Health Experts: This Year's Flu Vaccine Better Than Last Year's

DENVER (CBS4)- Flu season is quickly approaching and health officials are optimistic that this year's flu vaccine will be more effective than last year's. But they also warn that influenza can be unpredictable.

"We don't have the same circumstances that we had last year," said State Epidemiologist Dr. Lisa Miller.

Last flu season many people became sick with a new strain of the H3N2 Influenza that started circulating too late to change the vaccine formulation. Last season's flu shot was just 18 percent effective.

"We're used to seeing numbers that are higher than that, 50 or 60 percent," said Miller.

Miller explained that with this year's vaccine, that should be the case, "This year that strain is actually included in the flu vaccine so we've got that covered."

Miller said the vaccine is your best protection against influenza, but she also warns that the flu is unpredictable; no one can guarantee the flu shot will protect against all strains that circulate.

"All we can say is that the flu will come. We really don't know until we get into the season if it's going to be a more severe season or not," said Miller.

There are vaccine choices that include trivalent, which covers three flu strains and the quadrivalent that covers four.

Health experts recommend getting vaccinated as soon as possible because it can prevent illness, hospitalizations and even death.