Who Can Receive Fluzone High
In the United States, Fluzone High-Dose Quadrivalent is licensed only for people 65 years and older. Fluzone High-Dose Quadrivalent is not recommended for people with a history of severe allergic reaction to the vaccine or to ingredients other than eggs. Information about vaccine ingredients is located in package inserts from each manufacturer.
Which Influenza Vaccination Is Best For Older Adults
Looking at the list of available flu shots can be overwhelming. In looking at this years CDC table of available influenza vaccines, I counted eight options that are available for people aged 65 or older:
- 4 standard-dose quadrivalent inactivated vaccines
- 1 standard-dose quadrivalent inactivated vaccine manufactured with a newer cell culture-based technology
- 1 high-dose quadrivalent inactivated vaccine
- 1 standard-dose quadrivalent adjuvanted inactivated vaccine
- 1 quadrivalent recombinant vaccine
Only Fluzone High-Dose Quadrivalent and Fluad Quadrivalent carry an age indication specific to 65 years or older.
However, the CDC does not recommend any influenza vaccine over another, for adults aged 65 or older.
So if you are an older adult, or if youre trying to arrange a flu shot for an aging relative, which flu vaccine should you try to get?
My take is this: if you have a choice, go for one of the vaccines designed for older adults.
Why? Because we know that as people get older, their immune systems tend to respond less vigorously to immunization. And because research suggests that the high-dose flu shot generates higher antibody titers and has been associated with better influenza outcomes.
We do have more research and experience for Fluzone High-Dose than for Fluad, so unless you are enrolling in a clinical trial of Fluad, I would suggest going with the Fluzone High-Dose.
Bottom line:
Types Of Flu Shots For Seniors
As you age, its normal for your body to respond less to vaccines. Older people who get the flu shot generally have a weaker immune response than younger people who get the vaccine. But the vaccine is still effective in reducing medical visits and hospitalizations for the flu.
Some flu shots are designed to cause a stronger immune response. These flu vaccines can offer greater protection for people 65 and older. There are two types of senior flu shots that are licensed only for people 65 and older.
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What To Know About Flu Shots For Older Adults
Q: Is the flu vaccine effective for older adults?
A: You may have heard people say that the flu shot doesnt work in older people. This is not entirely correct.
Now, its true that flu vaccine is usually less effective in older adults because aging immune systems tend to not respond as vigorously to the vaccine. In other words, older adults tend to create fewer antibodies in response to vaccination. So if they are later exposed to flu virus, they have a higher chance of falling ill, compared to younger adults.
But less effective doesnt mean not at all effective. For the 2017-2018 flu season, the CDC estimates that vaccination prevented about 700,000 influenza cases and 65,000 hospitalizations, for adults aged 65 and older.
For more on the effectiveness of influenza vaccination in older adults, see:
To provide more effective vaccination to aging immune systems, vaccine makers have developed stronger vaccines against the flu, which I explain in the next section.
Q: Are there flu shots specifically designed for older adults?
Yes, over the past several years, vaccine makers have developed vaccines that are designed to work better with an aging immune system. Most research studies to date show that these stimulate aging immune systems to produce more antibodies to influenza. Theres also some evidence that these vaccines reduce the risk of being hospitalized for influenza.
Types Of Flu Shots For People 65 And Older
People 65 years and older should get a flu shot, not a nasal spray vaccine. They can get any flu vaccine approved for use in their age group with no preference for any one vaccine over another. There are regular flu shots that are approved for use in people 65 years and older and there also are two vaccines designed specifically for this age group:
High Dose and Adjuvanted Flu Vaccine Side Effects
The high dose and adjuvanted flu vaccines may result in more of the temporary, mild side effects that can occur with standard-dose seasonal flu shots. Side effects can include pain, redness or swelling at the injection site, headache, muscle ache and malaise, and typically resolve with 1 to 3 days.
Recombinant Vaccine
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Treatment For The Flu
When considering treatment for the flu, its helpful to keep these considerations in mind:
- Treating the flu should begin as soon as possible because antiviral drugs work best when started early or within 48 hours after symptoms start.
- For you to get an antiviral drug, a health care provider needs to write a prescription. These medicines fight against flu by keeping flu viruses from creating more viruses in your body.
- Antiviral drugs can make your flu milder and help make you feel better faster. They may also prevent severe health problems that can result from having the flu.
How Does The High
As we age, our immune systems do not function as well as they once did. High-dose immunisations are designed to help our bodies better fight infection with more antibodies. These antibodies will support the immune system in fighting off infection.
The NHS reports that 80 to 90 percent of all flu-related deaths are among those over 65. High-dose flu vaccinations are designed and recommended to help keep seniors safe all year long.
