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Flumist Vaccine

-- Barbara M.

Due to the heavy media coverage of the increase in influenza cases this season, the injectable version of the flu vaccine has been used up, leaving the only allopathic alternative to vaccination - the newly released Flumist vaccine. This is the first year for public use of the Flumist vaccine and parents are rushing to their doctor's office to get their children vaccinated with this live virus vaccine. However, in trying to protect our children from the flu are we putting other children at risk of serious complications?

The Flumist vaccine is a live virus vaccine that is given as a nasal spray. The virus can be shed from the nasal passages of a vaccinated individual for up to 21 days after vaccination. The package insert for the Flumist vaccine clearly states “Due to the possible transmission of vaccine virus, Flumist recipients should avoid being in close (for example, within the same household) contact with immunocompromised individuals for 3 weeks following vaccination.”

www.flumist.com

The description of “Close contact” apparently does not apply to schools. Thousands of children are being vaccinated with this live vaccine with no regard to who may be in their class, who they may be interacting with, sitting next to, playing with, eating with, etc. Children are free to get the vaccine and head to school, where they will spend a good 7 to 8 hours sitting in the same room, possibly right next to an immune suppressed child. How many children have asthma, eczema, diabetes, are on corticosteriods, have kidney dysfunction and reactive airway disease? How many immune suppressed individuals are being exposed to the virus from recently vaccinated individuals? Who will be held responsible if an immune suppressed child becomes ill from being in contact with a recently vaccinated individual? Will it be MedImmune/Wyeth, the manufacturer of Flumist? The pediatricians? The school? The parents? Who?

I contacted two pediatricians today with my questions. The first simply replied “there is no concern”, the second stated that although there is a slight risk of transmission and serious complications if the immune suppressed child was not vaccinated (injectible version), the hope is that by vaccinating most of the kids, the risk of wild flu is actually less. But what about the fact that it takes two weeks for the vaccine to take effect in preventing the flu? For those two weeks the recently vaccinated are walking petri dishes, possibly infecting those they come in contact with. Also, when being vaccinated for the first time it takes two doses to become fully protected and the doses are recommended 60 days apart. That means those children getting the vaccine now will not even be fully protected until close to the end of flu season. So all the while they are possible unprotected carriers.

Like the injectable version of the flu, this season's batch of Flumist does not contain the Fujian Flu which is the predominant flu of the season. The CDC reports that they are hopeful it is close enough to offer protection but they don’t know for sure. The Flumist vaccine is not recommended for children under the age of 5 because in clinical trials there was an increased risk of asthma in those vaccinated. Apparently once a child hits their 6th birthday this risk magically disappears. The vaccine is not recommended for adults over 50 or anyone with any egg or egg-related allergies. In most markets it costs about 85 dollars and is not covered by most insurance plans. It also contains MSG, an additive I won’t even put in my Chinese food, let alone up my nose. Think twice before getting the Flumist vaccine and if you decide to get it, think again, and if you still decide to get it, do the rest of us a favor and stay home for 3 weeks after vaccination.

Thanks,

Barbara M.