More youths are nudged to line up for flu vaccine

Twelve-year-old DeKera Powell used to watch while her asthmatic older sister received flu vaccines each fall.

This week, though, DeKera offered up her own arm.

For the first year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has added all school-age children to its list of those who should receive flu vaccines.

Previously, the federal agency's recommendation was for children 6 months to 5 years and older children with certain chronic health conditions.

The change added 1.3 million school-age children in Virginia and 30 million across the country.

Not that they'll all get it, if DeKera's reaction is any indication:

"It hurts!"

The CDC recommendations now cover a big swath of the population, including people 50 and older; pregnant women; those with conditions like heart disease, asthma, diabetes and illnesses that compromise the immune system; and people in close contact with high-risk populations, such as health-care workers and families of people with health problems.

Toddlers and infants tend to get sickest from the flu, which is why they were included in the past, but school-age children get the virus at higher rates and are more likely to spread it to more people.

DeKera and her 16-year-old sister, Wyteria, received their shots at General Pediatrics, at Children's Hospital of The King's Daughters in Norfolk. The group started giving flu vaccines earlier this month. Wyteria was there for an asthma checkup, and DeKera was getting some other immunizations as well.

The number of children who have received flu vaccines through local pediatric practices has increased significantly over the years. The Children's Health Network, a group of about 40 local pediatric practices that negotiates contracts for drugs, ordered 48,500 doses for this flu season.

That compares with 2,600 in 2001.

Laura Ann Nicolai, an epidemiologist with the Virginia Department of Health, said participation in the Vaccines for Children federal program also has increased but that it's tough to compare years because of vaccine shortages in 2003 and 2004.

This year, the state health department distributed about 180,000 vaccines statewide through the Vaccines for Children program, which is for those younger than 19 who are enrolled in Medicaid, are uninsured or underinsured, or who are Native American or Native Alaskan.

This year, the flu vaccine supply is expected to be plentiful, and federal health officials are hoping it's more effective than last year's because the vaccine includes three new strains.

The vaccine usually is given starting in October and continues through the flu season, which typically peaks between December and March. The vaccine takes about two weeks to become fully effective.

The CDC recommends that children ages 6 months to 8 years get two flu shots a month apart, because a single shot may not be enough to protect them.

And for anyone squeamish about the needle, there's always the nasal spray flu vaccine, which can be taken by people ages 2 to 49 in good health. That vaccine contains live viruses, but they are weakened and cannot cause the flu. Children 2 to 8 years need two doses about a month apart.

Despite recommendations, most children in at-risk categories were not vaccinated against the flu in the past. For the 2005 season, for instance, 29 percent of children 6 to 23 months of age in Virginia were fully vaccinated.

Meta Powell, mother of DeKera and Wyteria, brushed off her girls' squeamishness about getting the shots. She said she'll rest easier knowing they both have the flu vaccine this year.

That didn't stop the girls from wincing through the experience. "That's it," said CHKD nurse Joan Williams, placing a cartoon bandage on DeKera's arm. "You're done."