Questions and Answers about Seasonal and Bird Flu Vaccines

In April 2007, the Food and Drug Administration licensed a new vaccine against the bird flu. But don't ask your doctor for the bird flu shot just yet. You're better off getting the vaccine for seasonal flu, which is still a much greater health threat. Hopefully, bird flu will never become a pandemic. But doctors, scientists and government officials are getting ready just in case. To help you understand what you may have heard in the news, here are the answers to some common questions.

What is a flu pandemic and when will it occur?
"Flu pandemic" is a rapid spread of influenza, or flu, to many people around the world. A pandemic flu virus spreads rapidly from person to person when people have not had a chance to develop natural immunities.

In the last century, there were three flu pandemics: in 1918, 1957 and 1968. Scientists think that another flu pandemic is likely, but no one can say when.

Why the concern over "bird flu?"
Avian influenza (bird flu) doesn't usually infect people. Bird flu virus lives in the intestines of birds and normally spreads only from bird-to-bird. Since 1997, there have been increased illnesses and death among millions of wild birds and poultry in Asia, Africa and Europe.

There have also been a number of confirmed cases of bird flu infection in people, mostly in those exposed to diseased birds. About 300 people have died of bird flu. Scientists are very concerned and have developed a new vaccine that may offer some protection against bird flu.

What types of flu vaccines are available?

• Seasonal flu vaccine. This is the vaccine that protects you against seasonal flu, which spreads easily from person to person. Each year, there is a different vaccine, based on information from an international team. The team estimates which types and strains of flu virus will be in circulation.
• Bird flu vaccines. These vaccines are being developed based on what we know so far about the bird flu subtypes that have caused massive illness and death among wild birds and poultry in Asia, Africa and Europe since 1997. The vaccines are designed to protect us against the types of bird flu that have been able to cross over from birds to people. Since these vaccines are developed ahead of a possible pandemic, they may not work to protect against the bird flu virus if it undergoes mutations (changes in its genetic code) during an actual pandemic.
• Pandemic vaccine. After a pandemic starts, scientists are trained to examine the flu virus in the lab. They look for any mutations so that they can quickly develop a more up-to-date and effective vaccine.

Will the seasonal flu vaccine protect me against bird flu?
No. The seasonal flu vaccine protects against only the particular strain of flu that is forecasted for each flu season. The bird flu vaccine is the only one made to protect against the H5N1 strain of avian flu. It's still very important to get a seasonal flu shot, because your risk of getting and even dying from the seasonal flu is much higher than your risk of getting bird flu.

Who should be vaccinated against the seasonal flu?
Anyone who wants to reduce his or her chances of getting the seasonal flu should be vaccinated. However, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommends that people who are at risk for complications of the flu and workers exposed to patients with the flu should be immunized.

• Those at risk for complications of the flu include:
• Children - from age 6 months until their fifth birthday
• Pregnant women
• People 50 years of age and older
• People of any age with certain chronic medical conditions
• People who live in nursing homes and other longterm care facilities
• People who live with or care for those at high risk for complications from the flu, including:
• Health care workers
• Household contacts of those at high risk for complications from the flu
• Household contacts and caregivers of children younger than 6 months of age

When should I get vaccinated for seasonal flu?
Flu season can begin in early Fall, so it is best to get vaccinated in early October to November. However, it isn't too late to get vaccinated in December. Flu season can continue into May.

Is the bird flu vaccine available?
No. The bird flu vaccine is still not available for the public. The Federal government has stockpiled the vaccine for possible use if a pandemic should break out.

Related Articles Should You Worry About the Bird Flu? New Strain of Bird Flu Worries Scientists Should I Get A Flu Vaccination This Year?

External Sources Treanor JJ, Campbell JD, Zangwill KM, Rowe T, Wolff M. Safety and immunogenicity of an inactivated subvirion influenza A (H5N1) Vaccine. New England Journal of Medicine. 2006;354:1343-1351. World Health Organization. Questions and answers on pandemic influenza vaccine. Accessed October 1, 2007. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health. Questions and answers: avian influenza trials. Accessed October 1, 2007. U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services. Pandemic flu plan. Accessed October 1, 2007. U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services. PandemicFlu.gov. Vaccines and vaccine research. Accessed October 1, 2007. U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Center for Biologics, Evaluation and Research. H5N1 influenza virus vaccine. Accessed October 1, 2007.

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