Flu Vaccine for 2008-2009 Flu Season
Have you ever wondered how the flu vaccine comes about? I discussed this once before in an article and now that the 2008-2009 vaccine is in the works, you can see for yourself the beginning of the process.
WHO Consultation on the Composition of Influenza Vaccine for the Northern Hemisphere 2008 - 2009
Recommended Composition Of Influenza Virus Vaccines For Use In The 2008–2009
Influenza Season
Flu Vaccines? Help or Hype?
Needless Needles? The Latest in Flu Shot Research
A new delivery method of the flu vaccine may be coming to a clinic near you. Always on the lookout for a better mousetrap, or in this case, a better shot, researchers are working on a sublingual (under the tongue) tablet that will provide the same protection as the flu shot does now. This has got to be a kid’s dream come true!
Not only will the flu vaccine not be dreaded by the needlephobic, should this line of research prove to be effective, it would also eliminate the nasal spray vaccine which many people find just as distasteful as the injection. An added benefit would be the decreased risk through the use of needles and a reduction in disposable medical waste materials.
As a bonus, it is hoped that the sublingual approach to flu prevention will also drastically cut reactions to the flu shot, such as localized skin irritations.
Research is still ongoing but results look positive so far. It may be just a matter of time until the flu shot becomes an archaic piece of history, with better and less painful prevention methods just around the corner.
New Flu Vaccine May Not Need Needles
CDC & Juvaris Partner to Create More Effective Vaccine
There is a lot of confusion about the flu. Put in a nutshell, here are the basic facts of what people mean when they talk about “The Flu.
- Seasonal Flu
- Pandemic Flu
- Avian Flu
Seasonal flu is the one that goes around every year. Each year the virus varies. It runs it course and winds down. Flu shots given at public health clinics and physician offices, are immunizations for the seasonal flu.
Pandemic flu is a new virus that appears that has not been seen before and thus when it hits the population of the world, no one has any resistance built up against it and there is no vaccine to protect anyone. It is a completely new disease. The last flu pandemic was in 1918. That particular flu killed many thousands of people worldwide, affected the economy, and ultimately played a role in the course of World War I.
Avian flu is an influenza virus that currently ONLY affects bird populations. It is contagious bird-to-bird, and there have been isolated cases of bird-to-person transmission, but by and large, it remains confined to the bird population.
So why does everyone talk about avian flu and pandemic flu in the same breath? The risk is that we are due for a flu pandemic. Experts feel that it is overdue and the time has come that it is reasonable to expect a pandemic. With Avian Flu in the equation, the risk is that Avian Flu will mutate slightly and become contagious on a new level: Person-to-person. When that occurs the likelihood of a pandemic flu epidemic is highly probable.
The CDC has partnered with Juvaris BioTherapeutics, Inc., to extend the supply of H5N1 vaccines to cover a larger population should a pandemic break out.
Because high doses of vaccine are needed to trigger an immune response to bird flu, stocks of existing vaccines could be run down quickly in a pandemic. By using JVRS-100 as a kind of booster, smaller doses could be used and the stocks of the existing vaccines might last longer, the company said.
San Francisco Business Times
Hopefully the claims of the company will prove true. It is believed by Juvaris that their adjuvant will provide greater protection and reduce the numbers of affected populations, and ultimately decrease the mortality rate of a pandemic flu epidemic.
Flu Vaccines? Help or Hype?
There are two sides to every story and the flu vaccine is no exception. Everywhere you go, there are posters encouraging the American population to get a flu shot. They hang in doctor’s offices, hospitals, pharmacies, public health clinics, day care centers and just about anywhere people tend to congregate. And it makes sense, at least on the surface. Flu can be deadly. Get a flu shot and greatly reduce your chances of being one of 36,000 Americans killed by the flu annually.
But does the flu shot really work as advertised?
This poster, produced by Sandofi Pasteur, a pharmaceutical company, explains the process that is undertaken to create a flu vaccine each year. It sounds good. And without a doubt it is labor intensive. But this poster doesn’t tell the whole story.
CNN reported on the controversy surrounding the flu shot and brought up the issues of how the strains of flu that the shot is intended to cover each year is essentially guesswork. According to the CNN report, “In 2003-2004, the CDC admitted that it completely missed the virulent Fujian flu strain that hit hard that winter.”
The report also pointed out that two recent studies have found that one of the population groups that is strongly encouraged to get a flu shot, may be a group that has the least effective response to the vaccine: People with compromised immune systems.
It is a difficult decision for the health consumer. Information of contradictory nature seems to be coming to light everyday. And it is impossible to make a truly informed decision when so much of the information that is presented to the public is based on the fiscal needs of a pharmaceutical company.
Read both articles. Do your homework and then talk to your physician about the flu vaccine. Whatever you decide to do, whether to accept or reject the immunization, be as informed as possible with the guidance of a medical professional that you trust.