CDC RECOMMENDATION FOR FLU VACCINE
Everyone with age > 6 months should get vaccinated with Flu Vaccine with few exceptions like people allergic to egg, patients suffering from Guillain Barre Syndrome and children < 6 yrs old.
CDC prioritizes the need for Flu Vaccine in general population as follows
- Children aged 6 months through 4 years (59 months);
- People aged 50 years and older;*
- People with chronic pulmonary (including asthma), cardiovascular (except hypertension), renal, hepatic, neurologic, hematologic, or metabolic disorders (including diabetes mellitus);
- People who are immunosuppressed (including immunosuppression caused by medications or by Human Immunodeficiency Virus);
- Women who are or will be pregnant during the influenza season and women up to two weeks after delivery;
- People who are aged 6 months through 18 years and receiving long-term aspirin therapy and who therefore might be at risk for experiencing Reye syndrome after influenza virus infection;
- People who are residents of old age homes and other chronic-care facilities;
- People with extreme obesity (body-mass index [BMI] is 40 or greater);
- Health care personnel;
- Household contacts and caregivers of children younger than 5 years and adults aged 50 years and older, with particular emphasis on vaccinating contacts of children aged younger than 6 months; and
- Household contacts and caregivers of people with medical conditions that put them at higher risk for severe complications from influenza.
*Among adults, complications, hospitalizations, and deaths due to influenza are generally most common among those 65 years old and over. However, adults 50 years old and over are a priority group.
CDC recommends Injectable Flu vaccine for year 2016- 2017 and not nasal spray flu vaccine. For pregnant women also injectable flu vaccine is recommended as nasal spray vaccine contains live viruses which is contraindicated in pregnancy.