CDC Issues New Flu Vaccine Recommendations

August 6, 2008

Flu season is just around the corner, and respiratory therapists should be aware of new influenza vaccination recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The new recommendations call for:

• Annual vaccination of all children aged 5–18 years, beginning in the 2008-2009 influenza season, if feasible, but no later than the 2009–2010 season.
• A continued primary focus on annual vaccination of all children aged 6 months through 4 years (59 months) because these children are at higher risk for influenza complications compared with older children.
• Use of either trivalent inactivated influenza vaccine or live, attenuated influenza vaccine (LAIV) when vaccinating healthy persons aged 2 through 49 years (the previous recommendation was to administer LAIV to person aged 5–49 years).
• The use of vaccines containing the 2008–2009 trivalent vaccine virus strains A/Brisbane/59/2007 (H1N1)-like, A/Brisbane/10/2007 (H3N2)-like, and B/Florida/4/2006-like antigens.

The recommendations also include new information on antiviral resistance among influenza viruses in the United States.

You can read the recommendations here.