Seaonal flu vaccine

[Anonymous]

I know I should check with my pediatrician about this. My four year old has gotten the seasonal flu vaccine for the past 3-4 years. I do realize that I never got him a booster shot the first time he got it. I vaguely remember being told about it but never did it. Does that mean he should have gotten a booster another year or does it not matter any more since he's gotten more flu shots since then. Never mentioned it to the pediatrician because I forgot about it...he did get the flu shot and got the flu anyway last year.

[Anonymous]

I'm in the same situation. I read (I believe on the CDC website) that you should get your child the series of two shots subsequently, if you missed the second shot the first year.

I'm not sure if I'm going to do it. I'll ask my ped, I guess, though I expect he'll say "get two." Sigh.

[Anonymous]

I thought the first year when you get the two shots that each shot is 1/2 dose. So in the subsequent years, you should be getting the full pediatric dose, so I don't think you'd need the booster at this point.

[Anonymous]

What happens if you don't get the second shot? My DD got the first one -- she's only 10 months old so this is the first time she's getting it -- and now she needs the second one and it's nowhere to be found. I've called everywhere. Is she just screwed?

[Anonymous]

OK, here you go. Third answer on this page answers the question.

http://www.cdc.gov/FLU/about/qa/vaxadmin.htm

Hooray once again for the CDC.

(Also, when you get two doses the first year, it's not that each dose is half the amount -- it's that your immune system needs two full doses to get it going, producing the right antibodies.)

[Anonymous]

Answering 9:50 -- your child is better off than if she'd not gotten the first dose, but not as well-protected as she'd be with a second dose (i.e., not as well-protected as an adult would be after one dose). Just keep an eye out for the second dose.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OK, here you go. Third answer on this page answers the question.

http://www.cdc.gov/FLU/about/qa/vaxadmin.htm

Hooray once again for the CDC.

(Also, when you get two doses the first year, it's not that each dose is half the amount -- it's that your immune system needs two full doses to get it going, producing the right antibodies.)

OP: Thank you! I looked on the CDC site a few times but never found that q&a. So I think we're set.

[Anonymous]

9:50 here, just wanted to spread the news that the shot is available at INOVA at a few of their clinics. I got an appointment for my DD for tomorrow at INOVA Mt. Vernon -- have to drive way out of my way, but it's worth it especially now that half of my office has the flu. If anyone else is looking, they also had appointments at INOVA Fairfax, INOVA Alexandria, and INOVA Fair Oaks, just not as soon. I think the appointments were all at the beginning of November though, so not too bad.