Flu vaccine seems to work for kids under 6 months of age
By Nathan Seppa
From Toronto, at a meeting of the Infectious Diseases Society of America
Babies younger than 6 months appear fully capable of responding to a flu shot, researchers find.
Such infants aren’t typically vaccinated when influenza season arrives each fall, even though they routinely receive other vaccinations beginning at age 2 months. In the United States, flu shots are recommended for all children ages 6 months to 5 years.
“Children under the age of 6 months have actually the highest rate of [flu] hospitalization of any age group,” says physician Janet A. Englund of the University of Washington in Seattle. “But there is no licensed vaccine for this group and no antiviral therapy available for them.”