THURSDAY, May 21, 2009 (Health.com) — If your child has asthma, you may have been shocked to hear that a flu shot—long recommended for kids with asthma—doesn’t seem to prevent flu-related hospitalizations. The findings were presented this week at the annual meeting of the American Thoracic Society in San Diego. But don’t use that as an excuse to skip the flu shot, experts warn.
“Asthma is a risk factor for more serious flu and people who have asthma are more at risk for flu complications like pneumonia and hospitalizations, so if you can do anything to prevent the flu in that group, it’s important,” says E. Neil Schachter, MD, medical director of respiratory care at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City. “If your child has asthma, the recommendations remain the same.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta and the American Academy of Pediatrics both recommend the flu shot for all children over the age of 6 months. The National Asthma Education and Prevention Program says that children with asthma should get flu shots as well.
“It is too early to do an about-face on something that makes sense to do, and has been proven safe and effective in many other studies,” Dr. Schachter says. “The flu shot, although not 100% effective, is known to prevent the flu. Getting the flu shot, whether you are asthmatic, nonasthmatic, a child, or an adult, means you will be less likely to come down with the flu. This is based on bigger studies of wider numbers.”
Next page: What the study found
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