H1N1 vaccine

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if you really are concerned about your time accessing your office, you can wear a smock, a mask, and some glasses during your "public" time, then take them off when you arrive at your office/car.
 
Just got off the phone with our pediatrician's office. They have completely run out of all seasonal flu vaccines for children and will not be receiving any more shipments. They referred me to the County which has not even received their first shipment yet. They said to call back in two weeks. There seems to be plenty for adults but none for kids. I'm a bit confused about this.
 
It's because only certain "at risk" adults were strongly urged to get them, while every parent thinks "the worst thing in the world might happen to my babies!" and rushes out to get it immediately.
 
[quote author="tmare" date=1256622052]There seems to be plenty for adults but none for kids. I'm a bit confused about this.</blockquote>


I suspect two factors play into this: first, so much emphasis was given to the H1N1 vaccine that production of the seasonal variety vaccine was reduced leading to fewer doses available, and second, the first priority is always health care and mission critical employees, meaning even fewer doses of the seasonal were created for children.





And really? Everyone needs to calm down. This isn't the Black Plague and we aren't stuck with medieval medicine, no matter what Congress is trying to sell.
 
Sorry to PANDA but the vaccine "scare" really irks me...this swine flu vaccine scare is not different that Jenny McCarthy's crazy attacks on vaccines because they may cause autism. Stuff like this are not only scientifically inaccurate but also dangerous to society. It is like yelling fire in a crowded theater because someone burnt popcorn in the lobby.



Yes, some people get complications with vaccines but millions and millions of people were saved because of them.



The 1918 Spanish Flu killed somewhere between 50 to 100 million people.



Smallpox is virtually eradicated thanks to vaccines. It had previously kill millions of people (including an estimated 300-500 million people in the 20th century) and was running rampant as recently as the 1950s.



Polio was a debilitating disease striking everyone (including FDR) until it was largely eliminated thanks to a vaccine.



BTW, complications of the earlier forms of the Polio vaccine had occurred once in every 750,000 treatments. Compare that to a 1 in 223 chance of dying due to suffocating in a bed, 1 in 43,700 dying from falling off of playground equipment, or 1 in 18,310 of dying as a result of making contact with a hand tool
 
In 1918 we didn't have the selection of antibiotics to fight off secondary infections from being sick like we do today. (I'm not a doctor but I believe it could be the flu-induced pneumonia that would be a culprit, not the flu itself.) We also didn't have Tamiflu then, although it doesn't work with all strains. The flu doesn't cause lasting damage such as paralysis like polio does before the virus leaves the body. For the last week, I've been on the fence and looking at both sides. I haven't completely decided but leaning towards no.
 
[quote author="SoCal78" date=1256624659]In 1918 we didn't have the selection of antibiotics to fight off secondary infections from being sick like we do today. (I'm not a doctor but I believe it could be the flu-induced pneumonia that would be a culprit, not the flu itself.) The flu doesn't cause lasting damage such as paralysis like polio does before the virus leaves the body. For the last week, I've been on the fence and looking at both sides. I haven't completely decided but leaning towards no.</blockquote>


I think it's fine if one chooses not to get a swine flu vaccine but don't use the possible complications of vaccines as a reason. Most people who get the virus (including Lebron James) suffer no long-term effects as a result and the typical average flu symptoms. I got the season flu a few years back and can easily say that it was one of the worst day in my life (the other being getting food poisoning). Just about every one in my office got the flu that year and some missed up to a week of work. Now, I get any flu vaccine I can get my hands on.



You would be shocked at the ineffectiveness of antibiotics...there is basically a couple of antibiotics that are truly effective these days.



Flus (like the HIV virus) do not kill people but rather weaken the immune system to a point where they are vulnerable to other killer diseases like pneumonia.



The scare of this flu is several fold:



1) It's the first "animal" flu to affect humans. The bird flu was bad but the effects were more economic than anything.



2) It strike seemingly healthy individuals including teenagers and young adults.



3) The virus is fast striking with complications occurring within 24 hours.



4) The 1918 flu had a relative mild infection in the first phase and then came back extremely virulent a few months later.



