CDC adds to list of those recommended for flu shots

It's too early to tell how severe this year's flu season will be, but vaccines are already available at many local physicians' offices and pharmacies as health-care professionals seek to keep a serious outbreak at bay.

"This year's vaccine is based on the previous years' virus," said Dr. Karen Landers, area health officer for the Alabama Department of Public Health. "We believe it will be effective, but some mutation could occur, or a virus could come in that we're not expecting."

As a result of past flu seasons that were more severe than expected, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta has added to its list of recommended vaccine recipients, including all school-aged children up to age 19, health-care workers and public safety employees.

Landers said this points to a future when the vaccine will become universal.

"Most Americans now qualify for one of these at-risk groups. I believe we're on the verge, in the next few years, of having a universal vaccine," she said. "It still doesn't mean everyone will take it, but it opens up the idea to people and that it is a thought worth considering."

There have been years, however, when the vaccine proved incompatible with the flu strain that was making people sick.

For the 2007-08 season, for instance, many in the Shoals were diagnosed with the flu after having received the vaccine.

Rapid testing and appropriate treatment measures, including prescription drugs such as Tamiflu, have mitigated much of the negative effects of a potentially bad flu season, Landers said.

"When we start seeing (flu), we'll go ahead and do viral testing and get an indication of what we're dealing with, then we're better prepared to intervene with antiviral medication if we see more of an increase with the vaccine not protecting people," she said.

Additional problems have come in the form of vaccine shortages.

Officials at the CDC have released a statement indicating that as many as 143 million to 146 million doses of influenza vaccine will be produced for use in the United States for the season, which will peak in December and January and will close in April or May.

October and November are often the busiest for vaccinations, and Landers said getting it now should keep an individual flu-free for the duration of the season. But there are other means by which to stay healthy during flu season.

"We still recommend good hand-washing or the use of a hand-sanitizing gel," she said. "There are other precautions you can take, like not coughing in your hands but on your sleeve on in a Kleenex. And, if you are sick, don't go to work. People really will appreciate that."

Michelle Rupe Eubanks can be reached at 740-5745 or michelle.eubanks@TimesDaily.com.