With the flu season here, should you ask for an influenza vaccine?

Demand for flu vaccine weak in India; US facing worst season in a decade

While Covid-19 is showing signs of receding, the global flu season is here. And the question is: should one get a flu shot?

Doctors spoken to recommend taking the flu vaccine this season since it not only protects against severe forms of influenza but also against severe Covid-19 disease.

Vaccine makers, however, say that there is hardly any demand for flu vaccines this year. “The demand is weak,” says a senior executive of a drug firm that makes the vaccine.

The US flu season, meanwhile, is off to the strongest start in a decade.

Analysts at Nuvama Research say that key findings show five times more illness versus the average of the last five years, eight times more hospital visits, and 3.5 times more deaths this season in the US.

A study on more than 30,000 healthcare workers in Qatar found that those who got a flu jab were nearly 90 per cent less likely to develop severe Covid-19 over the next few months compared to those who had not been vaccinated against flu.

This study was conducted before the rollout of the Covid-19 vaccines, sometime in late 2020, said an article published in Nature in May this year. In fact, researchers found that those who had taken a flu shot for that season were 30 per cent less likely to test positive for Sars-CoV-2. The study was posted on the medRxiv preprint server in May.

Doctors in India agree on the benefits of the flu shot.

Monalisa Sahu, consultant-Infectious Diseases, Yashoda Hospitals, Hyderabad, says, “According to recent studies, in those seasons when the majority of circulating flu viruses are well-matched with those used for making flu vaccines, the vaccine lowers the chance of getting flu by between 40 per cent and 60 per cent among the general population.” In general, she adds, modern flu vaccines tend to protect against influenza A (H3N2) viruses less well and perform better against influenza B and influenza A (H1N1) viruses.

Doctors say that those vulnerable to serious complications – especially children under the age of 2, pregnant women, adults over 65 years, and people with certain medical problems – are advised to go for a flu shot.

“Everyone older than 6 months is recommended to be injected with a yearly influenza vaccine. People between 2 years and 49 years can also get a nasal spray vaccine instead of injection if they want,” says Shuchin Bajaj, founder director, Ujala Cygnus Group of Hospitals.

But he cautions that “those who are immunocompromised or who are pregnant or who have had a history of cerebrospinal fluid leakage from their nose, or people who are currently suffering from influenza or who have had recent antiretroviral medicines for influenza, should not take nasal vaccines. These people should be taking only injectable vaccines after discussing with their doctor.”

Ajay Aggarwal, head and director, Internal Medicine, Fortis Hospital, Noida, points out that an influenza vaccine, while not 100 per cent effective, is the best safeguard against flu and its complications.

“In a study conducted by the cardiology department of AIIMS (All India Institute of Medical Sciences), it was found that the influenza vaccines may cut the risk of heart failure in cardiac patients,” he adds.

How it helps

* Studies indicate flu shots prevent severe Covid-19

* Globally, work on mRNA flu shot is undergoing trials in animals

* US flu season strongest in a decade                                                           

* In India demand for flu shots weak, say vaccine makers

At high-risk of influenza complications

Flu shot recommended for

> Children aged less than 2

> Adults older than 50

> Residents of nursing homes, other long-term care facilities

> Women who are pregnant or plan to be pregnant during flu season

> People with weakened immune systems

> People who have chronic illnesses, such as asthma, heart disease, kidney disease, liver disease, diabetes

> People with a body mass index (BMI) of 40 or higher