Flu Vaccine

[h90]

Death numbers caused by flu are are not going down in the US since 1990. Number of flu shots went up massivly.

So does the profit

[imincm]

Pharma industry needs growth, just like the others .

[attrayant]

Death numbers caused by flu are are not going down in the US since 1990.

What a truly bizarre way to frame the issue. Can you explain why you think flu mortality should be going down each year?

Secondly, what do you suppose would happen if everybody stopped getting their flu shot? Do you think the numbers would continue to stay where they are?

[h90]

Death numbers caused by flu are are not going down in the US since 1990.

What a truly bizarre way to frame the issue. Can you explain why you think flu mortality should be going down each year?

Secondly, what do you suppose would happen if everybody stopped getting their flu shot? Do you think the numbers would continue to stay where they are?

If many people get vaccinated and don't get the flu the death numbers caused by flu obviously should go down. The logic is OK.

[Xonax]

I had a flu vaccine 10 years ago and then had a serious cough and sore throat the whole winter. Haven't anybody else experienced bad side effects like this?

Edited October 25, 2015 by Xonax

[attrayant]

If many people get vaccinated and don't get the flu the death numbers caused by flu obviously should go down. The logic is OK.

The logic is not ok. Influenza in not like polio or smallpox. Influenza is constantly mutating and medical science is forever playing catch-up trying to tailor the latest vaccine to match the newly emerging strains.

http://www.cdc.gov/flu/about/viruses/change.htm

Edited October 25, 2015 by attrayant

[attrayant]

I had a flu vaccine 10 years ago and then had a serious cough and sore throat the whole winter. Haven't anybody else experienced bad side effects like this?

Some people do experience mild adverse effects. The hope is that the adverse effects are much less severe than catching the flu itself. A second benefit is that those who are vaccinated are much less likely to pass the infection along to unvaccinated risk groups such as infants, the immuno-compromised and the elderly. So on behalf of those people, thanks for taking one for the team.

A persistent sore throat and season-long cough sounds like something different, though. Strep, tonsillitis or other upper RT infections. Just because it happened after you got your shot does not mean it was caused by the shot. Probably should have gone to see a doctor if it was really bothering you.

[Sheryl]

Death numbers caused by flu are are not going down in the US since 1990.

What a truly bizarre way to frame the issue. Can you explain why you think flu mortality should be going down each year?

Secondly, what do you suppose would happen if everybody stopped getting their flu shot? Do you think the numbers would continue to stay where they are?

If many people get vaccinated and don't get the flu the death numbers caused by flu obviously should go down. The logic is OK.

Actually no, it is not, because it overlooks a number of other intervening factors.

the numbers of flu deaths are a function of (1) the total population size (i.e. if the population is growing, even with a decreasing percent of people getting the flu, the absolute numbers may rise; (2) the number of people who get the flu; (3) the severity of the particular strain(s) of flu going around, which varies; and (4) the vulnerability of the people who get the flu i.e. how many of them are elderly or infants or immunocompromised (AIDs, cancer treatments, organ transplant recipients etc).

Only the second one is affected by vaccination.

The effectiveness of flu vaccines depends on how well the antigen content reflects the strains which then pop up during flu season and this varies a lot and cannot really be predicted in advance. Vaccine Effectiveness has varied over the past 10 years from as low as 10% to as high as 60%.

Even when the vaccines does nto rpevent infecton it will often result in a less severe case of the flu.

http://www.cdc.gov/flu/about/qa/vaccineeffect.htm

[inbangkok]

I had a flu vaccine 10 years ago and then had a serious cough and sore throat the whole winter. Haven't anybody else experienced bad side effects like this?

There is no correlation to a flu shot and being sick all winter long. Totally unrelated.

[Felt 35]

If price is a problem, can't you buy the vaccine and do it yourself? Or let the wife do it?

Not a personal problem but principle H90. Who of the local Thais which maybe need it most handing out 1-2000 for a vaccine they hardly have heard about.

