This year there are at about six types of vaccine. Whether your employer or insurer pays for it, or you do, it’s worth studying the options to determine which is likely to protect you the most, reports the New York Times.
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Older people often have weaker immune responses to the vaccine, so experts suggest those 65 and older get either a high-dose shot, which has four times the regular dosage, or a shot with adjuvant, an ingredient that boosts immune response.
Anyone else 6 months to 64 may be better off getting a quadrivalent shot, experts said. Quadrivalent vaccines are in wide use — between 114 million and 124 million of the 163 million to 168 million doses projected to be available for the current flu season, according to the CDC — but don’t hold out for one.
For younger people, including children afraid of needles, the nasal spray vaccine, which has live — but attenuated, or weakened — viruses, may be a good option, said Dr Gregory Poland, director of the Mayo Vaccine Research Group. The spray, available in a quadrivalent formulation this season, is approved for people 2 to 49 who are not pregnant.
