People attending a metropolitan HIV service in Australia were often under-vaccinated against several vaccine-preventable infections, according to a retrospective audit published in AIDS Research and Therapy. The study assessed the proportion of patients with adequate vaccination against hepatitis B, human papillomavirus, pneumococcus and influenza.
Hepatitis B vaccination was the most complete of the four, with 47.9 percent of patients adequately vaccinated. That proportion was significantly higher than the rates recorded for the other vaccines, with a reported p value below 0.001. Even so, the authors note that this figure still leaves more than half of patients without adequate hepatitis B protection.
Coverage of the other vaccines was considerably lower. Only 19.0 percent of patients had adequate pneumococcal conjugate vaccination and 6.6 percent had adequate pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccination, while 7.4 percent had adequate human papillomavirus vaccination. Influenza vaccination reached 30.6 percent, a rate the audit found similar to general population rates in Western Australia.
The audit was retrospective, meaning it reviewed existing records rather than intervening to change vaccination practice, and it reflects a single metropolitan HIV service rather than a national sample. As a brief communication, it reports a snapshot of one clinic’s performance rather than trends over time or outcomes of any intervention.
People living with HIV are described in the paper as experiencing a disproportionate burden of vaccine-preventable infections, which is why adequate vaccination is considered important in this population. The authors conclude that vaccination adequacy requires review to help prevent hepatitis B acquisition and HPV-associated neoplasia. They highlight two clinical contexts in particular: antiretroviral regimens that do not contain tenofovir, and routine anal cancer screening. The reported percentages describe measured vaccination status within this service; the study does not report clinical outcomes of vaccination or reasons for the observed gaps.
Subject of Research: Vaccination coverage for hepatitis B, HPV, pneumococcus and influenza among patients at an Australian metropolitan HIV service
Article Title: Brief communication: hepatitis B, human papillomavirus, pneumococcal and influenza vaccination in an Australian metropolitan HIV service
Article References: Sparkes, S., Leedman, N., & Taggart, M. (2026). Brief communication: hepatitis B, human papillomavirus, pneumococcal and influenza vaccination in an Australian metropolitan HIV service. AIDS Research and Therapy. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12981-026-00947-5
Image Credits: AI Generated
DOI: 10.1186/s12981-026-00947-5
Keywords: HIV, vaccination, hepatitis B, human papillomavirus, pneumococcal, influenza, retrospective audit, Australia, vaccine-preventable infections, AIDS Research and Therapy, Brief, communication
News Source: Kristina Jarvis. (October 28, 2026). Vaccination gaps persist among people living with HIV in Australian clinic audit. Scienmag.