60 minutes did a good report on the flu two weeks ago: <a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=5394553n&tag=cbsnewsMainColumnArea.5">http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=5394553n&tag=cbsnewsMainColumnArea.5</a>
 
I just received word that due to a "manufacturing error" there will be no more seasonal flu shots shipped out until mid November. All production has stopped in favor of the H1N1 vaccine. I've been told by literally everyone I have called that I should try calling back mid November or at least 2 weeks from now.
 
[quote author="SoCal78" date=1256624659]In 1918 we didn't have the selection of antibiotics to fight off secondary infections from being sick like we do today. (I'm not a doctor but I believe it could be the flu-induced pneumonia that would be a culprit, not the flu itself.) We also didn't have Tamiflu then, although it doesn't work with all strains. The flu doesn't cause lasting damage such as paralysis like polio does before the virus leaves the body. For the last week, I've been on the fence and looking at both sides. I haven't completely decided but leaning towards no.</blockquote>




If all of these post-hoc treatments (antibiotics, tamiflu, ventilators) worked so well, there wouldn't have been 1000 deaths this fall due to flu.



Just think how you will feel watching your kid suffocate.
 
sorry if that sounds rough, but sometimes it is worth it to hurt others feelings to get them to do the right thing.





Also consider that you may get it and be fortunate to not be terribly afflicted, but unknowingly sneeze on someone at the grocery store who is more sensitive
 
[quote author="IrvineCommuter" date=1256623961]Sorry to PANDA but the vaccine "scare" really irks me...this swine flu vaccine scare is not different that Jenny McCarthy's crazy attacks on vaccines because they may cause autism. Stuff like this are not only scientifically inaccurate but also dangerous to society. It is like yelling fire in a crowded theater because someone burnt popcorn in the lobby.



Yes, some people get complications with vaccines but millions and millions of people were saved because of them.



The 1918 Spanish Flu killed somewhere between 50 to 100 million people.



Smallpox is virtually eradicated thanks to vaccines. It had previously kill millions of people (including an estimated 300-500 million people in the 20th century) and was running rampant as recently as the 1950s.



Polio was a debilitating disease striking everyone (including FDR) until it was largely eliminated thanks to a vaccine.



BTW, complications of the earlier forms of the Polio vaccine had occurred once in every 750,000 treatments. <strong>Compare that to a 1 in 223 chance of dying due to suffocating in a bed</strong>, 1 in 43,700 dying from falling off of playground equipment, or 1 in 18,310 of dying as a result of making contact with a hand tool</blockquote>




Sooo...there is a decent chance I will die in the next 223 days from suffocating in my pillow?
 
<A href="http://www.ocregister.com/articles/county-vaccine-school-2624664-health-clinics">OC Register: First public swine flu clinics are Saturday</A>



In Orange County, 22 people have died from H1N1 complications, including four children and two pregnant women.
 
[quote author="freedomCM" date=1256631330]Just think how you will feel watching your kid suffocate.</blockquote>


That's so far across the line it's absurd. Totally classless.
 
[quote author="tmare" date=1256628635]I just received word that due to a "manufacturing error" there will be no more seasonal flu shots shipped out until mid November. All production has stopped in favor of the H1N1 vaccine. I've been told by literally everyone I have called that I should try calling back mid November or at least 2 weeks from now.</blockquote>


tmare, I can tell you are working yourself into a panic over this. For your own sake, please step back and put this into perspective... it's just a strain of the flu, no deadlier or more contagious than any other currently active strain. It's far more important, if you or your child comes down with a fever, that you get anti-virals from your doctor and stay home until it passes. I am NOT saying to not look for it, just don't get too worked up.
 
I'm really not getting too worked up, but I don't think you've experienced anything like the flu in our house. My husband and I are both teachers and our kids are little. Everyone never gets this stuff at once but once one person gets it, it stays in the house for months, it seems that at least one person is sick until it has passed through the house twice. My kids have always had a flu shot, this will be the first year without it. My husband has had the flu in the past few years (never gets a shot) and none of us have ever had the flu, just an onslaught of colds and stomach viruses. I'm really not looking forward to the possibility of the flu. My daughter in particular seems to get hit pretty hard. Oh well, I'm just going to hope for the best and try to keep doing what we're doing now, lots of vitamins, handwashing and hand sanitizer. Hopefully the seasonal shot will be available in a few weeks, I'm really not holding my breath for the H1N1 shot, I just don't think it's going to happen (at least not until the season passes).
 
