According the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) the time to get your flu shot is now. The flu shot or influenza vaccine is an inactivated vaccine given seasonally each year before December to individuals ages six months and up.
Because it is an inactivated vaccine it is not possible to get the flu from the vaccine itself.
In the February following the previous year’s flu season, scientists choose three strains of influenza and inoculate these into eleven-day-old fertile chicken eggs.
Therefore, individuals with an allergy to eggs should not receive the vaccine.
Presently, non-egg based culture methods are under investigation.
We have all heard people say, “I got the flu right after getting my flu shot.”
After receiving the flu vaccine, which consists of an intramuscular injection, it takes about two weeks to develop antibodies to the influenza virus.
This means for at least two weeks after the injection, individuals are not protected from the vaccine.
Shortly after the injection, while the body mounts an immune response, it is possible to develop soreness, swelling or redness at the injection site, a low grade fever, or muscle aches.
These symptoms are common and not of concern.
While the (CDC) recommends the vaccine for essentially everyone, there are some groups noted to be at higher than average risk.
Specifically, the vaccine is strongly recommended for pregnant women, children younger than the age of five, individuals older than 50, individuals with chronic medical conditions, health care workers, caregivers, and those in adult care facilities.
While the effectiveness of the vaccine ultimately depends on how well scientists predict the strains of the flu for the upcoming season there is overwhelming evidence of its efficacy.
In previous seasons the vaccine has been about 75 percent effective in reducing flu-related hospital admissions.
It has also been noted that individuals who receive the flu shot somehow also seem to glean protection from pneumonia.
For more information please contact your primary care provider.
— Dr. Adam Seigers is a physician with Faxton St. Luke’s Adirondack Community Physicians (ACP) Boonville Medical Offices on Route 12.
Raised in Stittville, he is a graduate of Holland Patent High School. He completed his undergraduate degree at Binghamton University, followed by medical school at SUNY Upstate in Syracuse. He completed his internal medicine residency at Bassett in Cooperstown in 2010. He and his wife currently reside in Alder Creek.
