How Well Does Flumist Work
FluMist is an effective vaccine to help prevent against infection with the influenza viruses.
FluMist was studied in clinical trials of adults ages 18 to 49 years. Researchers followed people in the study over the course of 7 weeks. People vaccinated with FluMist were 23.7% less likely to develop an upper respiratory infection with a fever compared with people who received a placebo. Upper respiratory infections include the common cold.
However, no vaccine is 100% effective. Although FluMist may decrease your risk for becoming infected with the flu viruses, you could still develop the flu.
Talk with your doctor about whether FluMist is right for you and what else you can do to help prevent the flu.
What If I Miss A Dose
In most cases, youll need only one dose of FluMist for it to be effective at helping prevent the flu. If you dont get the FluMist vaccine before the start of the flu season, you can likely still receive it later.
Each year, how long flu season lasts is different. Some years it may last through March, and in other years, flu season can last until May. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that the flu vaccine remain available throughout the entire flu season. However, keep in mind that FluMist takes about 2 weeks to work, so its really best to get it early in the flu season.
Its also important to note that the CDC recommends certain children receive two doses of the FluMist. If your child misses their appointment to receive the second dose, reschedule it as soon as possible.
Side Effects And Risks
FluMist and Fluzone both contain vaccines to help prevent the flu. Therefore, these medications can cause very similar side effects, but some different ones as well. Below are examples of these side effects.
Mild side effects
These lists contain up to 10 of the most common mild side effects that can occur with FluMist, with Fluzone, or with both drugs .
- Can occur with FluMist:
Serious side effects
This list contains examples of serious side effects that can occur with FluMist and Fluzone when taken individually:
Don’t Miss: How Many Die Of Flu In Usa Each Year
Where To Find Reliable Vaccine Info Online
While vaccine shedding myths as well as other misconceptions about the COVID-19 shots are easily debunked, they spread like wildfire online, threatening public health and efforts to smother the coronavirus.
Case in point: A private school in Miami that told teachers they must stay away from students if they received the vaccine, citing false claims about vaccine shedding. It’s putting some teachers in the position of choosing between getting the vaccine or keeping their jobs, not to mention fueling vaccine hesitancy in the community at large.
“This is really one of the tools in the anti-vax arsenal of storylines that are rolled out to discourage people from getting vaccinated,” says Venditto. “If people don’t know what’s actually happening and the science going into this, you hear this stuff and you might actually believe it.”
Hence why it’s so important to be careful to look into any weird claims you see online before believing them, let alone sharing the info with others. Here are a few places where you can find reliable health information online:
Safety Of Recombinant Influenza Vaccines
RIV was initially available in the U.S. during the 2013-14 season as RIV3 . RIV4 was licensed in late 2016 and was first available for the 2017-18 season. Since the 2018-19 season, all RIV in the U.S. is quadrivalent . RIV4 contains HA which is produced via introduction of the HA genetic sequence into an insect cell line, and contains some residual insect proteins .
In pre-licensure studies of RIV4, the most frequently reported injection site reaction were tenderness and pain . The most common solicited systemic reactions were headache , fatigue , myalgia and arthralgia . In pre-licensure studies comparing safety of RIV4 with licensed comparator IIV4s among persons aged 18 through 49 years and 50 years, the frequency of injection site and systemic solicited AEs was generally similar between the two groups .
You May Like: How Long For Flu Symptoms To Appear
When To Get The Vaccine
Its important to get the flu vaccine a few weeks before flu season begins in your area. This is because the flu vaccine takes about 2 weeks to become effective to help prevent the flu. The CDC recommends that adults and children get vaccinated in the early fall, before the end of October.
However, the CDC also recommends not getting the flu vaccine too early. If you get vaccinated in July or August, the vaccine protection may not last throughout the flu season.
Some children need two doses of the flu vaccine, which need to be separated by at least 4 weeks. In this case, your childs doctor may recommend that your child receives the first dose early. This helps ensure that both doses can be given before flu season.
