Dear Dr. Eva,

I haven’t heard much about H1N1 for a while. Are they vaccinating against it this year?

Wondering

Dear Wondering,

H1N1 influenza, also called bird flu, is still around. This year's flu vaccine does include protection against the H1N1 (bird flu) virus.

Dr. Eva

Dear Dr. Eva,

I had the flu shot last year. I'd just as soon skip it this year. Shouldn't my immunity from last year's shot last for this winter too?

Needle-Shy

Dear Needle-Shy,

Because the major flu strains change from year to year, the vaccine is made differently each year, so it can boost your immunity to the flu strains that are likely to be common. This is why, unfortunately, last year's vaccine will not protect against this year's flu strains. 1 strains of influenza A and 1 strain of influenza B included in this year's vaccine are different than those in the 2010-2011 and 2011-2012 influenza vaccines. The only component that is the same is H1N1.

Dr. Eva

Dear Dr. Eva,

As far as who should take the vaccine, are this year’s flu recommendations any different from last year?

Keeping Current

Dear KC,

No. The CDC (Centers for Disease Control) continues to recommend that everyone over the age of six months should get the flu vaccine every year. That means that if you can read this, you should get a flu shot! The flu vaccine is not recommended for infants under 6 months because their immune systems are not mature enough to respond to the vaccine, so it’s not effective for them.

Dr. Eva

Dear Dr. Eva,

I heard about the recommendation that everybody get vaccinated. Shouldn’t we get the high risk people vaccinated first, like they used to?

Caretaker

Dear Caretaker,

I appreciate the concern behind your question.

There has not been a flu vaccine shortage for several years, and none is expected this year. Since there is plenty of vaccine, there is no need to save vaccine supplies for the most vulnerable.

The purpose of vaccinating as much of the population as possible is to create "herd immunity." Vaccinating as many people as possible protects the most vulnerable people better than vaccinating the vulnerable. This is because vaccination is only effective if a person’s immune system is able to respond to the vaccination by making protective antibodies and specialized white blood cells. Since vaccination does not work as well in infants and in people who are ill or immunosuppressed, they can be most effectively protected by making sure the healthier people around them are vaccinated and therefore will not expose them to disease. In other words, the best protection from the flu is to avoid being exposed to it, and that can only be achieved when everyone around the person who needs protection has been vaccinated.

Dr. Eva

Dear Dr. Eva,

Isn’t the flu vaccine just a crap shoot? How can they predict which kinds of flu will appear?

Skeptic Cal

Dear Skeptic,

It’s not as random as a crapshoot. Influenza infection constantly circles the world, mainly infecting people in the hemisphere that’s colder at any given time. The flu that was in Australia a few months ago, when it was summer in our northern hemisphere and winter in the southern hemisphere, will be arriving here soon. The chances are good that at least some of the most common types of flu we see this winter will be the same ones that were common in Australia a few months back.

Even when the stains chosen do not turn out to be the most common ones, flu vaccine provides partial protection against all strains of flu. People may get the flu, but they will be less sick and the illness will be briefer than if they had not had the vaccine.

Dr. Eva

Dear Dr. Eva,

Tell the truth – do YOU take the flu shot? I heard most doctors don’t.

JD

Dear JD,

Absolutely, every year. I had mine last week. Now will you get yours?

Dr. Eva