Explaining Medicine
  • News
  • Health & Lifestyle
    • Diet & Weight Management
    • Exercise & Fitness
    • Nutrition, Food & Recipes
    • Prevention & Wellness
  • Conditions
    • Custom1
      • Conditions A-Z
      • Procedures A-Z
      • Allergies
      • Alzheimer’s
      • Arthritis
      • Asthma
      • Blood Pressure
      • Cholesterol
      • Cancer
    • Custom2
      • Chronic Pain
      • Cold Flu
      • Depression
      • Diabetes
      • Digestion
      • Eyesight
      • Health Living
      • Healthy Kids
      • Hearing Ear
    • Custom3
      • Heart
      • HIV/AIDS
      • Infectious Disease
      • Lung Conditions
      • Menopause
      • Men’s Health
      • Mental Health
      • Migraine
      • Neurology
    • Custom4
      • Oral Health
      • Pregnancy
      • Senior Health
      • Sexual Health
      • Skin Problems
      • Sleep
      • Thyroid
      • Travel Health
      • Women’s Health
  • Medications
    • Medications
    • Supplements and Vitamins
  • Medical Dictionary
  • Health Alerts
The FDA proposes new targets to limit lead...
6.8 million expected to lose Medicaid when paperwork...
The FDA considers a major shift in the...
Vitamin B12: What It Can Do, and What...
At buzzy health care business conference, investors fear...
Is it time for a reality check on...
Coming to Terms With My Diagnosis
Therapy by chatbot? The promise and challenges in...
Pictures: Embracing My Body After Being Diagnosed with...
I Am More Than My Medication
Top Posts

Explaining Medicine

  • News
  • Health & Lifestyle
    • Diet & Weight Management
    • Exercise & Fitness
    • Nutrition, Food & Recipes
    • Prevention & Wellness
  • Conditions
    • Custom1
      • Conditions A-Z
      • Procedures A-Z
      • Allergies
      • Alzheimer’s
      • Arthritis
      • Asthma
      • Blood Pressure
      • Cholesterol
      • Cancer
    • Custom2
      • Chronic Pain
      • Cold Flu
      • Depression
      • Diabetes
      • Digestion
      • Eyesight
      • Health Living
      • Healthy Kids
      • Hearing Ear
    • Custom3
      • Heart
      • HIV/AIDS
      • Infectious Disease
      • Lung Conditions
      • Menopause
      • Men’s Health
      • Mental Health
      • Migraine
      • Neurology
    • Custom4
      • Oral Health
      • Pregnancy
      • Senior Health
      • Sexual Health
      • Skin Problems
      • Sleep
      • Thyroid
      • Travel Health
      • Women’s Health
  • Medications
    • Medications
    • Supplements and Vitamins
  • Medical Dictionary
  • Health Alerts
  • News

    Eczema May Leave Some Flu Shots Less Effective

    by WebMD February 13, 2017

    HealthDay Reporter

    MONDAY, Feb. 13, 2017 (HealthDay News) — It’s still flu season, and not too late to get your flu shot. But a new study suggests that people with eczema should request the vaccine be given into the muscle, rather than just under the skin.

    That’s because the effectiveness of flu shots in people with eczema appears to vary, depending on how it’s given, researchers report.

    The problem seems to lie with the fact that the cracked, dry skin of eczema patients is often colonized by Staphylococcus bacteria. And that seems to dampen the immune response from the flu vaccine — if the shot is given into the skin, the researchers said.

    “Staphylococcus infections are a widespread problem among [eczema] patients, with up to 90 percent of patients with severe disease colonized by the bacteria,” lead researcher Dr. Donald Leung, of National Jewish Health in Denver, said in a hospital news release. He’s head of pediatric allergy and immunology at the medical center.

    Leung’s team believes that people with eczema “are likely to get the most protection from traditional intramuscular influenza vaccines, rather than intradermal vaccines.”

    Eczema is the most common chronic skin disease in the United States, affecting more than 15 percent of children. The condition persists into adulthood for about half of them.

    As the researchers explained, intradermal (into the skin) flu vaccines were first approved for use in U.S. adults in 2011. Needle-phobics no doubt prefer them, because they involve smaller needles that penetrate less deeply and, “use significantly less material to achieve similar immunologic effects in most people,” according to the news release.

    But Leung’s team wondered if intradermal shots would be as effective in people with eczema. So, the researchers tracked immune responses for 202 people with eczema and 136 people without the skin condition.