Here are answers to some frequently asked questions about FluMist.
Study: Flu Patients Shed Virus Longer Than Expected
In the study, one type of test showed that 22 of 41 patients were still shedding the virus 7 days or longer after the onset of their illness, according to the report in Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology. Another testing method showed that 12 of the 41 patients were still infective at 7 days or later.
“This finding raises the concern that hospitalized patients who are older and/or have chronic illnesses could shed influenza A virus beyond the 5- to 7-day period that has traditionally been considered to be the time of infectivity,” says the report by Surbhi Leekha and colleagues at the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine in Rochester, Minn.
The authors recruited 50 patients who were hospitalized for at least several days for influenza from December 2004 through mid-March 2005. The patients’ median age was 72, and 48 of the 50 had an underlying chronic disease, such as heart or lung disease or diabetes. About two thirds of them had received a flu shot.
Polymerase chain reaction was used to test respiratory tract specimens for influenza A. If the initial test was positive, additional throat swabs were taken and tested at 2, 3, 5, and 7 days after the first specimen, if the patient remained in the hospital. The 41 patients used in the final sample included 35 from whom specimens were obtained at least 7 days after symptom onset, plus another six whose samples tested negative earlier than 7 days after onset.
Don’t Miss: Number Of Flu Cases In 2020
Can You Shed Virus Following A Vaccination
Technically yes, but it is extremely rare and only possible with certain types of vaccines.
The oral polio vaccine contains a weakened version of the poliovirus and, in some cases, really does revert to its virulent form.
This happens because the weak strain of polio in OPV replicates a little in the gut following vaccination, which gives the body time to recognise the virus and build up defence.
However, this means that if the replicating virus is excreted pooped out during this time, it has a chance of remaining in the excrement and spreading upon contact. This becomes a particular problem in regions with poor sanitation and vaccine coverage, which are usually in low socioeconomic areas.
Once it is in this virulent form, the OPV does indeed shed.
This takes a long time though, and that weak virus needs around 12 months to change to a virulent form that can affect an under-immunised community. Its mostly a problem for these communities because the virus can circulate for longer, giving it extra time to revert, instead of being nipped in the bud.
In 2017, WHO reported that 20 billion doses of OPV had been administered to 3 billion children worldwide and prevented 13 million cases of polio. Of these administrations, the vaccine-derived polio cases numbered less than 760.
If you need a visual, that would be one grain of rice per 79kg, if each grain was a person who received a vaccine.
How Flumist Is Given
You should get FluMist according to your doctors or healthcare providers instructions.
FluMist comes as a nasal spray that a healthcare provider or pharmacist will spray into your nose. Youll likely receive your dose of FluMist at a doctors office or pharmacy.
When you receive your vaccine, you can breathe normally. You dont have to sniff. Your doctor or pharmacist will have you sit up straight. Then theyll quickly spray one squirt of vaccine into each nostril.
For children ages 2 to 8 years, two doses of FluMist may be recommended. Talk with your childs doctor about whether your child should receive one or two doses.
For more information on the number of doses of FluMist that you or your child should receive, see the FluMist dosage section below.
Also Check: Salt Lake County Health Department Flu Shots
Misconceptions About Stomach Flu
Is the stomach flu really flu?
No. Many people use the term stomach flu to describe illnesses with nausea, vomiting or diarrhea. These symptoms can be caused by many different viruses, bacteria or even parasites. While vomiting, diarrhea, and being nauseous or sick to your stomach can sometimes be related to flu more commonly in children than adults these problems are rarely the main symptoms of influenza. Flu is a respiratory disease and not a stomach or intestinal disease.
Vaccines Using Live Viruses Spread Through Shedding
Measles, mumps, rubella, smallpox, chickenpox, zoster, yellow fever, rotavirus, and some flu vaccines use live attenuated viruses .
Because LAVs are shed from vaccinees, they sometimes present a risk to unvaccinated individuals with impaired immunity.
Here are just a few examples of vaccines that can cause the virus to be shed :
You May Like: Target Walk In Flu Shot
Safety Of Inactivated Influenza Vaccines
Fever, malaise, myalgia, and other systemic symptoms that can occur after vaccination with IIV3 most often affect persons who have had no previous exposure to the influenza virus antigens in the vaccine . These reactions are generally self-limited and subside after 12 days. Studies suggest the frequency of fever after IIV in children may vary in different influenza seasons and settings. In a study of 791 healthy children aged 1 through 15 years, post-vaccination fever was noted among 12% of those aged 1 through 5 years, 5% among those aged 6 through 10 years, and 5% among those aged 11 through 15 years . An observational study assessed post-vaccination fever frequency in 314 children aged 24-59 months receiving IIV during the 2013-14 influenza season. On the vaccination day to 2 days after vaccination , 7.1% and 6.0% of children had fever after IIV4 and IIV3, respectively . A clinical trial assessed fever in 142 children aged 6-47 months randomized to receive acetaminophen, oral placebo, or ibuprofen immediately following IIV and for 24 hours after vaccination. In this study, post-vaccination fever was observed in only two children .
Thimerosal is an ethyl mercury-containing antimicrobial compound. It is primarily used in multi-dose vial preparations of IIVs as a preservative to inhibit microbial growth. For these preparations, the mercury content from thimerosal is 25 µg of mercury per 0.5 mL dose.
Was Flumist Discontinued At Some Point
Yes, FluMist wasnt available during the 20162018 flu seasons. The CDC recommended against using FluMist at that time because studies showed that the vaccine was only about 3% effective from 20132016.
However, in 2018, the manufacturer of FluMist changed the vaccine so that it would be more effective. With that change, the CDC began to recommend FluMist as an option for flu vaccination in 2019. However, there was a limited supply of the vaccine available during the 20192020 flu season due to a manufacturing shortage.
FluMist is currently approved for the 20202021 flu season for use in children and adults ages 2 to 49 years. If you have questions about whether FluMist is right for you, talk with your doctor. You can also refer to CDC recommendations in the How FluMist is given section above.
Recommended Reading: Does Flu Shot Have Egg
What Is Vaccine Shedding
Vaccine shedding is when an individual releases, or sheds, the components of a vaccine either inside or outside of their body.
This can only happen with a certain type of vaccine called a live-attenuated vaccine. Some examples of live-attenuated vaccines that are commonly given in the United States include the:
- rotavirus vaccine
Safety Of Live Attenuated Influenza Vaccine
Shedding of the live attenuated vaccine virus is common after receipt of LAIV. In general, shedding is more common among younger recipients, among whom it may also be of longer duration. Among 345 LAIV3 recipients aged 549 years for whom shedding was assessed by viral culture of nasal swabs, 29% had detectable virus in nasal secretions. Prevalence of shedding was inversely related to age, and maximal shedding occurred within 2 days of vaccination. The symptoms most frequently reported after vaccination did not correlate with the presence of shedding . In a study of 200 children aged 6 through 59 months, shedding of at least one vaccine virus was detected in 79% of children overall, and was more common among younger children . Shedding had stopped in most cases by 11 days post vaccination. Vaccine virus was detected from nasal secretions in one of 57 HIV-infected adults who received LAIV3 compared with none of 54 HIV-negative participants , and in three of 24 HIV-infected children compared with seven of 25 children who were not HIV-infected .
Recommended Reading: Penn State Health Flu Shots
Why Do We Need The Flu Vaccine Every Year
Children need one dose of the vaccine every year. The exception is children who are in a clinical risk group, have not had a flu vaccine before and are under 9 years of age. These children need two doses of vaccine at least 4 weeks apart. Bristol Children’s Vaccine Centre has a short video showing how the nasal flu vaccine is given.
