The seasonal flu season is now upon us. If your age 65 and older, please get your seasonal influenza vaccination or flu shot. Why? Because, hospitalizations and death rates for seasonal influenza are highest for people age 65 and older – an estimated 90% of all seasonal influenza related deaths and 60% of seasonal influenza-related hospitalizations occur among people age 65+. And no, you can’t get the flu form the flu shot. So, do yourself and your loved ones a favor and get vaccinated. Talk your doctor too.
You may be wondering if you should also get the Novel A (H1N1) vaccination. The short answer is no, for right now. That’s because the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) have found that there are few severe cases of H1N1 among older persons. In contrast to seasonal influenza, current evidence indicates that relatively few severe cases of novel influenza A (H1N1) virus infection have occurred among older persons, and the highest hospitalization rates for illness caused by this virus have been among persons aged less than age 65 years. For example, the median age of persons with laboratory confirmed H1N1 infections in the US was 12 years, and the highest infection incidence rate (new infections during a given time period) was among persons age 5 -24 years. The incidence of infections was lowest among people age 65 and older.
The initial target groups are pregnant women, people who care for infants less than six months old, health care and emergency medical personnel, persons age 6 months to 24 years old and persons age 25 to 64 years old who have medical conditions (e.g., chronic pulmonary, cardiovascular, people with HIV) that put them at risk for influenza-related complications. Once the target populations have been vaccinated, the H1N1 vaccine will be made available to all people age 25-64 years old. If there is still an excess supply of the H1N1 vaccine, then it may be made available to people age 65 and older based on decisions made locally.
If H1N1 patterns change then recommendations for target groups may change also. But for now, this is the latest CDC guidance.
For additional information and current updates please check the following websites.
- http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/vaccination/ 