{"id":2423,"date":"2022-10-30T14:00:19","date_gmt":"2022-10-30T20:00:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/claremontcoloniccenter.com\/?p=2423"},"modified":"2022-11-06T15:31:24","modified_gmt":"2022-11-06T21:31:24","slug":"is-now-the-time-to-get-a-flu-shot","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/claremontcoloniccenter.com\/?p=2423","title":{"rendered":"Is Now the Time to Get a Flu Shot?"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Is Now the Time to Get a Flu Shot?<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\tFlu season in the US hasn\u2019t been this bad this early in more than a decade. Now is the time to get a flu shot\nFlu season has ramped up early in the United States, and flu hospitalizations are worse than usual for this time of year, according to data published Friday by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.<\/i><\/b>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\tIt\u2019s been more than a decade \u2013 since the H1N1 swine flu pandemic \u2013 since flu hospitalization rates have been this high at this point in the season.

\n\nThe CDC estimates that there have been at least 880,000 illnesses, nearly 7,000 hospitalizations and 360 deaths from flu in the US this season. The first pediatric death in the country was reported this week.

\n\nGetting the flu shot is still the best way to protect yourself, experts say. And the best time to do it is now.

\n\n\u201cPlease get it this afternoon. Do not linger,\u201d said Dr. William Schaffner, medical director of the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases and a professor at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.

\n\n\u201cWe\u2019re in a bit of a race with the virus,\u201d he said, with the flu season starting at least a month earlier than usual. And it takes between 10 days and two weeks for the shot to offer full protection.

\n\nSimilar to previous years, the CDC recommended that people get their flu vaccine before the end of October. But flu vaccination rates are lower than typical for this time of year.\n\nAbout 128 million doses of flu vaccine have been distributed this season, compared with 140 million at this point last year and 156 million the year before that, according to CDC data.

\n\nEven though the current season started early, there is more than enough reason for those who haven\u2019t gotten their shot to do it now, Schaffner said.

\n\n\u201cI would assure anyone who hasn\u2019t gotten it yet that they\u2019re not too late,\u201d he said. And \u201cthe recommendations couldn\u2019t be simpler\u201d: Anyone 6 months or older in the US is eligible for and recommended to get the flu vaccine, with rare exception.

\n\n\u201cThe flu season will be with us for at least a few more months. We don\u2019t know whether it will be shorter or longer than usual,\u201d Schaffner said. \u201cThere is still very good reason to get your protection from the vaccine.\u201d

\n\nAnd people who are vaccinated can still get sick \u2013 but the goal of the vaccine is to protect against the most severe outcomes and complications.

\n\n\u201cWe can acknowledge that the influenza vaccine is not perfect. It cannot protect absolutely everyone completely against influenza,\u201d he said. \u201cThey help keep you out of the emergency room, the hospital, the intensive care unit, and they protect you from dying. As I used to like to tell my patients, \u2018I\u2019m so glad you\u2019re still here to complain.\u2019 \u201c

\n\nOverall, CDC data shows that the share of lab tests that are positive for influenza has more than doubled over the past two weeks and that flu activity is highest in the South. Additional data from Walgreens that tracks prescriptions for antiviral treatments \u2013 such as Tamiflu \u2013 suggest hot spots in the Gulf Coast area, including Houston and New Orleans.

\n\nAnd the flu season is ramping up amid the surge of RSV that is filling pediatric hospitals and an ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

\n\nEleven states \u2013 along with Washington, DC, and New York City \u2013 are reporting high or very high levels of respiratory illness, according to the CDC.

\n\nThe surge of respiratory viruses may get worse before it gets better, Dr. Nipunie Rajapakse, a pediatric infectious diseases specialist at Mayo Clinic Children\u2019s Center, said Thursday.

\n\nShe urged people to try to prevent any respiratory illness, including by getting Covid-19 vaccines and boosters, and the annual flu shot.

\n\n\u201cMaking sure that your kids and anyone over 6 months of age in your family are getting their flu vaccines this year is even more important because we haven\u2019t seen a lot of influenza the last couple of years, and so everyone\u2019s going into this season with less immunity, less protection from prior infections,\u201d Rajapakse said.

\n\nThose at risk for complications from respiratory illness, including the elderly and those with underlying conditions, should contact their health care providers as soon as they start to notice any symptoms, Schaffner said. There are treatments for Covid-19 and influenza that offer extra protection from severe outcomes, he said.

\n\n\u201cFrom the point of view of respiratory viruses, the winter season has started early,\u201d Schaffner said. \u201cIf you do develop symptoms, please don\u2019t go to school or work. Shelter at home a little bit so you\u2019re not out there spreading the virus \u2013 whatever it is.\u201d br>

\n\nContributor: Deidre McPhillips, CNN Health<\/i>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Is Now the Time to Get a Flu Shot? Flu season in the US hasn<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2423","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-health","category-news-and-information"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/claremontcoloniccenter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2423","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/claremontcoloniccenter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/claremontcoloniccenter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/claremontcoloniccenter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/claremontcoloniccenter.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2423"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/claremontcoloniccenter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2423\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2428,"href":"https:\/\/claremontcoloniccenter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2423\/revisions\/2428"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/claremontcoloniccenter.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2423"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/claremontcoloniccenter.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2423"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/claremontcoloniccenter.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2423"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}