Flu vaccines have an excellent safety record. They are the best protection we have against an unpredictable virus which can cause severe illness and deaths each year among at-risk groups. It is important to have a flu vaccine every year because the flu virus is very variable and changes over time. Each year there are different strains around, and a new vaccine has to be prepared to deal with them. Vaccination from previous years is not likely to protect people against current strains of flu.
Each years flu vaccine is made to give the best protection against the strains of flu that are expected to circulate in the coming season. The inactivated trivalent vaccine protects against three of the flu virus strains and the inactivated quadrivalent vaccine protects against four of the flu strains which are most likely to be around. The nasal flu vaccine is a quadrivalent vaccine, which protects against four flu virus strains.
How Does The Johnson & Johnson Vaccine Work
Unlike the Pfizer and Moderna shots, the J& J vaccine use a cold virus, called an adenovirus, to carry the spike gene into the body.
J& Js shot uses the cold virus like a Trojan horse to carry the spike gene into the body, where cells make harmless copies of the protein to prime the immune system in case the real virus comes along.
Also Check: Sanford Aberdeen Flu Shot Clinic
Drug Forms And Administration
FluMist comes as a nasal spray that a healthcare provider or pharmacist will spray into your nose.
Fluzone comes as a suspension thats given as an injection into your muscle. This is called an intramuscular injection.
Both FluMist and Fluzone are usually given once a year, but in some cases, children might need two doses spaced out by a few weeks.
Which Vaccines Do Shed
Its technically possible for any live-attenuated vaccine to shed. But in most instances, documented cases of this are rare.
The oral polio vaccine is responsible for the most harmful infections related to vaccine shedding. The live-attenuated virus used in this vaccine can be shed from the body in feces.
In very rare cases, the virus used in the OPV can mutate and become harmful, potentially leading to paralysis. In countries that still use the OPV, this is estimated to occur in 2 to 4 out of every million live births each year.
Since the year 2000, the OPV is no longer licensed or available in the United States. Now, all polio vaccines given in the United States are inactivated vaccines.
Other live-attenuated vaccines for which shedding has been documented include the:
- Flu nasal spray vaccine: Shedding of the virus used in this vaccine is common, particularly in younger individuals, according to the . While transmission of these viruses can occur, its rare and not typically associated with symptoms.
- Chickenpox vaccine: According to the , there have been reports of only 11 healthy vaccinated individuals worldwide spreading the chickenpox vaccine virus to 13 unvaccinated people.
- Rotavirus vaccine: Rotavirus vaccine virus can be shed in feces for days after vaccination. An older in twins found that the vaccine virus could be transmitted to unvaccinated individuals, but wasnt associated with symptoms.
- MMR vaccine: The rubella part of the MMR vaccine
Read Also: When Was The Cure For The Flu Found
The Myth Of Vaccine Shedding
No the measles vaccine cannot cause an outbreak through virus shedding, but this myth persists in antivaccine circles.
We have been writing about the measles and the measles vaccine a lot recently, because we are not only in the middle of an outbreak, we are in the middle of a global resurgence of measles. We are also in the middle of a heating up of the social media battle between antivaxxers and respectable scientists, health care providers, and science communicators.
Antivaxxers generally spread fear and misinformation in order to fight for their alleged right to spread disease and put others at risk. Yes that is very one-sided framing, but it is appropriate, avoiding the trap of false equivalency. The antivaxxers are simply wrong, and their position is based largely on lies.
A reliable way to tell that one side of a debate lacks intellectual honesty is that they continue to spread the same misinformation after they have been corrected. Scientists debate, but when one side presents evidence to support their position, the other side must account for it. If the information is valid and rigorous, then the only intellectually honest thing to do is to change your position. This does not necessarily mean completely flipping to the other school of thought, but at the very least the debate must evolve when legitimate points are made and new evidence is brought to bear.