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How Does A High
Fluzone High-Dose Quadrivalent contains four times the amount of antigen as the regular dose flu vaccine. As we get older, our immune systems have a harder time fighting off infections and learning from vaccines. The higher amount of antigen in the high-dose flu vaccine helps an older adults immune system better recognize and react to the vaccine.
The influenza strains and inactive ingredients in Fluzone High-Dose are the same as Fluzone Quadrivalent one of the available regular dose flu vaccines. However, a few other regular dose flu vaccines are available which vary more from the high-dose vaccine than Fluzone Quadrivalent.
The following are other FDA-approved flu vaccines for the 2021/2022 flu season and how they differ from the high-dose flu vaccine:
Us Seniors Should Get Souped
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Related video above: New flu shot using mRNA platform could soon be available
Americans 65 and older should get newer, souped-up flu vaccines because regular shots don’t provide them enough protection, a federal advisory panel said Wednesday.
The panel unanimously recommended certain flu vaccines that might offer more or longer protection for seniors, whose weakened immune systems don’t respond as well to traditional shots.
Options include: Fluzone High-Dose, Fluad with an immune booster, or Flublok which is made with insect cells instead of chicken eggs.
The panels recommendations usually are adopted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and become the governments guidance for U.S. doctors and their patients. This would be the first time the government has stated a flu vaccine preference for older adults.
U.S. officials currently say that all Americans 6 months and older should get a flu vaccine every season.
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Why Was The High
People 65 and older typically have the highest rates of hospitalization and death from the flu. However, the protection provided by the standard flu shot is not as strong as in younger patients. This might be due to the fact that antibody levels are not high enough with that vaccine. Researchers are exploring a variety of ways to boost the immune response in seniors, and increasing antibody levels with a high-dose vaccine is one of them.
What To Do If Your Older Parent Or Relative Is Unwilling Or Unable To Get Vaccinated
Now, what if your older parent wont, or cant, get a flu shot?
Some older adults just dont want to get it. Here are some things you can try:
- Ask them to clarify what their concerns are. Its important to start by listening, in order to understand what an older person believes about the flu and the flu shot.
- Provide information to dispel myths and misunderstandings. Sometimes all people need is a little of the right kind of information.
- Point out that it can benefit an older persons family members and neighbors. Getting a flu shot can reduce the risk that we pass the flu on to another person. People are sometimes more willing to take action to protect others than to protect their own health.
- Make sure they know they wont have to pay for the flu shot. If you get the shot from a provider who takes Medicare, it shouldnt cost anything.
- Offer to go together to get your flu shots. Sometimes it helps to make it a family outing.
There are also some older adults for whom its hard to get a flu shot, such as people who are homebound or have very limited transportation options.
If this is your situation, the main thing to do is encourage flu shots for family and others coming to the house. For older adults who dont get out much, their main source of exposure to influenza and other dangerous viruses will be from those who come to them.
Above all, dont panic if your older loved one cant or wont get a flu shot.
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What Is The Difference Between Fluzone High
Fluzone High-Dose Quadrivalent contains four times the antigen, the part of the vaccine that helps your body build up protection against flu viruses, than Fluzone Quadrivalent and other standard-dose inactivated flu vaccines. The higher dose of antigen in the vaccine is intended to give people 65 years and older a better immune response to vaccination, and therefore, better protection against flu. Both Fluzone High-Dose and Fluzone Quadrivalent are produced by the same manufacturer and are quadrivalent vaccines. There are a number of other flu vaccines produced by other manufacturers.
This Flu Seasons New Arrival: Fluzone High
For the first time since the flu vaccines introduction in the 1940s, Americans aged 65 and older will have the option of receiving a high-potency flu vaccine during the current 2010-2011 season. Last Decembers FDA approval of Sanofi Pasteurs Fluzone High-Dose proves once again that sometimes successful ideas also are the simplest ones. Instead of the 15 micrograms of each of the three hemagglutinin viral surface antigens included in standard TIV preparations, Fluzone HD delivers 60 mcg – four times as much – in the same 0.5 mL dose for intramuscular injection. A different colored syringe plunger distinguishes it from regular Fluzone provided in a prefilled syringe. Everything else about the two products is the same. Immunogenicity findings from three clinical trials in persons 65 years of age and older demonstrate that Fluzone HD elicits substantially higher hemagglutinin inhibition titers than the standard dose. In the largest of these studies, the mean post-vaccination antibody titer elicited by Fluzone HD against the A/H1NI, A/H3N2 and B flu strains was 70 percent, 80 percent and 30 percent higher, respectively, than the titer elicited by the standard-dose vaccine. Additional important evidence of the enhanced immunogenicity of Fluzone HD is revealed by comparative seroconversion and seroprotection findings, as summarized in Table 2.
