Unsafe Drugs: Most Kids Not Getting Proper Flu Shot Dosage

A new study shows that U.S. children who got a flu shot during the 2003-2004 flu season were not given the recommended two doses. Only 12% of the children between the ages of two and eight got both doses of the trivalent inactivated influenza vaccine that are suggested for protection against the virus, said the findings from the Vaccine Safety Datalink study.

Most children not getting two doses of flu vaccine

Dr. Lisa A. Jackson of the Group Health Center for Health Studies in Seattle, Washington looked at data for 125, 928 children between the ages of 6 months and 8 years to draw the conclusion that adequate dosage was not being administered to the children. Jackson's team found that children who received their first TIV dose before mid-November had the highest compliance rates for full immunization and that this finding should "reinforce previous recommendations to target previously unvaccinated children less than 9 years of age for early vaccination, in September if possible."