There’s a new nose-spray flu vaccine. Should your kids get it?
A new needle-free flu vaccine, FluMist, is now available in Australia for children aged two to 18, offering an alternative to traditional injections. The nasal spray vaccine is already used in the US and Europe and is designed to improve flu vaccination rates among children, who are particularly vulnerable to influenza. While it is free for young children in some states, others must pay out of pocket, and its effectiveness is supported by a meta-analysis of 19 clinical trials.
- ▪FluMist is a needle-free influenza vaccine available for children aged two to 18 in Australia.
- ▪The vaccine is administered as a nasal spray and does not require deep inhalation.
- ▪It is free for children under five in NSW, Queensland, and South Australia, but costs $49.95 elsewhere, including for all children in Victoria.
- ▪A 2024 meta-analysis of 19 randomised-controlled trials compared FluMist's effectiveness to the standard flu shot.
- ▪Australia is receiving the vaccine now because AstraZeneca has developed a southern hemisphere-specific version.
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Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at The Sydney Morning Herald.