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Journals
Vaccines
Special Issues
Factors Affecting Influenza Vaccine Uptake
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Factors Affecting Influenza Vaccine Uptake

A special issue of Vaccines (ISSN 2076-393X). This special issue belongs to the section "Influenza Virus Vaccines".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 October 2025 | Viewed by 1115

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Adriana Pistol

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Medicine, Carol Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 050474 Bucharest, Romania
Interests: vaccination hesitancy; influenza epidemiology; other viral respiratory infections
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Influenza symptoms can range from mild to severe. Seasonal epidemics and sporadic pandemics typically characterize influenza. The influenza vaccine helps protect against influenza illness, which can be serious or life-threatening. Routine annual influenza vaccination is recommended for all persons aged ≥ 6 months who do not have contraindications. Frequently reported barriers to vaccination include concerns regarding vaccine safety or efficacy, vaccine hesitancy, lack of insurance, cost of vaccination, perceived lack of risk, and lack of guidelines or education.

Original research articles and reviews are welcome for this Special Issue. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following: factors affecting influenza vaccination rates in the general population and high-risk groups, methods to evaluate influenza vaccine uptake and reduce hesitancy, and hesitancy determinants.

I look forward to receiving your contributions.

Prof. Dr. Adriana Pistol
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Vaccines is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • influenza
  • vaccines
  • coverage
  • uptake
  • hesitancy
  • risk groups

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

14 pages, 1339 KiB  
Article
Determinants of Accepting or Rejecting Influenza Vaccination—Results of a Survey Among Ligurian Pharmacy Visitors During the 2023/2024 Vaccination Campaign
by Daniela Amicizia, Silvia Allegretti, Federico Grammatico, Matteo Astengo, Francesca Marchini, Alberto Battaglini, Irene Schenone, Irene Schiavetti, Camilla Sticchi, Barbara Rebesco and Filippo Ansaldi
Vaccines 2025, 13(6), 580; https://doi.org/10.3390/vaccines13060580 - 29 May 2025
Viewed by 140
Abstract
Background/Objectives: Seasonal influenza vaccination is crucial for reducing morbidity, mortality, and healthcare burdens. The 2023/2024 Ligurian vaccination campaign (Italy) utilized an inclusive model involving local health authorities, general practitioners, pediatricians, and pharmacies to enhance accessibility. Our study aimed at focusing on factors influencing [...] Read more.
Background/Objectives: Seasonal influenza vaccination is crucial for reducing morbidity, mortality, and healthcare burdens. The 2023/2024 Ligurian vaccination campaign (Italy) utilized an inclusive model involving local health authorities, general practitioners, pediatricians, and pharmacies to enhance accessibility. Our study aimed at focusing on factors influencing vaccine uptake, public attitudes and access to preventive healthcare services. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among adults (≥18 years) in Ligurian pharmacies visitors during the vaccination campaign. A self-administered structured questionnaire gathered data on demographics, vaccination history, healthcare access, and awareness. Results: The study included 30,499 participants, and the median age with P25–P75 (years) was 62.0 [47.0–74.0]; 54.6% were female. Considering determinants of accepting influenza vaccination, age was identified as a strong independent predictor. Each one-year increase in age was associated with a 3.8% increase in the odds of influenza vaccination (OR 1.03, 95% CI 1.03–1.04, p < 0.001). Compared to individuals who never visited their general practitioners, those who visited “sometimes”, “often”, or “very often” had significantly higher odds of influenza vaccination (OR 1.54, 1.97, and 1.98, respectively; p < 0.001 for all categories). The strongest predictor of influenza vaccination in the 2023/2024 season was having received the influenza vaccine in the previous season (2022/2023) (OR 71.73, 95% CI 65.38–78.78, p < 0.001). Consistent with increasing age predicting higher influenza vaccination uptake, older age was associated with lower odds of refusing the vaccine due to the belief that “getting or transmitting influenza does not matter” or due to “other or unspecified reasons”. In contrast, receipt of the COVID-19 vaccination significantly increased the odds of holding these opinions. Among individuals who cited reasons such as fear of side effects, concerns about vaccine safety, fear of injections, general opposition to vaccines, or doubts about vaccine effectiveness, having received the COVID-19 vaccine was associated with lower odds of citing these as barriers to influenza vaccination. Conclusions: Fear of side effects and perceived unnecessary vaccination are key barriers. Targeted education and the involvement of general practitioners could enhance vaccine acceptance, particularly among hesitant groups. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Factors Affecting Influenza Vaccine Uptake)
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