Q&A on the News

Q: In articles regarding the ineffectiveness of the flu vaccine against the current strain of flu, there is no mention of the more expensive, higher efficiency vaccine for older folks and its rate of efficiency against the current strain. This is what we got last year. Can you shed some light for us?

—Joyce Cheshier, Jasper

A: A randomized controlled trial compared a highdose, inactivated influenza vaccine that contained four times the standard amount of influenza antigen to standard dose vaccine in persons aged 65 years or older during the 2011-12 and 201213 influenza seasons, according to the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The trial found that the rates of laboratory-confirmed influenza were 24 percent lower among individuals who received the high-dose vaccine compared to those who received the standard dose influenza vaccine, according to a flu vaccine effectiveness page on the CDC website.

It indicated that “highdose vaccine provided 24 percent better protection against influenza than standard dose vaccine in the trial,” according to the website.

In addition, the CDC notes a three-year study from 2006-07 through 2008-09 in Tennessee reported vaccine effectiveness of 61 percent among hospitalized adults over 50 years old.

Fast Copy News Service wrote this column; Do you have a question? We’ll try to get the answer. Call 404-2222002 or email q&a@ajc.com (include name, phone and city).