Flu shot only 10% effective this year

[nobody_special]

I had too get one after it almost killed me last year two days in a medically induced coma and on a ventilator and another three days in a regular hospital room = NO FUN + Memorial Hospital nurses aren't nearly as hott as the nurses at Saint Joseph Hospital

 

[eatsnopaste]

I get one every year (company nurse gives them) have never felt bad after a shot and to the best of my knowledge have never had influenza. Wife is a elementary and now middle school special ed. teacher... is exposed to EVERYTHING.

 

[dusty88]

My husband had a flu vaccine this year; I did not. Both of us have just had a very nasty flu lasting about a week. Kicked my butt. I had to cancel some appointments which I never do. And Saturday afternoon (when I finally get to sleep a few hours) can't come soon enough.

 

[mark40sw]

Flu holds a sort of personal interest of mine. My great grandmother passed with the pandemic flu of 1918 when my grandmother was 1 y.o.

That flu killed many "young & helthy" not because of the flu itself, but because of the body's reaction to it called a cytokine storm. The stronger the immune system was, the worse it was.

 

[dusty88]

Flu holds a sort of personal interest of mine. My great grandmother passed with the pandemic flu of 1918 when my grandmother was 1 y.o.

That flu killed many "young & helthy" not because of the flu itself, but because of the body's reaction to it called a cytokine storm. The stronger the immune system was, the worse it was.

Immune reaction is always a potential sequela of the flu.

I've read epidemiologic analysis of the 1918 pandemic and tend to agree with the idea that it was worse in the young for similar reasons to H1N1: the older folks in both occasions had been exposed to a similar virus a few decades earlier and therefore were not as severely effected as their younger counterparts.

 

[ArcadiaGP]

Indiana 3-Year-Old Who Died From the Flu Was Not Vaccinated | Time

 

[eldirector]

Not enough detail, but... I wonder if the strain she had was covered by the current vaccine? Article just says "A".

Either way, sad day. This year's flu is pretty harsh, and shouldn't be trifled with.

 

[hoosierdoc]

The people that die usually get a bacterial pneumonia on top of influenza. Seems the 3yo has that as well. Odd she died at home after being in the hospital a few days. She must have decompensated quickly. No idea how a flu shot would stop bacterial pneumonia anyway. Sad.

people seem to forget the flu kills a bunch of people every year.

 

[T.Lex]

Heya h-doc,

My son had a flu strain over the MLK weekend in January and we dodged that bullet. Now, my daughter has come down with it. Coughing and fever more than any stomach/intestine issues.

The Mom Mafia is saying that this "strain B" is worse than the one that went around earlier. How accurate is that? (And, before you debunk it too strenuously, I'd caution against anything that directly calls into question any of their scientific credentials. That's not how this works.)

 

[Mr Evilwrench]

Our ex nextdoor neighbor, who still does my mom's hair, has been sounding bad for over a week, and she's in the hospital now. I'm not allowed to get a vaccination, and my mom didn't this year. I'm more worried about her; she's 90 in a couple of weeks. I can stay away from people.

 

[hoosierdoc]

Heya h-doc,

My son had a flu strain over the MLK weekend in January and we dodged that bullet. Now, my daughter has come down with it. Coughing and fever more than any stomach/intestine issues.

The Mom Mafia is saying that this "strain B" is worse than the one that went around earlier. How accurate is that? (And, before you debunk it too strenuously, I'd caution against anything that directly calls into question any of their scientific credentials. That's not how this works.)

I don’t know enough about the various strains to answer. Two major types are A and B. Both get you sick. Not sure which is worse. True influenza is upper respiratory: cough, congestion, runny nose, fevers, body aches, feeling like death. The “stomach flu” is a horrible term has nothing to do with influenza.

sorry the kids are sick. Makes everyone miserable . The bonus is usually they deal with it better than we do.

 

[T.Lex]

I don’t know enough about the various strains to answer. Two major types are A and B. Both get you sick. Not sure which is worse. True influenza is upper respiratory: cough, congestion, runny nose, fevers, body aches, feeling like death. The “stomach flu” is a horrible term has nothing to do with influenza.

sorry the kids are sick. Makes everyone miserable . The bonus is usually they deal with it better than we do.

