Influenza Immunization in Adults Over Age 75
The immune system is the part of the body that protects against infection. The immune system often doesn't work as effectively as people get older. This research is being done to find out how the immune systems in older people who are over age 75 respond to influenza vaccine (flu shot). We also want to find out if chronic cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection, a common virus infection in older persons affects the immune response in people older than 75 years of age who receive a flu shot. The Flu Shot is a vaccine approved for the prevention of influenza ("Flu") infections and is recommended every year for all persons 50 years and older. People who are older than 75 years of age are considered healthy or frail may join. A total of 525 persons will be participating in this study. In order to determine if you are qualified for the study, we would ask you to answer a few questions over the phone that will take approximately 5 minutes. If you qualify and agree to proceed, you will be asked to come to Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center or, if you are unable to come to Bayview, one of our staff can visit you at your home. During that visit we obtain consent, review your medical history, and measure your vital signs, walking speed and grip strength. We will also administer a few brief questionnaires and collect urine and blood samples. We will then give you the Flu shot for free. Three to four weeks after you receive the Flu shot, you will have another visit at Johns Hopkins Bayview or your home where we will repeat some of the questionnaires, vital signs, and collect a second blood sample. Throughout the study, we will call you once a week to ask about your general health and any Flu-like symptoms. These calls will be made throughout the Flu season which typically lasts through the end of May. If you begin to have any influenza like symptoms at any time during the study, we ask that you call our office to report these symptoms so that we may perform a nasal swab to confirm influenza, and a third blood draw to look at the immune response and protection of influenza vaccine.
Start: March 2014
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