SFDPH Health Advisory: FluMist Not Recommended for 2016-2017 Influenza Vaccination July 7, 2016 SF Dept of Public Health FluMist, health advisory, influenza vaccination, San Francisco Department of Public Health 0 CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) voted on 6/22/2016 that live attenuated influenza vaccine (LAIV), also known as the “nasal spray” flu vaccine FluMist®, should not be used during the 2016-17 fluseason. This recommendation was endorsed by the American Academy of Pediatrics and is expected to become official soon in the MMWR, the CDC’s official publication. Data from the U.S. Influenza Vaccine Effectiveness Network on the effectiveness of LAIV among children aged 2-17 years during 2015-16 influenza season showed just 3% efficacy in preventing laboratory-confirmed influenza disease, meaning that no protective benefit could be measured, while in comparison, IIV (injectable flu vaccines) were 63% effective. These data were supported by other non-CDC studies for 2015-16 as well as studies from the 2013-14 and 2014-15 seasons that LAIV worked less well than IIV. The reason for the recent poor efficacy of LAIV is not known. Vaccines containing live viruses can cause a stronger immune response than vaccines with inactivated virus, and LAIV effectiveness data before and soon after licensure suggested it was either comparable to, or better than, IIV. Vaccination is the single best way to prevent influenza and resulting complications, including hospitalization and death. ACIP continues to recommend annual flu vaccination, with either the inactivated influenza vaccine (IIV) or recombinant influenza vaccine (RIV), for everyone 6 months and older. CDC expects that supply of injectable flu vaccine doses for 2016-17 will be sufficient to meet demand. A list of available products can be found here: http://www.immunize.org/catg.d/p4072.pdf Healthcare settings looking to purchase influenza vaccine can access manufacturer and distributor information at: http://www.izsummitpartners.org/ivats/ To start preparing messages for patients concerning the upcoming flu season, please visit the California Department of Public Health’s flu and respiratory disease prevention materials page at: http://eziz.org/resources/flu-promo-materials/ For local San Francisco Department of Public Health recommendations and guidance on influenza prevention, visit http://sfcdcp.org/flu.html Click here to view the SFDPH Health Advisory issued on July 6, 2016. Comments are closed.
