Covered under the last swine flu injection?

[clare40]

Sorry if this sounds a really silly question, but my two children had the swine flu vaccination last year. Does that mean they are still fully covered? I phoned the receptionist at my docs surgery and she said no, which I thought was odd!

I asked the GPs where I work today, they said yes!

We are offering this to people now as we have run out of the trivalent flu vaccine and most people are only worried re the Swine Flu.

I think it may be a slightly different strain this year, although I have been told last year's vaccine should offer some protection. Not sure how that works though.

The general flu vacination covers 3 strains so not just swine flu.

Sorry - not much help

I asked my GP and he said that the strains mutate and that mean that the DCs could contract it but it would be mild.

Swine flu has not mutated - it is the same as last year. There is no way of knowing if having the vaccine will give you a milder case - you may have a mild case anyway.

My GP today told me we will still be protected from last year :)

and yet I phoned NHS direct for advice and was told it MAY cover you but the likelyhood was that it would not give you full protection and was advised that a new jab was needed for full protection.

In all likelihood NO, because immunity from flu jabs only lasts a short time depending on underlying health and age. Nobody knows exactly for how long, but according to Centre for Disease Control (USA), the flu jab protects for one year only, even if the strains don't mutate.

Many vaccinations only give protection for a certain duration, hence the need for boosters.

Dr Hilary (GMTV) said that lasts years vac would give cover for 2 years and the virus has not mutated.

They actually have a centre set up in London that is investigating a mutation but flu mutates every year anyway and this includes normal flu. Thats why they change the jab every year.

accrording to the BBC
How does the vaccine work?

About seven to ten days after vaccination, your body makes antibodies that help to protect you against any similar viruses that may infect you. This protection lasts for about a year.

However the 2009 pandemic swine flu vaccine should offer protection for two years at least.

If you had that vaccine it is still recommended that you have the seasonal flu vaccine to give you full protection against the flu viruses that are circulating this year.

from www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-12113594

Has anyone seen in the reporting of the very sad Lana Ameen case whether she had had the swine flu jab last year?

She would have been eligible then, and if she had it, and the disease has "broken through" sufficiently to cause such a serious case, then perhaps we should be looking very sceptically at these assurances.

I don't think she had - her Dad is a doctor and he reckons that the vaccine would have protected her and it should be offered to all under-5s. I wonder why he didn't give it last year though if she was entitled to it. Unless she had last year's one and it had worn off. At least 7 of those who have died this year had the vaccine. Flu vaccine effectiveness is 70-90% for adults under 65 but is lower for over 65s and can be as low as 45% in young children according to the CDC figures.

I had a swine flu jab last year and was told by my GP that I would still have some (a little) protection against it

My friend had one last yesr but currently in hospital awaiting swine test results, a bit worrying if she has it!

have just looked up flu vaccine effectiveness in young children and found this www.webmd.boots.com/cold-and-flu/news/20101122/study-recommended-flu-jabs-for-under-2s : around 70 - 80%.

I've written to my MP asking for an official response to this question, he has requested clear information from the Health Secretary

It's really not good enough for people to be hearing all sorts of information from all sorts of people. There needs to be accurate information out there for parents

I can understand why the seasonal flu vaccine needs to change every year as the strains mutate but if Swine Flu hasn't mutated, how and why can the effects of this vaccine wear off?

I did read that the majority of deaths had ocurred in those who had not received either this years or last years vaccine - so this implies that last years still does offer some protection. Clearly the situation needs clarifying though as the health profs are giving contradictory info.

Statistically very few people have had the vaccine though so makes sense that the majority of deaths occurred in the unvaccinated - they make up the bulk of the population! It looks now like the percentage of vaccinated people who died may be greater than the percentage of unvaccinated which doesn't exactly sell the vaccine!

Although it's difficult to look at because the vaccinated are more likely to be in the 'at risk' groups. It would be an interesting study! Vaxed healthy vs untaxed healthy and vaxed at risk vs unvaxed at risk.

Clearly untaxed should have been unvaxed! :)

Well my friend has been confirmed as having swine flu and she had the vaccine last year so for me its a no, it doesnt cover you so now i am really angry re vaccine for my 2 year old who i thought was covered from last year!

The CDC also says that the vax gives good protection for 2 years (unless the virus mutates). There are no reports as yet that it has mutated.

But as noted above, the vaccine is not 100% effective, so for every 100 immunised people, you would expect +/- 15 of them to still get flu. Conventional wisdom has it at these wil be milder cases, but I'm not sure if this is proven.

BTW: as I asked in my post above - has anyone seen reports to show if poor Lana Ameen had received the monovalent flu vax in 2009 when it would have been readily available to here? Or is she sadly an example of that vax failing?

A bit of a discussion about the strains in the UK this winter.

and a discussion about the effectiveness of the pandemic jab.