Thanks.

They're both in their teens... so it is really sullenness with an extra side of coughing.



(They really aren't that bad.)

 

[cosermann]

Indiana 3-Year-Old Who Died From the Flu Was Not Vaccinated | Time

The effectiveness of a particular year's flu vaccine isn't as simple as saying "10%" or whatever. [1]

Anecdotally this year, the folks I've known who've had the flu (tested positive) and who had been vaccinated, were only down for about 4 days.

Those I've known who've had the flu, and were not vaccinated, have been down for the count for a week. That is, those who weren't vaccinated, that I've known, have had more severe symptoms/longer duration.

Again, it's anecdotal, smallish sample size, and there are several strains in circulation. Without detailed subtyping, etc., it's hard to be definitive.

[1] - https://www.cdc.gov/flu/about/season/flu-season-2017-2018.htm

 

[SnoopLoggyDog]

Spent the last two days curled up on the couch, shivering in one long continuous cramp with the stomach flu. Feel a little better today. Was able to drink some Gatorade and eat a little chicken & rice soup. Family is out of town on Spring Break or back in college. At least I was able to watch some DVDs uninterrupted. I can highly recommend Hot Fuzz, Shawn of the Dead and Eddie the Eagle, for those times when you are in a nauseous stupor.

Got the flu shot this year. The blessing is that I should be back to "normal" in a day or two.

 

[nipprdog]

Stomach flu? Could it have been food poisoning?

 

[rhino]

Spent the last two days curled up on the couch, shivering in one long continuous cramp with the stomach flu. Feel a little better today. Was able to drink some Gatorade and eat a little chicken & rice soup. Family is out of town on Spring Break or back in college. At least I was able to watch some DVDs uninterrupted. I can highly recommend Hot Fuzz, Shawn of the Dead and Eddie the Eagle, for those times when you are in a nauseous stupor.

Got the flu shot this year. The blessing is that I should be back to "normal" in a day or two.

Flu shot won't help with that at all since it's not caused by any influenza virus.

Still sucks to be sick! I hope you feel better soon!

 

[SnoopLoggyDog]

Stomach flu? Could it have been food poisoning?

First thought is was food poisoning. Then, as the symptoms persisted, figured it was the flu. Still have a fever this morning.

Ate lunch with my coworkers on Mon & Tues, and none of them are sick. We all had the same thing for lunch. Breakfast was coffee and oatmeal. Dinner the night before was mac & cheese.

 

[Wolfhound]

Spent the last two days curled up on the couch, shivering in one long continuous cramp with the stomach flu. Feel a little better today. Was able to drink some Gatorade and eat a little chicken & rice soup. Family is out of town on Spring Break or back in college. At least I was able to watch some DVDs uninterrupted. I can highly recommend Hot Fuzz, Shawn of the Dead and Eddie the Eagle, for those times when you are in a nauseous stupor.

Got the flu shot this year. The blessing is that I should be back to "normal" in a day or two.

Sorry to hear you are sick. I came down with the flu shortly after flying to Baltimore and back. I figure I probably picked it up on the plane but no way to know for sure.

Great movies BTW.....

 

[SnoopLoggyDog]

Sorry to hear you are sick. I came down with the flu shortly after flying to Baltimore and back. I figure I probably picked it up on the plane but no way to know for sure.

Great movies BTW.....

Thanks for the encouragement. In keeping with the British movie theme, I watched The Worlds End. Started out predictable, but then took a turn that made it interesting. Tried to watch St.Vincent with Bill Murray. Half way through, I turned it off. What a train wreck.

 

[Wolfhound]

Thanks for the encouragement. In keeping with the British movie theme, I watched The Worlds End. Started out predictable, but then took a turn that made it interesting. Tried to watch St.Vincent with Bill Murray. Half way through, I turned it off. What a train wreck.

I googled The Worlds End. Looks good and it's on my list now. Thanks for posting about it.