DEARBORN, Mich. – A new study is suggesting getting a vaccine shot might be the best defense for adults looking to fight the traditional seasonal flu.
However the author of this study says there's reason to believe a shot or nasal spray might protect people of all ages against the H1N1 "swine" flu.
This study suggests in the future, your age might determine the way you get your vaccine. But it also provides some encouragement for this flu season.
"They both prevent influenza but in our studies, in healthy adults, the injected vaccine worked better than the nasal spray vaccine," says Dr. Arnold Monto from the University of Michigan.
The University of Michigan study found nasal spray was about half as effective as the shots for adults. The results showed 68 percent effectiveness for the shot and 36 percent for the nasal spray. But in children the nasal spray may actually work better.
Nasal spray maker Medimmune says other studies have shown its product to be just as effective for adults and children.
"So in adults, really the jury's still out. In children, however, we've consistently seen that flu mist recipients, or children receiving flu mist get less influenza than those receiving the flu shot," says Dr. Chris Ambrose with MedImmune.
The Michigan study was done during the flu season two years ago. The research states adults might not get the same kind of protection from live-virus nasal sprays because they've been exposed to different flu strains before. Since most young children have not been exposed, their immune systems have a stronger response.
The head of this study believes adults and children could be protected from the H1N1 virus by either a shot or a nasal spray because the virus is new to all age groups.
The U.S. government ordered more than 250 million doses of H1N1 vaccine that is expected to arrive in the coming weeks.
