Flu jabs

[Rob]

For some unknown reason the last couple of years i've received a letter informing me i can have a flu jab! Last year i had two,one for the ordinary flu and one for the Mexican variety. Well it's free so why not.
Anyway, to get to the point get it? To the point!! I never had flu but since taking these injections i seem to have it every year now.Coincidence?
Last week i had 3 days off work because of it.

[MarkCDodd]

The Swine Flu vaccine has caused dozens of cases of Narcolpesy in many countries with Sweden, Finland and Iceland having the highest percentage.

Every person investigated had the genetic marker that makes it possible for you to get narcolepsy.

Since Narcolpesy is an auto-immune disease, people with the genetic marker can get it from any sort of vaccination or ailment.

Overall I think it is far better for people to get vaccinated against the possible deadly versions such as Bird Flu and Swine Flu.

The chances of something going wrong are minimal. The percentage who got narcolpesy is tiny compared to the number of lives it saved.

I think it is total coincidence you getting some sort of flu after the vaccinations.

[Antie Em]

Wish I'd have had the jab instead of getting swine flu at Christmas - when I should have been visiting Oz - Definately having it next year. Mind you this is the first flu I've had since the 70's, I think that was asian flu.

[gardener]

They seem to be still arguing about the Swine flu vaccine/narcolepsy connection here.
As of feb 1st (most recent that i have seen) the Directorate of Health said that Finnland has announced a connection between the vaccine and narcopelpsy in young people in Finland. But that this has not been seen in Iceland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark or anywhere else. It goes on that 30 million have have Pandremic vaccine and only Finland has the connection with narcolepsy so it unlikely that the vaccine causes narcolepsy.
I suppose time will tell! Government officials are not always the best source of information

[MarkCDodd]

The World Health Organisation has said the link exists and it is not just young people.

Anybody can get narcolpesy at any age as long as you have the genetic marker.

The W.H.O investigated all reported cases and specifically singled out those three countries as having the highest incidence.

Being a narcolpetic I can fully understand how the link would occur.

When your auto-immune system detects a threat it creates specific anti-bodies to combat it.

If you have the genetic marker then there is a chance some anti-bodies will not only attack the threat but also a small part of your brain that produces two hypocretins.

The brain cells are killed off by the anti-bodies and the person is then narcoleptic as the hypocretins regulating sleep are no longer being produced.

The Swine Flu is making the auto-immune system produce the type of anti-bodies that can attack the brain cells of people with the gentic marker.

Other flu injections arn't.

There has always been an ethnic factor on who is likely to have the genetic marker.

The Japanese and Koreans have the highest percentage of people with the marker and therefore the highest percentage of people with narcolepsy.

It makes sence that there may also be a higher percentage of people in Iceland, Finland and Sweden who have the genetic marker than England or Germany.

This genetic marker makes you more vulnerable to narcolepsy but far less likely to get particular types of cancer.

Similary, another genetic marker makes you immune to the bubonic plague or more likely to survive it.

More people now have that genetic marker than in medieval times as we have inherited it from the survivors of the Black Plague.

[snoopysue]

I've not heard of the narcolepsy link here in Debmark, but then they're only offering the swine flu vaccine (and ordinary flu vaccine) to people who are in a high risk group. Last year we were offered it at work, a lot of people didn't have and we didn't have a big problem with staff getting the flu. I was off sick with a slipped disc, but if I'd been offered it I don't think I'd have had it either.

The trouble generally with flu jabs is they offer the type of vaccine that they expect to be the most prevelant, and you're only covered for those types of influenza, so if another type happens to be around then you're not covered. Flu vaccines reduce the individuals risk of getting flu, but they don't remove it all together!

[MarkCDodd]

Just to clarify the connection between Swine Flu injections and narcolepsy....

It might also be a stretch to say Sweden, Iceland and Finland have a higher percentage of narcoleptics than other countries.

The wording of the studies does not state the normal percentage of the population with narcolepsy in those countries.

Without those figures we can only conclude that there has been a spike in narcolpesy cases.

Iceland have doubts about the connection as they have seen an increase in narcolpesy for both immunised and non-immunised children.

At the moment the studies incicate that children between 4 and 19 are affected and there is no mention of adults being placed at risk by the vaccine.

Since adults don't seem to be affected they think there is another factor involved.

There are plenty of logical explanations floating around the narcolpesy community about the reason why children are more at risk.

