The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recommends the following people at high risk for complications from the flu be vaccinated each year:
-Senior citizens-Persons 65 years and older;
-Long-term care patients- Anyone who lives in a nursing home or other long-term care facilities that house those with long-term illnesses;
– Adults with chronic heart or lung conditions, including asthma;
– Adults who needed regular medical care or were in a hospital during the previous year because of a metabolic disease (like diabetes), chronic kidney disease, or weakened immune system (including immune system problems caused by medicines or by HIV/AIDS infection;
-Women who will be pregnant during the influenza season;
– People with any condition that can compromise respiratory function or the handling of respiratory secretions (that is, a condition that makes it hard to breathe or swallow, such as brain injury or disease, spinal cord injuries, seizure disorders, or other nerve or muscle disorders.)
– People 50 to 64 years of age. Because nearly one-third of people 50 to 64 years of age in the United States have one or more medical conditions that place them at increased risk for serious flu complications, vaccination is recommended for all persons aged 50 – 64 years.
– People who can transmit flu to others at high risk for complications; This includes all health-care workers, household contacts and out-of-home caregivers of children 0 to 23 months of age, and close contacts of people 65 years and older.
-Children- The CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommends the following guidelines for children:
-Influenza vaccination is recommended for all children aged 6 months to 5 years.
-Influenza vaccination is also of benefit to older children.
-If this is the first year your child is receiving the flu vaccine and he/she is under the age of 9 years, a second follow-up vaccine is required four weeks after the first dose for maximum effectiveness.
