Do you hate getting your annual flu shot? This year, you have more choices to be protected from the flu, including a new “mini-shot” that feels more like a mosquito bite than a shot.
The new vaccine is called “intradermal” because it barely goes into the skin – instead of into the muscle below – and has a short needle. While the vaccine works the same as the usual flu shot, the dosage is much less.
For those of you who are still worried about preservatives in vaccines (needlessly, I might add), it is preservative free. This new version of the vaccine is approved for adults ages 18 through 65, including pregnant women.
If you are 65 or over, you may want to consider getting the “high-dose” vaccine that came out last year. This vaccine has four times as much vaccine antigen, the protein we respond to that makes us become immune. Older individuals have the poorest response to the usual flu vaccine and the high-dose vaccine has been shown to produce a higher level of immune response.
When we get vaccinated, we know that a sore arm is a possible result. This is because our body’s immune response to the vaccine takes place in the muscle and can make it slightly swollen, warm or tender.
With the intradermal vaccine, the reaction – like the vaccine – is in the skin. You can expect a bit of local reaction at the site of the vaccination, most commonly a red itchy bump. The high-dose vaccine causes the same type of sore arm as the usual vaccine, but because it has more antigens, the likelihood of a local reaction is higher than with the usual dose of vaccine.
Nasal flu vaccine and regular flu shots are still available. Nasal vaccine is only for healthy individuals ages 2 through 49, while the regular flu shot, which comes both in multi-dose vials and in preservative-free versions, can be given to anyone age 6 months and older.
This year’s flu vaccine protects against the same strains as last year’s vaccine, but since immunity declines over time, you should get a vaccine this year even if you were vaccinated last year. Children under age 8 usually need two doses of vaccine when there are new strains, or if they haven’t received two doses in a previous year. If they received a dose last year, they will only need one dose of vaccine this year.
Vaccine is available now, so make time to come in and get vaccinated! Schedule an appointment with Kelsey-Seybold by calling 713-442-0000 or on MyKelseyOnline.
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