Medicine

Getting flu shot halves death risk for heart failure patients

March 01, 2018 21:06·

Emergency Management Department

"Influenza, like many infectious diseases, is spread from person-to-person and as people move from place to place", Jeffrey Shaman, the study's senior author and associate professor of Environmental Health Sciences at the Mailman School, said. The flu is a virus, and there is no cure, just treatments for the symptoms.

For the second week in a row, the number of lab-confirmed flu cases dropped. As stated by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), "we are now in the midst of a very active flu season".

But what makes this year's outbreak of the flu so different from previous years, and why is the vaccine less effective this season? These vaccinations are recommended for people aging 65 and above, and for young children and people only if they are detected with chronic health conditions or have weak immunization systems.

A listing of other times and locations around the state is available here. Flu season is now at its peak and shaping to be a critical one.

Three weeks ago, the flu reached a high, with more than 13,500 positive cases recorded in Pennsylvania. "Flu season is not over, and I urge New Yorkers to get vaccinated as soon as possible", said Bassett. Whereas, the high number of flu-related activities were implemented in 39 states, including New York City, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.

The study comes amid a flu season that has brought higher than normal rates of infection and death.

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But the studies also revealed that there were wide discrepancies in the numbers of heart failure patients who opted for a flu shot, with the percentage of vaccine-receivers ranging between 28 and 86 percent in various cohorts.

"Even with current vaccine effectiveness estimates, vaccination will still prevent influenza illness, including thousands of hospitalizations and deaths", the CDC estimates.

While temperatures are fluctuating, the likelihood of falling ill to the flu continues to rise.

Rider is informing their ailing students to stay inside or return home, with the option of a flu shot for $20 with no appointment necessary at the health center.

Collins-Brown said another key to prevention is routine hand washing.

And experts recommend a healthy lifestyle of rest, exercise and eating right to help ward off the flu. The majority of flu vaccines given around the world are also grown in eggs, which can cause the virus to mutate and differ from circulating strains, and thus become less protective. The truth is, it works; side effects are limited to a mildly sore arm, and single dose vials of the vaccine, the most commonly used, do not contain mercury.

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