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Flu Shots

I have to say that in this neck of the woods they don't offer the flu vaccine to young heathy types unless there is some other reason. Like working in a hospital or caring for an elderly person. However, that was still a non sequitur. Like, I don't bother to fasten my seat belt because I've never been in an accident.

Rolfe.
 
Michelle said:
I have a very active life. I do a lot of exercise and a good diet and yet I've had flu 2 times in the past three years. BAD ones. You know, the type where you puke your stomach out? Yea. Not fun.

So this year I had my flu shot. And as you can see, I'm just fine! I had a sore arm for 2 hours or so and that's it. Maybe a little weird feeling a few hours afterwards too but by the morning I was perfectly new.

Flu shots are the way to go!
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The kind where you puke your stomach out? The flu shots are for respiratory flu. Stomach flu is something altogether different, and I hate to tell you this, but there are currently no shots for adults.

So sorry!:D
 
Bah humbug. The doc did say my kid was getting the stomach flu. Now I've been exposed. Argh. I can only hope I've gotten it before and won't get sick at my new job.

*worries*
 
Eos of the Eons said:
My son has a fever and is throwing up today :( I didn't have the money to get the kids any flu shots this year.

Nobody else is sick yet. I'll find out how well this flu shot works soon though, I'm sure. I need to be in good shape for a new job, argh. Silly germy kids, lol.

I was feeling well enough for a work-out yesterday myself (finally beating this sinus infection).
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While anorexia is a typical flu symptom and kids throw up regardless of the kind of infections they have, there is a common misconception that "stomach flu" is influenza. Influenza is a serious respiratory infection, not a GI infection.

Influenza
High fever
Sudden onset
Head and muscle aches
Severe respiratory symptoms

The reason it tends to be worse than a 'cold' is the virus more frequently invades the upper and middle airway (as opposed to just the upper airway typical of the common cold), in particular the cilia cells.
 
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Gave a flu shot today to one of the fire fighters who had never gotten one before. He apparently got the flu last year after not getting a flu shot. It changed his mind. :D

BTW, these are guys I've been vaccinating every year for the last 15 years though he hadn't been with the department that long.
 
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Eos of the Eons said:
Bah humbug. The doc did say my kid was getting the stomach flu. Now I've been exposed. Argh. I can only hope I've gotten it before and won't get sick at my new job.

*worries*
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Tell your doctor the infectious disease nurse practitioner on your skeptic community forum said he was contributing to the common influenza misconceptions using the term "stomach flu". The most common actual diagnosis, and a better means of educating patients would be to call it a "probable norovirus". Miserable but short lived.
 
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That is a gripe I have with the doctors in my area walk-ins. They get in a hurry for the after lunch rush, and skip over any real chance to educate anyone. At least he didn't prescribe anything other than lots of fluids, no milk products, and rest. My son's fever broke this evening, and he ate supper fine. I've learned more from you, as his symptoms match what you've posted on it. It is really a sad state of affairs. At least I know my regular doctor is better with these things.
 
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Rolfe said:
I have to say that in this neck of the woods they don't offer the flu vaccine to young heathy types unless there is some other reason. Like working in a hospital or caring for an elderly person. However, that was still a non sequitur. Like, I don't bother to fasten my seat belt because I've never been in an accident.

Rolfe.
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That would be because it's a waste of resources for seasonal flu.

I think the problem some Americans have understanding this is because US expenditure on health care just goes up and up each year, whereas the NHS has a budget to try to stick to. The NHS provides health care much cheaper than the free-market system in US.

http://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/publications_show.htm?doc_id=283969

It must really piss off capitalist types that a state-run system can beat a free-market one for cost-effectiveness:D
 
Capsid said:
I thought it was because there are insufficient doses manufactured for everyone to get the vaccine annually.
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It's sort of a self-fulfilling prophesy, circular type thing, I think.
The manufacturers don't make more because there's not more demand.
If the NHS were to aggressively pursue a universal vaccination policy, the supply would fall into place.

Here in the US we've been having an excess for the past couple of years. Our government has awarded multiple million (or billion? I forget...) dollar contracts to manufacturers to make more, but the demand hasn't quite caught up with the new supply yet.
 
kellyb said:
It's sort of a self-fulfilling prophesy, circular type thing, I think.
The manufacturers don't make more because there's not more demand.
If the NHS were to aggressively pursue a universal vaccination policy, the supply would fall into place.

Here in the US we've been having an excess for the past couple of years. Our government has awarded multiple million (or billion? I forget...) dollar contracts to manufacturers to make more, but the demand hasn't quite caught up with the new supply yet.
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Are there even enough chickens in battery farms to lay sufficient eggs to grow the virus on? Bird flu wiping out the chicken population would be a set back too.
 
Capsid said:
Are there even enough chickens in battery farms to lay sufficient eggs to grow the virus on? Bird flu wiping out the chicken population would be a set back too.
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I thought that when I heard the manufacturing capacity has been increased to 500 million doses/year on the radio the other week. That's one heck of an omelette!
 
Capsid said:
Are there even enough chickens in battery farms to lay sufficient eggs to grow the virus on? Bird flu wiping out the chicken population would be a set back too.
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It wouldn't take long to come up with more chickens, I don't think. I don't know where the manufacturers get their eggs from, though.
Here in the US, those big contracts are going in part to the creation of immortalized cell lines for growing the viruses, too. A couple of companies are using that dog kidney line, I know. They're thinking they can get a higher antigenic yield out of them, in addition to not having to worry about adventitious agents. MedImmune (the flumist folks) have some really fancy new stuff they're working on that involves manufacturing viruses without the use of any animal products (synthetic nutrient stuff to replace FBS.)
 
alfaniner said:
Many times what people attibute to "stomach flu" is actually a case of food poisoning.
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Gotta wonder what sort of "informed consent" we have going on, when someone can get a flu shot and not even know what the shot actually prevents! A bit of a communication problem, perhaps:eye-poppi?
 
MinorityView said:
Gotta wonder what sort of "informed consent" we have going on, when someone can get a flu shot and not even know what the shot actually prevents! A bit of a communication problem, perhaps:eye-poppi?
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That's a stretch. Not knowing the exact difference between stomach flu and respiratory flu is completely different from knowing what the flu shots actually prevent.

For example, when I got the flu shot the nurse told the 3 strains it protects against this year, and what protection it offers. Then I consented to the shot.

When I saw the doctor there was no consent needed, as nothing was prescribed for the stomach problem (probably mild stomach flu as there was no diarrhea involved, just fever and vomitting). The doc acknowledged the likely cause to be viral (not which virus per se), and only recommended higher intake of fluids and not ingesting milk products. You don't need any type of consent for that advice.

Doc called it stomach flu, and that really didn't mean much to me until skeptigirl pointed out the exact difference. There's still no confirmation on what virus my son did or did not get. Could be the respiratory version for all we know.
 
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I was actually thinking of the earlier poster, who was hoping that the flu shot would prevent the vomiting and runs she had last year.

Glad that you knew what the shot was supposed to prevent.
 
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