In the past two years, due to the impact of the epidemic and people’s emphasis on health, many people have begun to develop the habit of getting flu shots in autumn and winter. However, some people have never had flu shots. They think that flu shots have no effect and may have side effects. And more people are in a wait-and-see state, so, is the flu vaccine useful? What are the side effects? Who should pay attention to vaccination? Let’s make it clear in today’s article!

There are mainly two types of influenza, which are more widely contagious, have more symptoms, and may even cause serious illness

Influenza is different from the common cold. The most important thing about influenza is its prevalence and infectivity. Influenza is an acute respiratory infection caused by influenza virus. There are four types of influenza virus (A, B, C, D or ABCD), but only Influenza A and B can cause the prevalence of seasonal influenza, including two subtypes of A, H1N1 and H3N2, and two strains of influenza B, Victoria and Yamagata.

Influenza may cause symptoms including fever, headache, muscle aches, fatigue, runny nose, sore throat and cough, etc. The above are only mild symptoms of influenza, similar to the common cold; for moderate and severe cases, infected people will have nausea Gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea, vomiting and diarrhea (similar to stomach flu symptoms), may even lead to pneumonia, encephalitis, myocarditis, nephritis and other serious secondary infections or neurological diseases, and these moderate and severe diseases have no obvious symptoms, Infection has a chance of triggering, and getting a flu shot can help reduce the chance of infection.

Influenza vaccines for injection are inactivated vaccines, which generally have less side effects, and the manufacturers are different. If you have a choice for injection vaccines, you can confirm with the epidemic prevention agency and choose a manufacturer that you feel safe to inject.

Elderly people should get flu vaccine, flu vaccine can prevent severe illness and reduce mortality

The protection of influenza vaccines to people may vary with age or physical condition. The effective rate has a large fluctuation, generally around 30-80%, and the protection for adults over 18 years old who are hospitalized due to influenza is about 4% , and the protection against severe influenza admitted to the ward can reach more than 80%.

Children and adolescents aged 6 months to under 18 years of age are protected by influenza vaccination similar to adults, while the chances of the elderly can be reduced by 50-60%. For severe complications of influenza, the mortality rate can be reduced by 80%. Therefore, the elderly should get regular flu shots to protect themselves.

It should be noted that the flu vaccine needs to be separated from the COVID-19 vaccine by more than 7-14 days, and you must actively inform yourself of your vaccination history before getting the flu vaccine.

What are the common side effects of flu vaccine?

Although the flu vaccine has been used for so many years, the side effects are small, but it does not mean that there are no side effects. Common side effects mainly include the following:

1. Minor side effects of the vaccine

The main symptom is that the injection site is red, swollen and painful, and a small number of people will have mild systemic reactions, such as: fever, headache, muscle pain, nausea, itchy skin, rash, etc. These symptoms generally appear within 1-2 days after injection. Natural recovery within days.

2. Serious side effects of the vaccine

These side effects generally appear within minutes to hours after injection, including acute allergic reactions, anaphylactic shock (dyspnea, hoarseness, swollen eyes, dizziness, rapid heartbeat, wheezing, etc.), and the incidence of these symptoms is very high. Low, and generally will attack for a long time, so after the injection, the medical institution will let the injector rest for half an hour before leaving. If the above serious symptoms appear after vaccination, seek medical treatment immediately.

4 precautions for flu vaccination

In order to prevent potential side effects of influenza vaccines, vaccine recipients should pay attention to four issues:

1. After vaccination, there is a small chance of allergic reaction and eventually lead to anaphylactic shock. In order to be able to carry out medical treatment immediately after the incident, the vaccine should be rested and observed at the injection facility for at least 30 minutes, and then leave after no symptoms.

2. People who use antiplatelet, anticoagulant drugs or abnormal coagulation function should press the needle hole for a while after injection to avoid bleeding or hematoma.

