twinrix Paediatric. A booster dose of Twinrix Paediatric, or of a separate hepatitis-A or -B vaccine may be given, according to official recommendations.

How it works

Twinrix Paediatric is a vaccine. Vaccines work by ‘teaching’ the immune system (the body’s natural defences) how to defend itself against a disease. Twinrix Paediatric contains small amounts of inactivated hepatitis-A viruses and the ‘surface antigen’ (proteins from the surface) of the hepatitis-B virus. When a person is given the vaccine, the immune system recognises the viruses and surface antigens as ‘foreign’ and makes antibodies against them. In the future, the immune system will be able to make antibodies more quickly when it is exposed to the viruses. The antibodies will help to protect against diseases caused by these viruses. The vaccine is ‘adsorbed’. This means that the viruses and surface antigens are fixed onto aluminium compounds, to stimulate a better response. The surface antigens of the hepatitis-B virus are produced by a method known as ‘recombinant DNA technology’: they are made by a yeast that has received a gene (DNA), which makes it able to produce the proteins. Twinrix Paediatric is identical to the vaccine Twinrix Adult, which has been available in the European Union (EU) since 1996. The only difference between the two vaccines is the amount of vaccine in each vial or syringe. The active substances in Twinrix Paediatric and Twinrix Adult have been available in the EU for a number of years in separate vaccines: Havrix Adult for protection against hepatitis A and Engerix-B for protection against hepatitis B.

Active substance: inactivated (killed) hepatitis A viruses and parts of the hepatitis B virus

Source: EMA EPAR