Influenza vaccine update, 2021-22
Give the vaccine by the end of October. The CDC states that COVID-19 vaccines can be co-administered with influenza vaccines, but reactogenicity is possible.
Live attenuated influenza vaccine (LAIV) continues to have a considerably longer list of contraindications, which can be found in the published recommendations for 2021-2022.8
Final advice
The upcoming influenza season has the potential to be clinically challenging with the possibility of co-existing high rates of both COVID-19 and influenza. Recommend both influenza and COVID-19 vaccination to patients. Also, be sure to encourage and practice other preventive measures such as masking in crowds, frequent hand washing, isolation when sick, respiratory hygiene, and (for physicians) selected prescribing of influenza antiviral medications and meticulous office-based infection control practices.9
