You get a flu shot each year to protect against flu Why dont

You get a flu shot each year to protect against flu. Why don’t they just give \"booster\" injections? Why doesn’t last year’s flu shot protect you against this year’s flu?

Solution

Answer:

Booster doses are extra administration of the vaccine after an earlier dose. In one dose when the immune system can not fully develop memory cells againset the disease then a booster dose is needed.A booster dose is required to \"boost\" the memory B and T cell count back up again, Booster dose not work if the genetic material(antigen) of the virus is constantly changing.

The body’s immune response from vaccination declines over time, so an annual vaccine is needed for optimal protection.

Other reason, because flu viruses are constantly changing(due to mutation in the viral DNA) , the formulation of the flu vaccine is reviewed each year and sometimes updated to keep up with changing flu viruses. For the best protection, everyone six months and older should get vaccinated annually.

New flu vaccines are released every year to keep up with rapidly adapting flu viruses. Because flu viruses evolve so quickly and gene mutation happens so quickly , last year\'s vaccine may not protect you from this year\'s viruses. After vaccination, your immune system produces antibodies(memory cells) that will protect you from the viruses.