Man, there is a lot of ignorance out there. Please read:
http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/
Pregnant women especially should get the H1N1 vaccine, unless, of course, they don’t mind either losing their babies or not being around to raise them.
Noooo… well, maybe mostly, but there’s a whole extra seething layer of tinfoil-hattiness surrounding the H1N1 vaccine program. This guy I know is a hard-core conspiracy theorist/birther/nutcase etc. and is constantly posting links on his Facebook page to all kinds of stuff talking about how this vaccine is some kind of… I don’t know, Freemason/Illuminati/New World Order plot to depopulate the world (funded and orchestrated by the Rockefeller family… I think? Something, I don’t know, I can’t keep it all straight).
It’s kind of entertaining, actually. A few weeks ago it was one about how they all contain an RFID-chip. Recently there was something about whole Naval ships dropping dead from the H1N1 vaccine, and how “Navy wives” were speaking out anonymously, under gag orders from the military. Frequently the idea comes up that the WHO admitted to starting and furthering the pandemic by infecting people on purpose. Apparently they put out a memo (press release?).
Sure, the complete nutbars are all over this too. But if you’re raving about the Illuminati and giant syringe-bearing shape-shifting lizards, the vast majority of people will not take you seriously.
I’m more concerned about the hardcore antivaxers and their ability to distort, take quote snippets out of context, use junk science and outright lies to further their agenda.
The New York Times had a piece in its science section today, about how public health workers are gearing up to fight misinformation about the H1N1 vaccine, especially in regards to pregnant women who seem especially at risk. One problem likely to crop up is publicity about alleged associations between receiving the vaccine and miscarriages, birth defects, or other health problems. We’ve already seen this occurring with the Gardasil vaccine, where every conceivable event that occurs in temporal proximity to getting the shot is blamed on the vaccine. Similar “correlation equals causation” arguments will be made about the H1N1 vaccine. Mothers or infants who suffer severe consequences from swine flu infection will be ignored.
One saving grace is that health leaders have learned about the toxic consequences of not responding promptly to antivaxer propaganda, and hopefully will mobilize facts in response to antivax falsehoods. It’s to be hoped that the news media will act responsibly as well, and not try to present a “balanced” debate using a ratio of one vaccine expert to every antivax loon.
I am frustrated by how many of my coworkers are refusing to get the vaccine for either seasonal flu or H1N1 flu. The hospital has made it mandatory, but you can opt out for health reasons or religious reasons. And everyone’s suddenly got religious objections. And nobody has really good reasons. They say they never get sick, why bother. Or they got the shot but still got the flu, in the past, so there’s no point. Whatever. I’m getting everything they make available to me. I may be the last one left standing in the lab and have to do all the work myself, but I’ll do what I can to protect myself and my loved ones.
Yes, there are some folks at my workplace who seem to think it’s a conspiracy. Today one insisted that anyone over 52 was “immune” and another that “everyone exposed to the 1972 flu” was immune. The latter said this information was on the CDC site, but these statements are too general and don’t seem to be supported. WHO is still calling it a novel strain, and the one study I could find on short notice (to keep myself from disputing) showed a 33% rate of antibodies from previous exposure (I think, can’t find the page right now) for people over 60.
Adding: Here’s an ABC description of something I can’t find on CDC, but attributed to CDC:
This may be the source of the kernel behind the sweeping generalizations.
It’s theorized that folks alive before 1957 have a chance at having some residual natural immunity to H1N1, but no credible medical authorities are advising anyone to skip the flu shot just for that reason.
What I’ve been hearing is that there are several groups that will be targeted for the vaccine first: caretakers of babies under 6 months, health care workers, pregnant women, and people under the age of 25, and people under 60 with weakened immune systems. My county’s website on the subject offersthisas the reason seniors are not going to be given priority for the vaccine. So, it’s not that they can’t or shouldn’t get the shot; it’s that they aren’t on the High Risk list, like they usually are for the seasonal flu. That’s probably where the confusion is coming from.
Incidentally, everyone in my immediate family is on the High Risk list except me. As soon as it’s available here, we’re going to go get vaccinated. I’m hoping that I can get mine along with the rest of my family, but I may have to wait if the supplies are too limited.
