Research suggests flu vaccine doesn't prevent deaths among the elderly

[Celebration]

http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2010/04/27/flu-vaccine-not-effective-in-elderly/

If the main point of the nation's influenza vaccination program is to reduce deaths from flu, then the program has failed, at least among people over 65.

A growing body of research shows that because our immune systems age, flu vaccines don't work as well in the elderly - the group of people most likely to die from flu-related causes.

The revelation has been so unsettling that public health officials have not shared the information widely with the public - even though some of the early findings have been a part of the scientific literature for several years now.

Michael Osterholm, who directs the University of Minnesota's Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy, Tuesday told a national conference on vaccine research that it's time to be more open about the flu vaccine and its lack of protection for the elderly.

Osterholm also urged his colleagues to support attempts to create a new, effective vaccine.