My guess is that the flu vaccine was the first time the children's anti-immune system produce the type of anti-body that can attack the brain.

Adults might already have similar anti-bodies that have not mutated and attacked the brain.

It is also far more odvious when a child gets narcolepsy than an adult.

There may be a spike in adult cases that have not been observed yet.

The spike in narcolpesy cases in Iceland might still be connected to the swine flu.

i.e. Those who were not immunised may have been exposed to the swine flu itself.

The body may have created anti-bodies similar to those created when the vaccination is applied.

These are theories only, nothing proven.

And I stress that Flu Vaccinations are a good idea if you are in the high risk catagories.

[grangers14]

I have the flu jabs and had the pneumonia (sorry if spelling is wrong?)
I had mine early this year because sometimes Im too poorly because I have flu I cant have it!
I persuaded my Mum, Aunty and Uncle to get it because they had/have lung cancer.

To be honest I didnt look into side effects.

Although I had the injection I was very poorly over Christmas, New Year time, and ended up on lots of medication and steroids, just pulling round from it really.
But it doesnt cover all bugs, I believe, I must have just got one it didnt cover.

Jo

[MarkCDodd]

You can be immunised again pneumonia.

I get an injection every 4 years that protects me against most forms of pneumonia.

There are possible side effects and risks for nearly all medications.

You just have to weigh up the pro and cons.

We don't know how many young people may have died from the swine flu if the mass immunisation didn't occur.

Even a couple of preventable deaths is worse than people becoming narcoleptic.

[Antie Em]

My 92 year old mom has the pneumonia and the flu jabs and it's never made her ill. The whole family had some sort of flu over Christmas and she never caught anything - thank goodness. Her doctor even sends someone round the house to give her injections.

[SRD]

I had a 'flu jab once, at boarding school, over 40 years ago, the year after the whole school was laid low with 'flu, I've never had 'flu since. MrsSRD (who has MS) has hers regularly as an 'at risk' person but had a bad reaction to the pneumonia jab last year; doctor reckoned she'd been in contact with a sufferer and picked up a small dose herself, hence the over-reaction.

One of the few things I have of my father are a handful of letters he wrote home to his parents whilst on his National Service. In them he tells of striking up a friendship with the fellow in the next bunk who has a bad cold, in the next letter the fellow has been moved to the infirmary, in the next the fellow's been discharged with pneumonia and my father is complaining of a bit of a cold, there aren't any more as he was himself discharged the following week with pneumonia.

[Antie Em]

I can only remember having flu three times in my life - once in 1968, again in the late 70's and last year. This was swine flu and even after all the hype, I don't think it was as bad as the one I had in the sixties. I had two very young children at the time and my mother in law had to take then to live with her for a couple of weeks, I couldn't even get my head off the pillow.

I have had a few bad colds and have been laid low with a streaming nose and bad headaches. Lots of people don't know the difference between a cold and flu and you needn't nessecarily hava a cold when you have flu.

Here is a good website which tells the difference between the two : http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A1032102

[snoopysue]

I can only remember having flu three times in my life - once in 1968, again in the late 70's and last year. This was swine flu and even after all the hype, I don't think it was as bad as the one I had in the sixties. I had two very young children at the time and my mother in law had to take then to live with her for a couple of weeks, I couldn't even get my head off the pillow.

I have had a few bad colds and have been laid low with a streaming nose and bad headaches. Lots of people don't know the difference between a cold and flu and you needn't nessecarily hava a cold when you have flu.

Here is a good website which tells the difference between the two : http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A1032102

Most people who get swine flu, will experience symptoms similar in severity to "normal" flu. Most people who have more severe swine flu have some underlying condition that exacerbates the symptoms, and that would probably be the case with most other types of flu. The pandemic was declared because of the rate of spread, rather than the severity of the illness, and any single strain of flu would probably be declared as a pandemic if it spread so fast.

I'd definately say that it's a good idea to be vaccinated if you're in one of the at risk groups, but probably just as important is good hygiene, washing hands properly, covering your mouth when coughing or sneezing (and asking other people to do the same). Something as simple as cleaning computer keyboards (especially if several people use the same keyboard) can help, as it's been shown that the standard office keyboard has many times the number of bacteria than a public toilet seat!

[MarkCDodd]

Think of the straps and bars you hang on to on the train.....

Icky yuck blah!

[snoopysue]

Think of the straps and bars you hang on to on the train.....

Icky yuck blah!

Or the door handle coming out of public toilets!!!