Sorry, kids: Docs urge flu shots, not nasal spray

WASHINGTON -- Children may feel more of a sting from flu vaccination this fall: Doctors are gearing up to give shots only, because U.S. health officials said the easy-to-use nasal spray version of the vaccine isn't working as well as a jab.

Needle-phobic adults still have some less-painful options.

But FluMist, with its squirt into each nostril, was the only ouch-free alternative for children and has accounted for about a third of pediatric flu vaccinations in recent years.

The problem: Studies from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found in the last few years, FluMist hasn't protected against certain influenza strains as well as regular flu shots. Scientists can't explain why.

The CDC said FluMist should not be used in the U.S. this year. On Tuesday, the American Academy of Pediatrics agreed and urged youngsters to roll up their sleeves for a shot.

"We're saying, 'Shoot, now we've got to do the poke again,'" said Dr. Wendy Sue Swanson of Seattle Children's Hospital and the AAP. But "we know the flu vaccine is the best shot at prevention and protecting those who are vulnerable from serious and even life-threatening infections from influenza."

Swanson has tricks to help ease tears and anxiety, such as numbing the skin or distraction techniques coinciding with the poke. Sometimes the youngest feel braver by going first to show up older siblings.

But her advice to parents: Don't lie and tell your kids the shot won't hurt. Instead, tell them, "It might hurt a bit, but it doesn't last long and you can do this."

The FluMist mystery isn't the only vaccine news. Seniors are getting a new option made with an immune booster in hopes of more protection.

The CDC urges a yearly vaccination for just about everyone starting at 6 months of age.

Flu is most dangerous for people over age 65, young children, pregnant women and people with certain health conditions such as asthma or heart disease.

But it sometimes kills even the healthy and young. The CDC said flu kills about 24,000 Americans each year, including about 100 children.

If mom gets a flu shot during pregnancy, the vaccine also helps protect her baby during its first six months of life.

Vaccinations are getting under way as shipments arrive at grocery stores, clinics and doctors' offices. Despite the FluMist problem, the CDC expects enough to meet the typical demand, between 157 million and 168 million shot doses.

Flu typically peaks in January or February, but there's no way to predict when it will begin spreading, and it takes about two weeks for full protection to kick in.

Flu shots are made with killed flu virus, so you can't get the flu from them. But they're not perfect; CDC said they reduce the risk of flu by 50 percent to 60 percent. And occasionally, a strain starts circulating that wasn't included in the vaccine recipe.

Earlier studies had suggested FluMist protected youngsters better than shots. It's not clear why, although FluMist is the only vaccine made of live but weakened flu virus.

So it was a surprise when CDC said earlier this spring that scenario was flipping, and FluMist was failing against certain strains. One theory is it has to do with a change in the nasal spray's recipe to incorporate four strains of influenza instead of three.