Recommendation against Inhaled Flu Vaccine Stands

June 14th, 2017

Last year, the inhaled flu vaccine was determined to be ineffective, and only the needle-delivered flu vaccine (flu shot) was recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. While the flu shot recommendation stands, local researchers at the forefront of creating national vaccine policy caution that close observation is required to ensure that the recommendation is appropriate. If the inhaled vaccine becomes effective again or if the lack of an inhaled vaccine substantially reduces immunization rates, the current recommendation could actually lead to more flu illness in the U.S., according to a new analysis led by University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine scientists. “PittVax [Pittsburgh Vaccination Research Group] will continue collecting, analyzing and reporting on flu cases and flu vaccine effectiveness in the Pittsburgh region, helping guide flu immunization recommendations,” said senior author Richard K. Zimmerman, M.D., M.P.H., professor in Pitt School of Medicine’s Department of Family Medicine and Pitt Graduate School of Public Health’s Department of Behavioral and Community Health Sciences. “This kind of surveillance is critical to charting the best course to save lives from influenza, which kills thousands annually.”