Do you need to have a swine flu vaccine each year or one is enough?

[Maelstrom]

Just wondering if I have to march my asthmatic child back to the GP for a yearly swine flu vaccine booster or is it just one in a life time?

I am very convinced that DS had swine flu before he was vaccinated last year, as most of his class came down with a very nasty flu at the same time, the only child tested (to my knowledge) was DS' best friend, he had exactly the same symptoms and tested positive.

So the question is, should I ask for a booster or leave it at that?

No you need to have the seasonal jab this year to protect against this outbreak of swine flu. Immunity from flu jabs generally lasts bout twelve months.

My daughter got her seasonal jab this year which has the H1N1 strain in it too.

I was in the understanding that the non-swine flu jab needed to be updated every year due to new varieties of the virus. As the HIN1 strain is the same, I expected it might not be necessary.

So are they doing Seasonal flu + H1N1 in a single shot nowadays?

Yes the seasonal vaccine is trivalent: fluA H1N1v (2009), fluA H3N2, and fluB.

All matched to circulating strains.

Will make an appointment then:(

Thank you

Ok, i rang for an appointment but I was told he couldn't have it.

As the new swine vaccine (which also includes seasonal flu) is developed in egg, my egg allergic child can't have it.

He had an egg free swine vaccine last year, so they expect with that he would be ok.

Someway I feltthey told me that as if they knew they needed to give him a booster but as the there is no egg free vaccine this year, the one from last year "should" do...

When I had mine this week I was told that I only needed the swine flu jab the once, it gave lifetime immunity, but the seasonal one was given every year because the different strains are always changing.
I asummed it was the same for my son as he had his last year.

I suppose its true that you only need that specific jab once but thats because the swine flu is is now contained in the seasonal vaccine, not because it gave you life long immunity. Swine flu is like any other flu a in the respect that it changes as time goes on.

maelstrom, as the press were reporting that old stocks of the swine flu jab are going to be released, perhaps your ds may be able to get one of those?

I was told that even if the virus mutates, the original swine flu vaccine will still give you some degree of protection - just not as much.

Heard interview with David Salisbury and someone else ( forgotten name) on Woman's Hour on Friday. They clearly stated that NO ONE knows how long the swine flu vaccine protects for, so should be renewed this year regardless of last year's jabs.

Which is why we're all asking the question 'how long': no one knows the answer.

the "swine flu" vaccination is included in the seasonal flu vaccination (makes sense), so you get a booster each time you have the flu vac.

YEs, it is now in the seasonal flu vaccine, the problem is that they don't make an egg free seasonal flu vaccine.

I will keep an eye on the news incase that Celvapan becomes available again and then give it another shot.

Thank you :)