For years, you may have headed to your doctor's office or local pharmacy every flu season to get a vaccine that would protect you against some of the more common strains of flu. However, administering the flu vaccine in this way provides a plethora of problems, and the fact that a needle is required can sometimes be the basis of all those problems.
No one enjoys needles, which is one reason why people -- almost half of everyone who is at risk of getting influenza disease -- forego annual flu vaccinations. However, a shot also requires an appointment because you can't administer the vaccine to yourself, and your schedule may not warrant the time for taking off work and sitting in the waiting room of a doctor's office. However, a flu vaccine patch currently being developed by the Georgia Institute of Technology and Emory University just might be the perfect solution to all of these problems.
Flu Vaccine as a Patch
No one enjoys needles, which is one reason why people -- almost half of everyone who is at risk of getting influenza disease -- forego annual flu vaccinations. However, a shot also requires an appointment because you can't administer the vaccine to yourself, and your schedule may not warrant the time for taking off work and sitting in the waiting room of a doctor's office. However, a flu vaccine patch currently being developed by the Georgia Institute of Technology and Emory University just might be the perfect solution to all of these problems.
Flu Vaccine as a Patch
Researchers want to begin producing patches that can replace a long vaccine needle. These patches are applied to the skin, and the patches actually contain as many as 50 tiny needles to deliver the flu vaccine. The micro-needles dissolve to deliver flu vaccine to cells in the skin that contain the antigens. The patch won't be required to be worn after the initial vaccine administration. After the needles dissolve -- in just a few minutes -- the patch can be removed.
While it's not exactly pain-free, the patch was rated just 1.5 on a scale of 1 to 100 by a group of 100 volunteer subjects. In comparison, the group rated the flu shot with a pain factor ten times greater. More than 75% of the subjects responded that they would take the flu patch whether they did it by themselves or went to a medical professional to apply the patch to their skin. Researchers tested two types of patch -- one that made a clicking noise and another that did not. Scientists found that more test subjects were successful at applying the patch when it clicked at the time of administration.
Vaccination Through Patches
It's not the first time that patches have been used to deliver medicine. However, most patches have been intended for birth control, pain or even to help curb nicotine cravings until this point. These patches also requite patients to wear them for prolonged periods of time. A lot of those medical patches have had their own issues, but the flu vaccine is one that may be successful because the vaccine will be administered into the skin instead of into muscle or blood stream. There are many immune cells in the skin, which helps make the flu patch potentially more effective than the flu shot in terms of efficacy.
Researchers found that patients who received the flu vaccine via the patch actually had greater levels of flu antibodies in their bodies than those people who received the traditional flu shot. This was due to the fact that using the patch as method of delivery caused cytokines to rush to the "injection" site. Cytokines bring with them immunity cells that interacted with the vaccine more quickly. Furthermore, a study published in Science Daily detailed an immunity response to the patch that was longer-lasting than the body's response to the flu vaccine shot. It may be that using the patch will require less frequent vaccinations in the future.
Greater Protection and Coverage
The flu vaccine has the potential to protect more people than the flu shot currently does. Experts, such as Professor Mark Prausnitz, imagine the flu vaccine being delivered through the mail. Then, Mom or Dad can apply the patches to everyone in the family over the course of a few minutes. This cuts out most of the medical costs associated with flu shots. High prices for the flu vaccine go towards the practice, clinics or companies who produce or administer it rather than covering the actual cost of medicine. And unlike the flu shot, the patches are able to be stored at room temperature and not in a refrigerator, so they can be shipped and stored easily.
Researchers want to begin providing flu vaccine patches to humans in clinical trials by 2015. Currently, scientists have an unnamed pharmaceutical partner to begin manufacturing the flu vaccine patches. If the patch becomes accepted by the FDA, both consumers and healthcare professionals may be breathing a sigh of relief. Flu season brings with it an influx of doctor's patients who would like to receive a vaccine as recommended. However, many facilities aren't equipped for this. The flu vaccine patch may increase immunity against influenza disease and also drastically cut down on the amount of deaths and hospitalizations from the disease every year.
While it's not exactly pain-free, the patch was rated just 1.5 on a scale of 1 to 100 by a group of 100 volunteer subjects. In comparison, the group rated the flu shot with a pain factor ten times greater. More than 75% of the subjects responded that they would take the flu patch whether they did it by themselves or went to a medical professional to apply the patch to their skin. Researchers tested two types of patch -- one that made a clicking noise and another that did not. Scientists found that more test subjects were successful at applying the patch when it clicked at the time of administration.
Vaccination Through Patches
It's not the first time that patches have been used to deliver medicine. However, most patches have been intended for birth control, pain or even to help curb nicotine cravings until this point. These patches also requite patients to wear them for prolonged periods of time. A lot of those medical patches have had their own issues, but the flu vaccine is one that may be successful because the vaccine will be administered into the skin instead of into muscle or blood stream. There are many immune cells in the skin, which helps make the flu patch potentially more effective than the flu shot in terms of efficacy.
Researchers found that patients who received the flu vaccine via the patch actually had greater levels of flu antibodies in their bodies than those people who received the traditional flu shot. This was due to the fact that using the patch as method of delivery caused cytokines to rush to the "injection" site. Cytokines bring with them immunity cells that interacted with the vaccine more quickly. Furthermore, a study published in Science Daily detailed an immunity response to the patch that was longer-lasting than the body's response to the flu vaccine shot. It may be that using the patch will require less frequent vaccinations in the future.
Greater Protection and Coverage
The flu vaccine has the potential to protect more people than the flu shot currently does. Experts, such as Professor Mark Prausnitz, imagine the flu vaccine being delivered through the mail. Then, Mom or Dad can apply the patches to everyone in the family over the course of a few minutes. This cuts out most of the medical costs associated with flu shots. High prices for the flu vaccine go towards the practice, clinics or companies who produce or administer it rather than covering the actual cost of medicine. And unlike the flu shot, the patches are able to be stored at room temperature and not in a refrigerator, so they can be shipped and stored easily.
Researchers want to begin providing flu vaccine patches to humans in clinical trials by 2015. Currently, scientists have an unnamed pharmaceutical partner to begin manufacturing the flu vaccine patches. If the patch becomes accepted by the FDA, both consumers and healthcare professionals may be breathing a sigh of relief. Flu season brings with it an influx of doctor's patients who would like to receive a vaccine as recommended. However, many facilities aren't equipped for this. The flu vaccine patch may increase immunity against influenza disease and also drastically cut down on the amount of deaths and hospitalizations from the disease every year.
Author Bio: Jeff Shjarback, MBA is a Digital Marketing Strategy Consultant that has worked as a Vaccine Specialist and Biological Products Specialist. Jeff enjoys blogging about internet marketing, small business, lead generation, economics, innovation & emerging technology, future trend analysis and business philosophy. Jeff is one of the main contributors to FluPatch.org. To learn more about Jeff, you can visit his Google Author Profile.
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