Sask. will suspend most seasonal flu shots

Saskatchewan will suspend the seasonal flu shot for everyone except seniors and those in long-term-care facilities.

The decision comes a day after Saskatchewan Health Minister Don McMorris said the province was considering cancelling the seasonal shot in light of preliminary research suggesting people who have had seasonal flu shots may be at greater risk of catching swine flu.

Chief medical health officer Moira McKinnon said Friday the H1N1 influenza virus will likely be the main type of flu this fall in the province.

"We understand that people will be confused,"Dr. McKinnonsaid. "We want to dispel that confusion and make it very clear: the seasonal vaccine is for older people and people living in long-term care facilities.

"Once the mass-immunization program has taken place, there will be an opportunity to review the epidemiology, review the evidence and offer the seasonal vaccination to a wider group."

The H1N1 flu shot will be available to the public in early November, she said, adding that everyone should get it and those most at risk will be encouraged to get it first.

Most provinces and territories have been reviewing their vaccination plans since Canadian researchers found people who had received the seasonal flu vaccine in the past were twice as likely to get the H1N1 virus. The research has not yet been peer reviewed or published.

Theoretically, antibodies created by the immune system after exposure to bacteria or a virus can facilitate the entry of another strain of the virus or disease. The effect has been seen for other viral vaccinations but never for influenza, said Dr. Donald Low, chief microbiologist at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto.

As of Thursday, 78 people died in Canada, includingfour in Saskatchewan, because of swine flu, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada. There were also 15 people in hospital and three admissions to intensive care units in that time, Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq told reporters.