Should Children Get The H1N1 Flu Vaccine?

By Jennifer Jones, MD

Jennifer Jones, MD, a pediatrician with Core Physicians, shares her advice and thoughts on the H1N1 vaccine:

The H1N1 influenza virus (also called swine flu) is a new strain of influenza that was first identified in April of this year.  This virus is different from the seasonal influenza viruses that circulate around this country every year.  Most people have little or no immunity to the new H1N1 virus, which allows the virus to spread quickly between individuals.  Just like seasonal flu, the H1N1 virus causes symptoms such as fever, fatigue, cough, sore throat, muscle aches, chills and sneezing.  The majority of people who become ill with influenza recover fully within a week or so, but a small number become severely ill, and some die from their illness. 

Each year, seasonal flu results in more than 200,000 hospitalizations and 36,000 deaths in this country (source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention).  Children become infected with seasonal flu at high rates every year, but most of the people who die are elderly or have underlying medical problems.  What is different about the H1N1 virus is that it causes more severe illness and deaths in children, young adults and pregnant women. 

The best way to protect yourself and your children from becoming ill with the H1N1 virus is to get vaccinated.   Some people are concerned about the H1N1 vaccine because it is a “new” vaccine.  This vaccine is being made in exactly the same way as the seasonal flu vaccine, by the same manufacturers.  The manufacturing process has not been rushed or hasty.  There is no reason to suspect that this vaccine will have any different side effects from the seasonal flu vaccine.  The vaccine has been extensively tested and has been approved by the FDA.  The most common side effects are soreness at the injection site, fever, headache, fainting and nausea.  The risk of a severe side effect, including severe allergic reaction or death, is extremely small.  The previous swine flu vaccine that was produced in 1976 was associated with a small increased risk of a neurological condition called Guillain-Barré Syndrome, but no flu vaccine since then has been associated with this risk.

No vaccine is completely risk free, but the risk to a child from the H1N1 virus is much higher than the risk of the vaccine, so it makes sense to have your child vaccinated.

If you have questions or concerns about the H1N1 vaccine, please contact your child’s physician or visit www.cdc.gov or www.flu.gov.

For Flu Vaccine availability at Core Physicians, please visit our flu vaccine web page.