3. After vaccination, you should pay attention to whether there is a persistent fever. Generally, you should pay special attention to it for more than 2 days. In addition, if you have abnormal symptoms such as dyspnea, rapid heartbeat, changes in consciousness or behavior, you should seek medical attention immediately and inform the doctor of the vaccination status. .

4. After vaccination, although the risk of influenza virus infection can be effectively reduced, other respiratory infections, such as pneumonia, may still occur . You should not be careless, especially during the epidemic period, you should still do a good job of self-protection.

5 types of people who should not get the flu vaccine

5 major groups of people are not suitable for flu vaccination:

1. People who are allergic to vaccine ingredients, influenza vaccine is not suitable for people who are allergic to ovalbumin

2. People who have had severe adverse reactions to vaccinations

3. Babies under 6 months old

4. Others who are not suitable for vaccination after being evaluated by a doctor

5. Persons who had Guillain-Barré syndrome during vaccination

In addition to the above precautions, many people have some misunderstandings about flu vaccination, thinking that they don’t need to get flu vaccine because they rarely get sick; Which statements are correct?

5 myths about getting the flu shot

1. If you get the flu vaccine, you won’t catch a cold?

Many people think that the symptoms of flu are similar to those of a cold. If you get the flu vaccine, you will avoid catching a cold, and you will never get any cold. In fact, the pathogens of the common cold may come from hundreds of different viruses and bacteria. Unlike the flu, the common cold may not have a strong infection, but it does not mean that the vaccine is effective for all colds.

In addition, there are individual differences in the protective effect of influenza vaccination, and a small number of people may contract colds or other influenza viruses when their own protection is insufficient. In addition, it takes at least 2 weeks after the completion of the flu vaccination to produce protection, and it does not take effect immediately after vaccination.

2. If you rarely get sick, you don’t need to get the flu vaccine?

For the flu, everyone is likely to get the flu, only the risk of the disease is different, and the severity of the symptoms is different. Similarly, even people who rarely get sick can still get sick if they are infected with the flu virus, so the best way to fight against the flu is to Get a flu shot every year.

Although most people infected with influenza are mild and can recover in about 1 week, the high-risk groups such as the elderly, children and chronic patients are prone to complications after influenza, such as pneumonia, nephritis, encephalitis, myocarditis, etc. Symptoms and even death, so this group of people should pay special attention. It is recommended to get regular flu vaccination every year to prevent complications caused by flu.

3. Can’t I get a flu vaccine if I have a cold?

Since the flu vaccine is an inactivated vaccine, that is, the virus in the vaccine is inactive, so even if the injector has mild diseases such as colds, diarrhea, and allergies, it will not affect the vaccination. For more serious problems, it is recommended to suspend the vaccination first, and then consider vaccination after the symptoms are cured or the condition is stable. If there are:

fever

Have a serious medical condition (such as cancer)

Immunodeficiency or long-term use of drugs that suppress the immune system (such as steroids or cancer drugs)

hypersensitivity to vaccine components

have had serious side effects from flu shots

4. I had the flu vaccine last year, so I don’t need it this year?

Due to the strong variability of influenza viruses and the slightly different strains of viruses that circulate each year, the vaccine given last time does not have immunity to viruses of different antigen types, and the protective effect will also decrease accordingly.

In addition, even if the influenza virus has not mutated and the vaccine components are the same, the protective effect may decrease after 4-6 months of vaccination, and usually the protective effect does not exceed 1 year, so it is recommended to vaccinate once a year.

5. Can the flu vaccine not be given together with other vaccines?

Influenza vaccines will not interfere with each other with inactivated vaccines, and can be vaccinated at the same time or at intervals, such as common childhood vaccines such as Streptococcus pneumoniae vaccine and Japanese encephalitis vaccine. The doctor should be informed of any other recent vaccinations.

Due to the COVID-19 epidemic, some people may consider taking the COVID-19 vaccine in addition to the flu vaccine. In order to avoid side effects, it is recommended that the interval between the flu vaccine and the COVID-19 vaccination should be at least 7 days, preferably It is 14 days.