    About half of the study participants got an intradermal flu vaccine, while the other half received the intramuscular shot.

    The result: About a month later, only 11 percent of those who received an injection in the skin had developed protection against the strain of flu targeted by the vaccine, compared with 47 percent of those who received an injection into the muscle.

    Continued

    Leung’s team note that skin swabs taken from 42 percent of participants also tested positive for staph bacteria.

    The researchers said it’s not yet clear if the presence of the bacteria was the cause of the lower flu immunization rate for those who got the intradermal shot.

    However, the researchers pointed to prior studies that have shown that colonization of the skin by staph infections can cause immune cells to “retreat” from the skin. Staph bacteria also produce toxins that typically inhibit the activity of certain immune-system cells, the study authors explained.

    Dr. Nika Finelt is a dermatologist at Northwell Health in Manhasset, N.Y. She called the study “important,” highlighting the need for special care when immunizing people with eczema.

    Dr. Leonard Krilov, chair of pediatrics at Winthrop-University Hospital in Mineola, N.Y., agreed. He also believes the study highlights why children with eczema, especially, should get the flu shot.

    “This emphasizes potential immune weakness in children with eczema, which could also put them at risk for more severe illness from influenza,” Krilov said. “Thus, these individuals should be targeted to receive influenza vaccine.”

    The study was published online Feb. 13 in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.

    WebMD News from HealthDay

    Sources

    SOURCES: Nika Finelt, MD., dermatologist, Northwell Health, Manhasset, NY; Leonard Krilov, ‎MD, chairman of pediatrics and chief of the division of pediatric infectious disease,  Winthrop-University Hospital, Mineola, NY; National Jewish Health, Denver, news release, Feb. 13, 2017

    Copyright © 2013-2017 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

    Read the article here

    Share this Post

    Share Explaining Medicine Share Explaining Medicine

    Eczema May Leave Some Flu Shots Less Effective was last modified: February 15th, 2017 by WebMD

    Related

    allergydry skineczemafluflu shotinfluenzastaph infectionsvaccineVaccines
    0 comment
    0
    Facebook Twitter Google + Pinterest
    WebMD

    previous post
    FDA Warning About Balloon Obesity Treatments
    next post
    Sara Lee, Sargento Cheese Recalls: Listeria Fears

    Related Articles

    Incidentalomas? What’s the chance….?

    December 17, 2018

    Worst Flu Season Since 2009 Hitting Boomers Hard

    January 26, 2018

    Wrist Device Shows Promise for Hand Tremors

    April 20, 2018

    Get Screened Earlier For Colorectal Cancer, Urges American Cancer Society

    May 30, 2018

    The Ellen Show broadcasts potentially harmful information about ovarian cancer screening

    October 30, 2018

    California Rules About Violence Against Health Workers Could Become A Model

    October 26, 2016

    HPV Might Be Behind Vocal Cord Cancers in Young

    February 12, 2019

    Scientists Discover More Clues to Stuttering

    December 5, 2016

    Human Insulin as Good as Costly Synthetic Versions

    June 29, 2018

    Excessive Video Gaming To Be Labeled A Disorder

    December 27, 2017

    Recent Posts

    • The FDA proposes new targets to limit lead in baby food

      January 25, 2023
    • 6.8 million expected to lose Medicaid when paperwork hurdles return

      January 24, 2023
    • The FDA considers a major shift in the nation’s COVID vaccine strategy

      January 23, 2023
    • At buzzy health care business conference, investors fear the bubble will burst

      January 20, 2023
    • Is it time for a reality check on rapid COVID tests?

      January 19, 2023

    Keep in touch

    Facebook Twitter Google + RSS

    Recent Posts

    • The FDA proposes new targets to limit lead in baby food

      January 25, 2023
    • 6.8 million expected to lose Medicaid when paperwork hurdles return

      January 24, 2023
    • The FDA considers a major shift in the nation’s COVID vaccine strategy

      January 23, 2023
    • At buzzy health care business conference, investors fear the bubble will burst

      January 20, 2023
    • Is it time for a reality check on rapid COVID tests?

      January 19, 2023
    • Terms of Service
    • Privacy Policy

    @2023 - Explaining Medicine. All Right Reserved.


    Back To Top
    Explaining Medicine
    Proudly powered by WordPress Theme: soledad child.