AAP updates 2019-2020 flu vaccine recommendations to include nasal spray

Although the American Academy of Pediatrics had cited a preference for injected flu vaccines for children during the 2018-2019 flu season, this year’s recommendations say either that or the nasal spray formulation are acceptable, according to a press release. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has given similar guidance.

^{Louise A. Koenig/MDedge News}

Because the spray did not work as well against A/H1N1 as the injected vaccine had during the 2013-2014 and 2014-2015 seasons, the AAP did not recommend the spray during the 2015-2016 and 2016-2017 seasons. However, in 2017 the spray’s manufacturer included a new strain of A/H1N1, and new data has supported the spray’s effectiveness against some strains.

The AAP recommends all children aged 6 months and older should be vaccinated, but the flu nasal spray is approved only for nonpregnant patients aged 2-49 years, according to the CDC. That said, the spray is especially appropriate for patients who refuse to receive the injected form, so the choice of formulation is at the pediatrician’s discretion, according to the AAP release.

[email protected]

© Frontline Medical Communications 2018-2021. Reprinted with permission, all rights reserved.