CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- People interested in getting the swine flu vaccine when it comes out in mid-October may only have to get one shot, not two, after studies have shown that one 15-microgram dose of the vaccine may protect adults from the virus.
"One shot for adults 18 to 54 may be adequate to mount enough of an immune response to protect against the H1N1," said Dr. Rahul Gupta, chief health officer for the Kanawha-Charleston Health Department, referring to two studies in the New England Journal of Medicine last week.
Originally, pharmaceutical companies and the federal Centers for Disease Control were suggesting that each patient would have to get two shots of the vaccine to be fully covered.
Australian shot maker CSL Ltd. published results on Sept. 10 that show between 75 and 96 percent of people who are given just one dose of the swine flu vaccine should be covered, according to the New England Journal of Medicine.
The vaccine apparently mimics the protection of a seasonal flu vaccine, Gupta said.
U.S. data from another study also showed that protection from the vaccine starts rapidly and two doses may not be necessary, according to the Journal.
The decrease in the amount of shots that each individual will have to get will reduce the amount of time that individuals have to wait to get the shot and will increase the amount of people eligible, Gupta said.
"We can potentially double the number of people we can vaccinate," he said. "We can cut the burden on the health-care force who have to administer the vaccine and people should be able to mount a response faster."
The seasonal flu shot, which normally isn't available around the country until mid-October, was rolled out at local health departments earlier this week to make way for the swine flu vaccine in October.
Scientists were worried that people of all ages would have to get the H1N1 shot twice, spaced almost a month apart because the swine flu strain is so genetically different from the normal seasonal flu's, Gupta said.
While that may not be the case any longer, health departments across the country will wait to get the OK from the CDC before they change from the originally recommended two doses down to one, he said.
Originally, the CDC said that it could take up to five weeks for the swine flu vaccine to fully protect someone after they have received both shots.
With only one shot, people will be protected earlier -- perhaps in 10 to 14 days, Gupta said.
No studies have been done on children or people younger than 18, but Gupta isn't as hopeful that they will only be required to get one shot.
Typically when children are given the seasonal flu shot for the first time, they get it in two doses to help ensure the proper immune response, Gupta said.
"The health department may still recommend two shots for children, but for adults, we are getting data that one is good," Gupta said.
The United States government has ordered 195 million doses of the shot, based on the guess that the 15-microgram dose would be sufficient enough to protect individuals, according to the CDC website.
Vaccine supplies will slowly flow into the state, not all at once and areas that will administer the vaccine will expand over time, said Cathy Slemp, acting health officer for the state Department of Health and Human Resources.
Hospitals and local health departments must pre-register to get the H1N1 vaccines and the DHHR is hoping that agencies that experience a high rate of success with administering the seasonal flu vaccine will volunteer to be administers.
Reach Kathryn Gregory at kathryng@wvgazette.com or 304-348-5119. To see more of The Charleston Gazette, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.wvgazette.com. Copyright (c) 2009, The Charleston Gazette, W.Va. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.
Copyright (C) 2009, The Charleston Gazette, W.Va.