Seasonal Flu Vaccine 2010/2011

Seasonal Flu Vaccine 2010/2011

Influenza illness is a serious disease that affects millions of people each year.  The best way to protect yourself from acquiring the disease is to get vaccinated yearly.  There are two types of vaccines – the flu shot and the nasal spray.  The flu shot is an inactivated vaccine that is given with a needle to people over 6 months of age.  The nasal spray is a live virus vaccine give to healthy people age 2-49 who are not pregnant.

The seasonal flu vaccine protects against the influenza viruses that research indicates will be most common during the upcoming season (including the seasonal flu and the swine flu). About 2 weeks after vaccination, antibodies that provide protection against influenza virus infection develop in the body.

Yearly flu vaccination should begin in September or as soon as vaccine is available and continue throughout the influenza season, into December, January, and beyond. This is because the timing and duration of influenza seasons vary. While influenza outbreaks can happen as early as October, most of the time influenza activity peaks in January or later.

Everyone 6 months and older should get a flu vaccine each year starting with the 2010-2011 influenza season.

While everyone should get a flu vaccine each flu season, it’s especially important that the following groups get vaccinated either because they are at high risk of having serious flu-related complications or because they live with or care for people at high risk for developing flu-related complications: 

1. Children younger than 5, but especially children younger than 2 years old
2. People of any age with certain chronic medical conditions (such as those with asthma and heart disease)
3. Pregnant women
4. People 50 years of age and older
5. People who live in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities
6. People who live with or care for those at high risk for complications from flu, including:
   1. Health care workers
   2. Household contacts of persons at high risk for complications from the flu
   3. Household contacts and out of home caregivers of children less than 6 months of age (these children are too young to be vaccinated)

People who have had a severe allergy to chicken eggs, have had a severe reaction to a prior flu vaccine, who have had developed Guillain-Barre syndrome within 6 weeks of getting a flu vaccine, and people with moderate or severe illness should check with their doctor before getting a flu vaccine.  Different side effects can be associated with either the flu shot or the nasal spray and are usually mild with either.  The flu shot can cause soreness or redness at the site of injection, fever and aches for 1-2 days.  The nasal spray can cause runny nose, wheezing, headache, vomiting, muscle aches, and fever.  These side effects are generally well tolerated.

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