As a concerned parent regarding the health and safety of school aged children combined with all the hype about the "swine flu", more appropriately termed H1N1 flu, I decided to investigate the topic further to find out for myself what the pros and cons are related to having the vaccine administered to my child. I've always been very cautious about vaccines and do not typically decide to have my child inoculated just because I'm being told it's the right thing to do from my Physician.

During my research, I've basically come across the same information from various sources substantiating each other and claim that the best line of defense against the H1N1 pandemic is to receive the vaccine when it is released in October 2009 by the following approved manufacturers: MedImmune, Novartis, Sanofi, and CSL Limited. For more information on the release of the H1N1 flu vaccine, you can view availability from your State level.

The H1N1 vaccine can be normally administered along with other seasonal flu vaccines except seasonal live attenuated influenza vaccine normally administered via nasal spray. Those who should not get the H1N1 vaccine are people with severe allergies to chicken eggs or any other ingredient in the vaccine. As always, discuss with your Physician before receiving any vaccination, especially if you fall within these high risk catagories.

I was disappointed to find that the clinical trial data for children and pregnant women (see this interesting article) have not yet been completed. Therefore, we are left to see for ourselves the outcome of those who do receive the vaccine and the possible side-effects it may cause to those most important to us. With so much information available it tends to be quite overwhelming and leaves you feeling unsure about which reports you can trust. I was able to find a large amount of data from the web site of Goodmorning America, the information is spread out very plainly and is easy to navigate.

With regards to dosing schedules, the targeted groups for initial release of the vaccine are pregnant women, caregivers of children 6 months and younger, healthcare personnel, 6-25 year olds, and those with compromised immune systems or chronic health conditions between the ages of 25-64. The anticipated dose schedule is 2 vaccinations for children six months to nine years with approximately 20-30 day interval between doses, and one dose for children 10 years and older. During clinical trials, the results of the vaccine seem to mimicking those of the seasonal influenza virus, providing immunity 8 to 10 days in most healthy adults. Again, since the clinical trials have not been completed for children, we do not have the information we need to make an educated decision on whether or not it may be something we choose to have administered.

In the interim, the best line of defense are following these simple guidelines to prevent the spread of infection:

• Keep hands washed with soap and water often, or use alcohol based hand rub if soap and water are not available.
• Do not share anything that could cause a potential infection, (i.e. food, drink), or touch your eyes, nose or mouth as this is one of the leading causes of infection.
• Always cover your mouth and nose when coughing or sneezing using a tissue or the sleeve of your arm if tissue is not readily accessible to avoid spreading airborne germs.
• If you are sick, limit your exposure to others to avoid spreading infection.
• If your child is sick, keep them home away from otherwise healthy individuals until 24 hours after fever has subsided without the use of fever reducing medicine.

Education overall will be our best mechanism for defense and keeping our children safe.