Plus there is no evidence that prenatal exposure to thimerosal increases the risk for autism (prior to 2002 the immune globulin given to Rh- women carrying potentially Rh+ babies contained thimerosal):
Lack of association between Rh status, Rh immune globulin in pregnancy and autism.
Maternal Rh D status, anti-D immune globulin exposure during pregnancy, and risk of autism spectrum disorders.
Exactly. Also add the other risk groups like those with chronic respiratory illnesses (asthma, COPD, CF), cardiovascular disease other than hypertension, diabetes, neurologic diseases, and other less common ones, to get a complete list.
Once these folks are vaccinated, then it’s desirous to get the low risk groups vaccinated too.
Is it possible to “carry” the virus and spread it without getting sick yourself?
There are many people where I work who aren’t getting vaccinated, even though they have school-aged children who have already been exposed to the virus (several kids within local schools have gotten it). So far, the excuses have been pretty typical.
I’m in my third trimester of pregnancy, so I’m definitely planning on getting it if it’s available (assuming I don’t give birth or anything before it’s available to me). I’m also asking that everyone in the household get vaccinated for seasonal flu. This will be the first time in almost 10 years that I’ve been vaccinated for any flu virus, but it just seems more appropriate this year, especially with a newborn in the house smack dab in the middle of flu season.
Well yes, but the rabid anti-vax’ers won’t believe that.
I think I forgot to mention–not only am I pregnant and a teacher (married to a teacher at another school, so there are hundreds of kiddos’ germs that we’re exposed to), but I have an underlying condition: asthma. Actually, it’s most likely permanent lung damage sustained in a very long bout of pneumonia/bronchitis from 15 years ago–took over a year to heal, and I was warned my left lung might never fully recover. Awesome.
So, yeah, paranoias aside, I am getting the vaccine. I have my 27 week appointment with the OB today and will get the “normal” flu vaccine while I’m there.
My concern is getting exposed before I get the vaccine–there is an outbreak at a nearby university, so it is here in the local community. So far, so good, though.
Antivaxers tend to dismiss any studies that demonstrate no link between autism and vaccines, by labeling them as “biased”. Big Pharma is lurking behind virtually any research one doesn’t like.
In the case of the linked study on Rh immune globulin and thimerosal, lessee…the lead author is Lisa Croen, a perinatal epidemiologist with Kaiser Permanente’s research division…Oooo, a big health care provider. They prescribe drugs! Big Pharma must be behind them! And Dr. Croen is leading two major autism studies funded by the National Institutes of Health…Big Government, Big Pharma, all the same! And she’s published a ton of research on autism and perinatal health…all biased, probably!
You can’t listen to people like that. But Jenny McCarthy will be appearing on Larry King, better tune in.
If you are getting the flu or H1N1 vaccine, it is a good idea to get one for pneumonia as well. It’s that combination, more so than the flu itself that is deadly.
I have a friend/acquaintance who is having her life support turned off this afternoon, and is not expected to survive due to swine flu. She is around 30, normally strong and healthy, and a skilled martial artist. I would characterize her general type as Midwestern Farm Girl.
She went to urgent care as soon as she began to feel sick, and was treated for cough and fever. A few days later she was diagnosed with pneumonia and given antibiotics and a codeine cough medicine. They were ineffective, and within a couple days she was in ICU with a ventilator. It took another week after that to get test results from CDC verifying swine flu, and another week before additional complications made recovery impossible.
So even if you are wary of the new H1N1 vaccine, at least get the seasonal one and pneumonia. Your chances of recovering from H1N1 are much better if you can prevent the opportunistic infections that can come with it.
ianjohnson, I’m sorry to hear about your friend. Thank you for that information. My kids are both up-to-date on their pneumococcal vaccinations, but I hadn’t even considered asking for it for myself. I just looked it up and the CDC is recommending this course of action, too. I’ll definitely mention it to the doctor when I go to get my H1N1 shot.
My students are beginning to drop.
Where are you?
I thought she was still in Ankh-Morpork?