Old (over 65) and people who easily can be infected get this free where I come from, the rest pay about Thb 500,- either you are the priest or the peasant.

[WitawatWatawit]

A colleague mentioned that she recently had flu, and advised me, as an older person, to get the flu vaccine. Ok, will do. But then she said, "make sure you get the latest version covering the latest strain".

Am I led to believe that some hospitals will vaccinate you with out of date vaccine?

[lopburi3]

Believe both Southern and Northern Hemisphere versions are available here; depending on the time of the year - at this time the Northern version should be what is available. But there is a new version providing protection to an extra strain of flu available this year. Ask for quadrivalent flu vaccine as have seen posts that it is available here.

[uli65]

No flu for mor than 20 years. the reason might be because I avoid any kind of vaccination.

[attrayant]

No flu for mor than 20 years. the reason might be because I avoid any kind of vaccination.

Learn about herd immunity. You have the rest of us unselfish people to thank for not getting sick. You're welcome.

[uli65]

Maybe you believe the nonsense in this clip. I do not. Do not forget your next vaccination. The next big outbreak is coming very soon. This is what I hear every year. The yearly warnings by the pharma cartel.

[Thanyaburi Mac]

A bit of a bump here, updating.

The wife was down to our local health clinic, anamai, yesterday, and got her free jab of flu vaccine: Influvac 2016

I then emailed Vibhavadi Hospital, curious what they had, turns out same as last year: Fluquadri

"The cost vaccine only about Baht 690 plus doctor fee with service charge (about Baht 800). total about Baht 1500."

Mac

[bbi1]

No flu for mor than 20 years. the reason might be because I avoid any kind of vaccination.

Learn about herd immunity. You have the rest of us unselfish people to thank for not getting sick. You're welcome.

You think just because you get a flu vaccine you won't get the flu & can't pass it onto someone else when you get it?

[Sheryl]

No more bickering, please.

[aquario33]

On 10/22/2015 at 5:18 PM, imincm said:

Death numbers caused by flu are are not going down in the US since 1990. Number of flu shots went up massivly.

How come ?

[Sheryl]

19 hours ago, aquario33 said:

How come ?

 

There isn't a "how come" because the statement is untrue.

 

First of all, there is no linear pattern to deaths from influenza - they go up and down erratically depending on the severity of the strain each year which is highly variable. In most years, seasonal influenza strains are similiar to those of prior years such that even among unvaccinated people, a large number have at least partial immunity from prior illness. Every few years a significant  mutation occurs and a strain comes along to which there is much less immunity, and in a year like that, mortality will be much higher. And every 100 years or so, a completely new strain comes along which no one living has encountered and, unless an appropriate vaccine is produced in time and widely administered, millions of deaths can result. The Spanish flu pandemic of 1918 was the last such and killed somewhere between 50 - 100 million people. We are about due for a similar event which is why public health authorities keep such a close eye on new emerging strains.

 

Secondly, there has not been a "massive" increase in the vaccination coverage for influenza. In 2015, less than half the US adult population was vaccinated and this rate is much lower if one excludes the elderly. Since influenza vaccines must be repeated yearly, rates do not grow cumulatively the way they do with lifelong or long term vaccines.

 

And, of course, numbers of deaths and of vaccinations are irrelevant, it has to be measured against the denominator of the size of the population being studied.

 

Another very important factor is not just how many get vaccinated and how many people get influenza but who these people are, since specific population sub-groups are much more likely to die as a result of influenza than others: the elderly, infants and very young children, and people who for any reason have weakened immune systems.

 

Because the influenza virus is constantly mutating and new strains periodically occur, each year's vaccines have to be prepared based on a best guess as to what that year's influenza  is likely to consist of. It can't be done after the fact because by then it is too late. Some years the vaccines end up being more on target than other years, so vaccine effectiveness varies widely from year to year as well.

 

 

 

 

[seedy]

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