Drug that helps boost flu vaccine

AN ANTIINFLAmmATory drug could make vaccines more effective for elderly people, according to research from University College London (UCL). This is because inflammation blocks the immune response needed for the vaccine to work.

When scientists exposed volunteers aged over 65 and under 40 to the chicken pox virus, the older people had the weakest immune response and most inflammation.

When some of the over65s were then given an antiinflammatory drug before reinfecting them, their immune response improved, reports the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.

The plan is to test if this drug can make the flu vaccine more effective for the elderly.