Sally Furniss
Well-known member
More people getting flu jabs
Safe sneeze initiative launched
Health workers' vaccine rates low
Flu vaccine programme launched
May 23, 2006
The number of people immunised against influenza in the lead up to winter has already surpassed the total number of doses given out last year.
More than 2,000 more people have received the flu jab this year than last. In total, 720,000 people have already been immunised.
The National Influenza Strategy Group believes a heightened awareness of the threat of a flu pandemic has contributed to the increased demand.
The flu vaccine is free for over 65s and people with long term health problems. People's immune responses typically weaken with age.
The immunisation campaign runs for another six weeks.
Study backs high-dose flu vaccines for elderly
New research in the United States says elderly people can be safely protected against common influenza with doses of vaccine that are up to four times stronger than usual.
The report from Baylor College of Medicine in Houston said most reactions to the more potent doses of vaccine were mild. The biggest complaints involved discomfort, redness or swelling at the site of the injection in those who got the strongest shots.
But increasing the strength of the vaccine also brought consistent improvements in immune responses, concluded the study published in the current Archives of Internal Medicine.
The elderly "are among the most vulnerable to serious complications of influenza because they generally have more underlying diseases and weaker immune systems than younger people," said Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, which financed the study.
"These findings are an important first step in developing new strategies to better protect the elderly against influenza-associated hospitalisations and mortality," he added.
The Baylor study involved 202 adults with an average age of 77 who were given doses of seasonal flu vaccine at normal doses and at doses twice and four times more potent than normal.
Blood tests showed that those who had received the strongest dose had 44 to 79 percent higher levels of flu antibody after they were inoculated than did those who received the normal dose of vaccine, the study found.
http://tvnz.co.nz/view/page/488120/721216
Safe sneeze initiative launched
Health workers' vaccine rates low
Flu vaccine programme launched
May 23, 2006
The number of people immunised against influenza in the lead up to winter has already surpassed the total number of doses given out last year.
More than 2,000 more people have received the flu jab this year than last. In total, 720,000 people have already been immunised.
The National Influenza Strategy Group believes a heightened awareness of the threat of a flu pandemic has contributed to the increased demand.
The flu vaccine is free for over 65s and people with long term health problems. People's immune responses typically weaken with age.
The immunisation campaign runs for another six weeks.
Study backs high-dose flu vaccines for elderly
New research in the United States says elderly people can be safely protected against common influenza with doses of vaccine that are up to four times stronger than usual.
The report from Baylor College of Medicine in Houston said most reactions to the more potent doses of vaccine were mild. The biggest complaints involved discomfort, redness or swelling at the site of the injection in those who got the strongest shots.
But increasing the strength of the vaccine also brought consistent improvements in immune responses, concluded the study published in the current Archives of Internal Medicine.
The elderly "are among the most vulnerable to serious complications of influenza because they generally have more underlying diseases and weaker immune systems than younger people," said Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, which financed the study.
"These findings are an important first step in developing new strategies to better protect the elderly against influenza-associated hospitalisations and mortality," he added.
The Baylor study involved 202 adults with an average age of 77 who were given doses of seasonal flu vaccine at normal doses and at doses twice and four times more potent than normal.
Blood tests showed that those who had received the strongest dose had 44 to 79 percent higher levels of flu antibody after they were inoculated than did those who received the normal dose of vaccine, the study found.
http://tvnz.co.nz/view/page/488120/721216