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Wednesday, August 5, 2009

Swine Flu Update: Vaccinations

Approximately 120 million doses of swine flu (H1N1) vaccine will be available to the public by late October, according to government estimates. The CDC has recommended that pregnant women, health care workers, and children six months and older should receive the vaccine first.

As we reported last week, it's important to receive the seasonal flu shot, whether or not the H1N1 vaccine is available or recommended for you. It won't prevent swine flu, but it will keep you from coming down with both types of flu simultaneously.

Pregnant women have been especially hard-hit by swine flu, according to a recent AP article. Although the virus has been relatively mild for most people, pregnant women are around four times as likely to be hospitalized with complications. Vaccinations can be a tough sell during pregnancy, as NPR reported recently, but the dangers may outweigh the risks in this case.

As always, stay tuned to Corporate Wellness Insights and the CDC's H1N1 site for the latest.

2 comments:

Solano said...

You mentioned that CDC has recommended that pregnat women should receive the vaccinne first. But, do you know if fetus would not have any secondary effects with the shot?

Fiona Gathright said...

Thanks for your comment.

To my knowledge, the vast majority of physicians are recommending that pregnant women receive the vaccine, but women will obviously want to discuss this issue with their doctors and make their own decisions.