GSK OK'd on flu vaccine FluLaval

PHLADELPHIA, Pa., Oct. 5 (UPI) -- GlaxoSmithKline said Thursday its flu vaccine FluLaval has been OK'd for U.S. sales, which the firm said would boost seasonal supplies.

The drug giant said the Food and Drug Administration approved the new vaccine for use in adults 18 years and older to prevent flu virus types A and B.

"While the threat of pandemic influenza rightly has received a lot of attention, it is important to remember that seasonal flu poses a real and serious risk to public health each year," William Schaffner, chairman of the department of preventive medicine at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville, said in a statement issued by GSK. "Getting an annual flu vaccine is the best way to protect against seasonal flu and its severe complications which kill too many Americans each year," he said.

GSK said it added FluLaval to its product line when it bought the Canadian vaccine firm ID Biomedical in December 2005. FluLaval is marketed in Canada under the trade name Fluviral.

GSK unveiled another flu vaccine, Fluarix, in time for last year's flu season, which typically begins in October.

Flu causes about 200,000 U.S hospitalizations each year and claims roughly 36,000 lives, mostly in those 65 or older, GSK said.