Should immuno-suppressed patients get the swine flu vaccine?

Answer 1

Yes, they are one of the groups at highest risk of catching the disease and of having more severe complications from the flu. As soon as the vaccine is made available to them, they are encouraged to get the vaccine.

They should not use the vaccines that contain the live attenuated viruses, however. This includes the nasal mist that is approved in the US for use in healthy people aged 2 - 49. The flu shots for A-H1N1/09 that are approved for use in the US are made from inactivated viruses and are therefore the ones recommended for immunocompromised people. Always check with your health care professional to be sure that you are a candidate for vaccines, since each patient's care can vary due to their disease process or condition that has left them with suppressed immune systems.

People who are immuno-suppressed may have a less than optimum response to the vaccines due to their condition or their medications, therefore, they should continue to practice all the precautions for avoiding infection even after they have received a vaccination, just in case they are not fully protected by the vaccination.

People who are in close contact with, and caregivers for, the immuno-compromised patients should also avoid using the live attenuated virus vaccines, since there is a small, but possible, chance for the virus in the live vaccine to revert or mutate to one capable of making the immuno-suppressed person ill if they are exposed to the person vaccinated with the live variety of vaccine soon after they are vaccinated.

Answer 2

Yes, they should have the shot which is made with "dead" viruses instead of the nasal mist that has "live" viruses that are weakened chemically so they can't give someone with a healthy immune system the flu, but it is not recommended for the immuno-compromised.

In addition, anyone in close contact with a person with a severely weakened immune system (requiring care in a protected environment, such as a bone marrow transplant unit), should take an injected flu vaccine instead of the nasal mists.

Immuno-suppressed persons may have a reduced immune response to the influenza vaccine used in the flu shots, so there may not be full immunity acquired in some people (such as those on chemotherapy, transplant anti-rejection drugs, persons with Lupus erythematosus or other auto immune diseases, HIV/AIDS, etc.). It is important, then, that those people, who may have a suppressed immune response, continue to observe all safety precautions for avoiding infection by the viruses even after receipt of the vaccination, such as frequent and proper hand washing and other preventive measures, since they may not have a proper response to become fully immune.

Answer 3

They usually can take the vaccines as long as it is the type of vaccine made with inactive/"dead" viruses and not the flu mists that contain live weakened viruses. However, although they likely can take the vaccination (check with the physicians first), often they do not have an adequate immune response to create full immunity, and therefore, should continue with other precautions, such as good hand washing and avoiding those who are ill, to assure they do not still catch the viral infection. See the related questions below for more suggestions for avoiding the flu.