Shortage of Seasonal Flu Vaccine Looms

History, and this past spring, show novel strains 'crowd out' normal ones

(NEWSER) - A perfect storm of factors related to the swine flu pandemic have many experts predicting the usual seasonal flu viruses will be no-shows this season. First off, the rush for H1N1 vaccinations saw many patients being vaccinated for the seasonal varieties as well. And then there’s “crowding out,” a little-understand phenomenon that means novel flu strains essentially monopolize patients' lungs. More»

Uncertainty of supply makes scheduling immunization clinics tough

(NEWSER) - Production delays that are slowing the distribution of the H1N1 flu vaccine could hardly have come at a worse time, with the death toll in young people mounting and antivaccine activists seizing on any chance to make their position heard. Experts point out that the H1N1 version uses the same formula as the seasonal flu vaccine: "One hundred million people get those every year, and we believe there's a very strong safety record for them," says a CDC official. More»

(NEWSER) - Pregnant women and people who care for infants will be first in line for the swine flu vaccine this fall, the Washington Post reports. Infants, children and young adults under 24, chronically ill adults aged 25 to 64, and health care workers are the other top priority groups under guidelines drawn up by experts at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention yesterday. More»

Total lower than usual, but victims skew younger

(NEWSER) - The H1N1 pandemic has been less deadly than a normal flu season, but the infection has claimed the lives of far younger victims, the CDC announced today. The outbreak killed 17,000 Americans, far less than the 36,000 who die during an average flu season. But in a normal flu season, 90% of victims are elderly. This time, the reverse was true; Between 880 and 1,800 of those killed in the outbreak were children, and up to 13,000 more were adults under the age of 65. More»

But pregnant women, newborns should wait for needle version

(NEWSER) - The first Americans to take a swine flu vaccine will be spraying it up the nose, NPR reports. About 3.4 million hits of the nasal spray will come out early next month, a couple of weeks ahead of 195 million by-the-needle doses. Dubbed FluMist, the spray carries a live but neutered version of the H1N1 virus, making it ideal for the young and healthy. Pregnant women, newborns, and people with certain health problems should wait for the needle vaccine, the CDC says. More»