[quote author="Nude" date=1256635036][quote author="freedomCM" date=1256631330]Just think how you will feel watching your kid suffocate.</blockquote>


That's so far across the line it's absurd. Totally classless.</blockquote>


It's o.k. I know that freedom means well and just wants everyone to be alright so I can appreciate that. I am sure Freedom knows that it is not my desire to have such a thing occur but I am weighing the risks for our family and doing my "due diligence" before making a decision. I do not take the decision lightly to pump my kids full of anything so I will continue to read and ask questions of our doctor until the decision seems clear enough. It is simply not black and white.



<a href="http://abcnews.go.com/Health/SwineFluNews/cdc-reports-pediatric-swine-flu-deaths/Story?id=8485652&page=1">""Most of the children who had fatal H1N1 this past spring had an underlying condition," said Dr. Thomas Frieden, director of the CDC"</a> - We all have to ask ourselves if our kids (or ourselves) have asthma, chronic medical problems, neurological problems, allergies, auto-immune disorders, cerebral palsy, etc. (We do not happen to be in such a situation.) <a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=5237185n">"The risk of the vaccine is not zero... and 99% of the (h1n1) cases are very mild."</a>



<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/10/24/swine.flu.checklist/index.html">"The CDC has analyzed H1N1-related deaths and found many people who died had dual infections, including some with pneumococcus. The good news is that if you're up-to-date on your child's vaccines, they probably already have it. Approved in 2001 and called Prevnar, it's routinely given to children." </a>- Check your kids immunization cards. I just did and realized they both received pneumococcal vaccines which protects them from 23 strains of the most common pneumococcal virsus. You see, I'm not fundamentally opposed to vaccines, as they are both up-to-date, but I'm not going to over-react either. Over-reaction is what has caused our society to abuse antibiotics, creating resistant superbugs that take us longer to overcome with more serious consequences. (Yes, I know that a bacteria is different from a virus.) Today, folks often rush to the doctor the minute they feel sick want to leave the office with a prescription. I think that's socially irresponsible and worse than "sneezing on someone at the grocery store."



I know that for most points anyone here makes, there will likely be a counter point that is also to be taken into consideration and that is what I'm finding in much of the articles out there. Like I said, I have not completely decided (nor did I say who of the 4 different people in our family I was referring to with the "no"), but I think we all have to carefully weigh these decisions and use discernment. We have to do risk / benefit analysis. If I were pregnant with multiples and traveling abroad, I'm pretty sure I would.



For what it's worth, I just called Woodbury Medical Group this evening to see what the scoop is on their availability. They said we would be number 145 on the waiting list for the H1N1 if added today, for availability sometime next week. (Seasonal vaccine no longer available but maybe next month.)
 
[quote author="freedomCM" date=1256631330][quote author="SoCal78" date=1256624659]In 1918 we didn't have the selection of antibiotics to fight off secondary infections from being sick like we do today. (I'm not a doctor but I believe it could be the flu-induced pneumonia that would be a culprit, not the flu itself.) We also didn't have Tamiflu then, although it doesn't work with all strains. The flu doesn't cause lasting damage such as paralysis like polio does before the virus leaves the body. For the last week, I've been on the fence and looking at both sides. I haven't completely decided but leaning towards no.</blockquote>




If all of these post-hoc treatments (antibiotics, tamiflu, ventilators) worked so well, there wouldn't have been 1000 deaths this fall due to flu.



Just think how you will feel watching your kid suffocate.</blockquote>


If we were having an average year we'd be running 4000 to 6000 a month.
 
[quote author="SoCal78" date=1256640346][quote author="Nude" date=1256635036][quote author="freedomCM" date=1256631330]Just think how you will feel watching your kid suffocate.</blockquote>


That's so far across the line it's absurd. Totally classless.</blockquote>


It's o.k. I know that freedom means well and just wants everyone to be alright so I can appreciate that... </blockquote>


The road to hell is paved with good intentions. There were other ways to make the point without crossing that line, and as a new father, you would think he would know better. Wishing death upon someone's kid is despicable, disgusting, and inhuman. While your good nature leads you to seeing the good in everyone, the only thing that remark deserves is scorn and ridicule.
 
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