More Random Acts of Medicine: When's the best time to get a flu shot?
A new study building upon research familiar to readers of the Random Acts of Medicine book is hot off the (digital) presses!
In Chapter 3 of the Random Acts of Medicine book, we dive into a study of ours that took advantage of the random nature of kids’ birthdays. That study showed that the timing of kids’ well-child checkups, which tend to happen around birthdays for young children, impacted whether or not kids would get their annual influenza vaccine (flu shot).
In our new study with
, which is out today (no paywall) in the BMJ, we again take advantage of the random nature of birthdays. This time, however, we look at how birthdays impact when vaccinated kids actually get their flu shot—and what this natural experiment can tell us about the optimal time of year to get a flu shot.We wanted to share this with you the day it came out—always an exciting day for researchers! Check out the abstract below. If reading the abstract or research paper itself is not for you (no judgment there!), here’s some news coverage that’s worth checking out:
N.B.: If you haven’t yet had a flu shot this year, it’s still worth getting one now even though it’s late in the flu season!
-Chris & Bapu
I never had a flu shot growing up. When I was raising my children in the 1990's and early 2000's no pediatrician even mentioned a flu shot for them. When and why did it become routine to give children flu shots?
Q: When's the best time to get a flu shot?
A: Before you come in contact with the flu!