Can I get the Flu from the Flu shot?

 This is a very common question I get during flu season.  It is a serious question from the patients who ask, and it is a main deterrent in the fight against the flu.  If you think the West Nile is scary, the Influenza virus kills up to 30,000 people annually.

To put minds at ease, it is impossible to catch the flu from the flu shot. There are no living organisms in the vaccination.  The dead virus particles cannot cause a disease. 

What some people might feel when they get the vaccine is possibly a reaction. And by reaction that means the immune system responding by building antibodies against the flu particles.  When the Immune system is in hyper drive, sometimes people can fill ill, but the large majority of reactions from the flu vaccines are smaller reactions.

Some people get a localized reaction and their arms are painful where they received the vaccine.  When I got the shot last year I felt sore for 3 months.  However, it is possible to still catch the flu even if you had the flu vaccination.  If this happens usually it is a mild flu illness.  This happened to me 2 years ago.

Finally, it is impossible to catch the flu from the flu shot, and because this year's flu is vicious, it is more important than ever to get the vaccine.  It is not even peak season and we're seeing very high numbers of influenza like illness as well as positive flu numbers in the ER and clinics in this area.

In fact Texas is one of the highest number of positive flu like illnesses and flu positives in the nation. 

So my all means please get your new flu vaccine as soon as possible if you haven't received it already.

 

 

Vaccines, Texting, and Festivals

Regarding local county health information, the influenza numbers are good.  An update on the Influenza epidemic shows so far this year GRMC has cultured 115 Influenza-like illnesses (Ili), and 14% have been positive for Influenza A or B.  That is better than the national average quoted by the CDC in its weekly Fluview at 21%.  Congratulations on the efforts of GRMC during its vaccine drive. 

We have received updates on the Zostavax- the vaccine for Shingles.  The FDA approves it for ages 50 and up, but recently the ACIP (committee on immunizations) doesn't recommend for ages 50-59 because of supply issues.  The safety of the vaccines is not questioned, and it remains important for anyone above the age 50 to get their Zostavax.

Don't Text and Drive!  Recent reports detail ability to drive is decreased significantly similar to being impaired with alcohol. 

How about a festival?  I am very interested in starting a weekend festival here in Glen Rose, and would like any input from readers as to what we could do to increase the sense of community while improving health and wellness.  Being a transplant doesn’t hamper my idealism for this community, and hope that we can offer something annually we all look forward to.

It seems that every small town I grew up in had a major festival.  In Oxford Kansas, they had the Watermelon Festival.  In Okmulgee Oklahoma they had the Pecan Festival.  Okmulgee has been competing with another small town for largest Pecan Pie ever made.  The local university cooking school claimed the prize when they made a large 30 foot diameter pecan pie. 

Please email me any questions or concerns to runsinthewynd@gmail.com