In addition to those he has already undergone, annual vaccinations against influenza and pneumococcus are advisable after the age of 65. As well as that against Covid-19 and against Herpes zoster, these two are also offered free of charge to over 65. The vaccine against influenza and against pneumococcus can be offered in the same vaccination session. But unlike the one directed against the flu – recommended every year at the beginning of the flu season and updated on the basis of circulating viral strains – the one against pneumococcus is given only once in a lifetime. There are no particular contraindications for these vaccines, but it is the doctor in each case who decides on a case by case basis.
Claudio Cricelli is President of SIMG, the Italian Society of General Medicine and Primary Care
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