We at On Call Medical Clinic want to share some information with you in an effort to hopefully help you be aware of the flu situation this year and what precautions you need to take.
Below are some common questions and answers.
What’s new this season?
A few things are new this season:
- Only injectable shots are recommended this season.
- Vaccines have been updated to better match circulating viruses.
- There will be some new vaccines on the market this season.
- The recommendations for vaccination of people with egg allergies have changed.
What flu vaccines are recommended this season?
This season, only injectable vaccines (flu shots) should be used. Some flu shots protect against three viruses and some protect against four viruses.
Options this season include:
- Standard dose flu shots. Most are given into the muscle (usually with a needle, but one can be given to some people with a jet injector). One is given into the skin.
- A high-dose shotfor older people.
- A shot made with adjuvantfor older people.
- A shot made with virus grown in cell culture.
- A shot made using a vaccine production technology (recombinant vaccine) that does not require the use of flu virus.
Live attenuated influenza vaccine (LAIV) – or the nasal spray vaccine – is not recommended for use during the 2016-2017 season because of concerns about its effectiveness.
What viruses do 2016-2017 flu vaccines protect against?
There are many viruses and they are constantly changing. The composition of U.S. vaccines is reviewed annually and updated to match circulating flu viruses. Vaccines protect against the three or four viruses that research suggests will be most common. For 2016-2017, three-component vaccines are recommended to contain:
- A/California/7/2009 (H1N1)pdm09-like virus,
- A/Hong Kong/4801/2014 (H3N2)-like virus and a
- B/Brisbane/60/2008-like virus (B/Victoria lineage).
Four component vaccines are recommended to include the same three viruses above, plus an additional B virus called B/Phuket/3073/2013-like virus (B/Yamagata lineage).
When and how often should I get vaccinated?
Everyone 6 months and older should get a vaccine every year by the end of October, if possible. However, getting vaccinated later is OK. Vaccination should continue throughout the flu season, even in January or later. Some children who have received flu vaccine previously and children who have only received one dose in their lifetime, may need two doses of flu vaccine. A health care provider can advise on how many doses a child should get.
This information was provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
We at On Call Medical Clinic hope that this information was valuable to you. Please remember when taken down by the flu and your doctor’s office is not open, that we have doctors and nurses waiting to help 7 days a week. We also have the laboratory and other equipment available to quickly diagnosis your illness and provide a sound recommendation to get you well soon. Please call us at 228 818-5155 if we can help.