Jan. 15, 2015 -- It’s official. This season’s flu vaccine is less effective than experts had hoped.
New research by the CDC shows that this batch of flu shots cuts the risk of needing medical treatment for flu symptoms by about 23% on average. Compared to past seasons, that’s on the low side. Since the CDC started measuring how well flu vaccines work in 2005, their effectiveness has ranged from 10% to 60%.
Experts say it’s still a good idea to get the flu shot, even though protection from the current vaccine is spotty.
“It’s always better to have some protection rather than no protection,” says Len Horovitz, MD, a lung specialist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. “Why would you opt for zero, even if the best you could do is 15% or 20%?”
Horovitz sometimes encourages his patients, many of whom are at high risk for complications from the flu because of lung problems like asthma or COPD, to get the shot twice -- once early in the season and again 5 to 6 months later.
The idea -- which hasn’t been scientifically proven and is not endorsed by the CDC -- is that the second shot might work like a booster to revive flagging immunity. Horovitz thinks that might be important for older adults and those with underlying medical conditions, who tend to have a poor response to vaccines in the first place.
“It’s a little bit controversial,” he admits. “I’m recommending it to people at high risk who were vaccinated in August or September, which was a while ago.”
Coverage Gap
During years when the vaccine is a good match for the flu virus strains that are making people sick, effectiveness is around 50%-60%. And it’s been in that range for the past four seasons.
But nearly three-quarters of the viruses that are making people sick this year are different than the strains included in the vaccine’s formula. That means people aren’t getting as much protection from the shot.
source : CDC: Flu Vaccine Not Very Effective This Season