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Cdc Panel Urges Seniors To Get New More Potent Flu Shot This Fall
THURSDAY, June 23, 2022 — A U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention vaccine advisory panel on Wednesday voted to recommend that Americans 65 and older get the new, more potent flu shots because the regular shot doesn’t offer enough protection.
The more powerful vaccines might also offer more or longer protection for seniors with weakened immune systems who don’t respond as well to traditional shots. The choices include Fluzone High-Dose, Fluad with an immune booster and Flublok, the Associated Press reported.
The CDC usually adopts the panel’s recommendations. This is the first time the federal government has backed a preferred vaccine for older adults.
The agency urges all Americans aged 6 months and older to get a flu shot every season.
Flu vaccines aren’t 100% effective, and are substantially less effective in seniors. But the new shots appear to work better than the regular shot, especially in preventing hospitalizations for flu.
“These influenza vaccines are better, but are not yet the home run that we would love to have,” panel member Dr. Helen Keipp Talbot, of Vanderbilt University, in Nashville, Tenn., said during the meeting, the AP reported.
About 80% of those on Medicare get the high-dose vaccines each year, officials said. The new vaccines cost three times more than standard flu shots, but they are covered by insurance, according to the AP.
More information
How Do Flu Vaccines For Seniors Work
As we age, our immune systems do not function as well as they once did. Flu immunizations for seniors are designed to help our bodies better fight infection with more antibodies. These antibodies will support the immune system in fighting off infection.
The CDC reports that 80 to 90 percent of all flu-related deaths are among those over 65. Flu vaccinations for seniors are designed and recommended to help keep those 65+ safe all year long.
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What We Know About Covid
Q: How are COVID-19 and influenza similar and how are they different?
A: COVID-19 and influenza have many similarities, but also many differences.
The main similarities are:
- Both viruses are mostly spread through an airborne route. This means that steps you take to protect yourself from COVID-19, such as social distancing measures and avoiding crowded indoor spaces, will likely reduce your risk of catching influenza as well.
- The initial symptoms of infection have a lot in common. Namely, both often start with upper respiratory symptoms such as cough, runny nose, fatigue, fever, and body aches. This means it will be difficult to tell the two conditions apart, unless laboratory testing is used.
- Both are more likely to cause severe illness in people who are older or frail.
Even though both viruses often cause viral pneumonia, there are significant differences between the two. They are actually quite different types of viruses. The differences include:
In short, influenza and COVID-19 are similar in terms of how they spread and common initial symptoms. But COVID-19 has so far caused more serious disease, and at this time, remains harder to treat, in part because it seems to affect the body in more significant ways than influenza usually does.
For more on the similarities and differences between influenza and COVID-19:
Q: Is it possible to get influenza and COVID-19 at the same time? How do they affect each other?
What Is In This Years High
Fluzone High-Dose Quadrivalent the high-dose flu vaccine is an inactivated influenza vaccine. This means it contains a certain amount of dead flu viruses . Because the viruses in the shot are dead, you cannot get sick with influenza from the vaccine.
The high-dose flu vaccine is a quadrivalent vaccine, meaning it contains four different strains of the influenza virus. The vaccines exact composition changes every year in an effort to match the strains expected to circulate during flu season .
This years high-dose flu vaccine includes the following strains:
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Two type A influenza viruses H1N1 and H3N2
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Two type B influenza viruses Victoria and Yamagata lineages
Fluzone High-Dose Quadrivalent is an egg-based vaccine, meaning chicken eggs were used to create the vaccine. If you have an egg allergy, its best to discuss this with your healthcare provider before getting your flu vaccine.
Most people with egg allergies are still able to receive egg-based flu vaccines. But if you are advised to avoid egg-based vaccines, there are flu vaccine options available that are made without eggs .
The vaccine also includes the following inactive ingredients to help create and stabilize the shot:
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Formaldehyde an ingredient that kills the virus during vaccine production
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Sodium chloride the liquid that the virus is placed in to allow it to be injected
The syringe the vaccine comes in is not made with rubber latex, so its safe for people with latex allergies to receive it.
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Who Should Get The High
High-dose immunisations are only approved for individuals over the age of 65. It is not recommended for those with a history of severe allergic reaction to the flu shot or to other vaccine ingredients. If you are concerned about which flu vaccine is right for you, speak with your primary care physician.
Uiip Vaccines For Specific Age Groups: Product Availability
Age Group
- The publicly funded QIV products will be distributed based on product availability at the Ontario Government Pharmaceutical and Medical Supply Services
- Requests for specific QIV products are not permitted.
- The four publicly funded QIV products are considered equivalent.
- Note: Flucelvax® Quad is only authorized for use in Canada for individuals 2 years of age and older and Afluria® Tetra is only authorized for use in Canada for individuals 5 years of age and older.
- QIV-HD will be available to order by primary care providers , long-term care homes, hospitals, participating pharmacies and retirement homes.
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