Question

I have asthma and need to get a flu shot. Does taking prednisone preclude getting one?

Answer

People with asthma are advised to get a flu shot every year. Influenza infections (the flu) can lead to severe worsening of asthma and even death. Therefore, it is especially important that asthmatics are protected by the vaccine. Patients who take prednisone (or any other corticosteroids) and receive a flu shot develop the same antibody response as patients not taking prednisone. So, these drugs do not preclude receiving a flu shot.

Furthermore, flu shots are extremely safe. The most common side effect is mild soreness in the area of administration. This happens in about 25% of people. Allergic reactions are very rare, but they can be serious, so patients with known severe hypersensitivity to the flu vaccine or to eggs (the vaccine is produced using eggs) should not have a flu shot.

Often, patients state they contracted the "flu" from the vaccine. This is not possible as the vaccine is made from killed virus and therefore, cannot cause the flu. Studies show that flu-like symptoms following administration of the flu vaccine occur just as frequently if the vaccination was a placebo as if it contained the true vaccine. The most likely explanation for this phenomenon is that the flu vaccine is given at the time of year that viruses are common, and the perceived association is coincidental.