Monday, July 19, 2010

Flu vaccine nasal spray coming to Canada

From CTV News:
or Canadians who don't get the flu shot because of the whole "shot" part, a new option is now available. A nasal spray flu vaccine has just received Health Canada's approval.

The product is called FluMist and will be sold in Canada by AstraZeneca.

FluMist has been on the U.S. market since 2003 and is the only non-injectable flu vaccine in North America. It's now approved in Canada for the prevention of seasonal influenza in Canadians two to 59 years of age.

FluMist is a mist that is sprayed into the nose, allowing the vaccine to enter the nose to deliver an active, attenuated (weakened) form of three flu viruses into the body.

It should be administered by a health care professional, although in Alberta, pharmacists will be able to administer the vaccine themselves. The cost of a dose hasn't yet been decided. ...more

No comments: