High dose worth a shot

FOR seniors seeking a flu vaccine, more might be better.

Researchers at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston found that those who received higher-dose vaccinations had a greater immune response to influenza than those who received standard-dose shots.

“We think the study provides some hope that a better vaccine, one that will protect a larger portion of the senior population, can be developed,” says co-investigator Dr. Robert L. Atmar, an infectious disease expert.

Although the currently recommended dose of influenza vaccine is effective in protecting younger adults, it’s less effective in protecting seniors -- who are at a higher risk for complications and death from the flu.

Atmar and his colleagues randomly assigned 122 volunteers, 65 and older, to receive either a placebo or one of three vaccines. The vaccines contained 15 (the standard dose), 30 or 60 micrograms of each of three strains of inactivated virus. After one month, those receiving 30- and, in particular, 60-microgram doses of the strains had, on average, higher concentrations of antibodies against the flu in their blood than those receiving standard doses. Nevertheless, Atmar cautions, more research is needed, particularly on less-healthy seniors, before it can be assumed that all seniors would benefit from higher-dose vaccinations.

The study appeared in the May 22 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine.