Yes, patients with vasculitis should get a flu shot every fall. The treatments taken by most patients with vasculitis make them at higher risk of getting infections like influenza A, which could be severe. Patients should get the regular flu shot, which is a “killed virus” vaccine an unable to cause infection, rather than the nasal spray version, which is a “live attenuated” virus and able to cause infection in people who receive it, a special problem for patients taking immune suppressing treatments.
The University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill Kidney Center developed an extensive podcast on immunizations. Click here to listen.
The American Centers for Disease Control has more information about the Seasonal Flu on its Flu Basics pages.
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