Flu.

fancythat

Thanks from me too NS.
I think DH will follow that up.

We have followed it all up locally. DH is not eligible this year from the NHS. But local chemist has got some more supplies in, so he can get one there.
He has to pay £21.50 or something like that.

Just a thought. I wonder how many flu victims suffered a deterioration in their condition, to the point of requiring hospital admission, due to their home being inadequately heated?

Calendargirl

Also, many shops have now done away with their protective screens which were put up for covid.

Our local health food shop has removed his. He said it was because so many of his customers grumbled about them!

These screens must prevent so many germs reaching both staff and customers though.

Screens aren’t very useful as viruses and bacteria aren’t static. May protect spitting tho! Be better off introducing good ventilation systems.

Just had the second shingles jab, which flattened me for two days. Can only imagine what the actual illness is like. Likewise for flu. So I have every jab offered on this basis!

Unfortunately it seems that for some that has taught them nothing! Obviously they have failed to click in their heads how easily colds and flu are spread! My OH plays an indoor sport, during covid many turned up with covid symptoms and no masks, these people are now playing having cold and flu bugs! He is keeping well away. If I have a cold I stay home am not willing to share my germs.

I had my jabs ,wear masks and am super careful .
I felt vaguely headachy and nauseated all weekend .
I thought that I was tired or it was migraine, but then diarrhoea started .
Unfortunately , I tend to get headaches and migraines though they are not as bad as the IBS that I get sporadically .
Had I eaten and drunk too much over Christmas and New Year ?
Very possibly .
By Sunday night , my throat was sore and coughing began .
And now it seems to be a combination of all of the above .
I suppose that it's flu .
I don't want to do anything apart from rest and binge watch the telly .

I believe that as a vaccinated almost 70 Yr old that I have some protection at least but really noticing how many with coughs and colds are out and about or working. I recently challenged a shop worker who coughed directly on the bread she was putting on the shelf. Within a week I had a cough and cold and three weeks later still have a productive cough. I washed my hands when I returned from shopping and cough into a tissue or my elbow. And since becoming unwell I have shopped on line. Taken more care surface wiping with antibacterial spray. and anti back hand gel. I do deep breathing exercises and go for an outdoor walk daily avoiding people. So far the family seem OK but I think we all have a responsibility to others to keep our germs to ourselves.

Good news fancythat - sorry he's not eligible via the NHS though.

Shizam

Just had the second shingles jab, which flattened me for two days. Can only imagine what the actual illness is like. Likewise for flu. So I have every jab offered on this basis!

I've had shingles. It not nice but so were the side effects of the vaccination. However, they only lasted for two or three days whereas nerve pain from shingles could go on for months although mine didn't.

I'm due a second vaccination soon and am hesitant because of the unpleasant side effects last time, but probably will go for it.

My neighbour , in his early fifties I guess, has just been taken to hospital by ambulance following contracting flu a week ago.
He had his flu jab, but suffers from breathing difficulties from a re-action to an earlier ( 2023) Covid jab, and has been on chemo ever since.
He is just one example, but I understand most of the serious
cases involve over 80s people, a group with a high percentage uptake of the jabs.
I'm just past mid eighties, go for all the jabs on offer but also avoid all shops and buses etc. - and docs' waiting rooms too if I can manage it !
I had a friend who said she "didn't believe" in flu jabs. I used to tell her she was protected to a large degree by those of us who did !
I'm so sorry for my neighbour.
Like many others, he didn't deserve this.

Calendar Girl, I dutifully had Covid and Flu jabs as soon as they were offered to me, as I always do.
The day before Christmas eve I started coughing non stop. Over Christmas it continued and I had no energy or appetite.
2 weeks later I still feel rotten, but see no point in making an appointment, as I don't feel well enough to drive and do not wish to give my bugs to anyone else.

ANd incidentally, I was in hospital in November 2023 (pulmonary embolism) for 3 weeks, where I actually CAUGHT Covid. Hardly my fault surely?

I've just watched a report on the dire situation in our local A&E, there is severe overcrowding and many in the unit have one of 4 viruses, the staff member interviewed said it was nigh on impossible to stop cross contamination but no one was wearing masks. Why are people so weird about masks? They're not fun to wear but surely better than catching a secondary illness in hospital if you're already ill. The lack of infection control is unbelievable and inexcusable.

My brother is 75, fully vaccinated, and is just recovering from his first ever bout of Covid. Thankfully not hospitalised but certainly knocked for six. There is also another respiratory disease doing the rounds, HPMV.

www.telegraph.co.uk/health-fitness/conditions/cold-flu/what-is-hmpv-and-symptoms/

*HMPV, sorry

I’m scared senseless of any injections, however I put my big pants on and got a flu jab and a covid jab on the same day many weeks ago I’m blessed with these nurses who came to my home to give me them they are so humerous knowing me as the screamer 😱😱😱😱

Good for you Bonnybanko

yes I wish they would give us the statistics of those hospitalised with this winter flu virus and how many have been vaccinated , they must know for the NHS records to monitor on vaccination success rate

I suspect most people who are hospitalised actually have secondary infections by that stage, so by the time they are admitted, whether they have had flu, Covid, or a respiratory virus is not detectable on tests. It’s a perfect storm this winter with them all circulating at the same time.

Don't forget, if you were vaccinated in September your immunity will already be dropping.
I don't know how long it's "fully" active after the build-up period.

I read a study that the best date to be vaccinated was very end of October or beginning of November before the flu season kicks off but to carry you through.
I read another study which showed that the body response is best if you have your vaccination in the morning. There was a big difference in quantity of antibodies between those people vaccinated 9-11 am rather than 2-3 pm.

I admit I was vaccinated later than this but I did book a morning slot!

cookiemonster66

yes I wish they would give us the statistics of those hospitalised with this winter flu virus and how many have been vaccinated , they must know for the NHS records to monitor on vaccination success rate

You can probably Google last years stats?

The gov.uk website recommends having the vaccination in autumn/ early winter before the flu season kicks in.

It should be reasonably effective for up to 6 months, so if you have it in September, it ought to be ok until March.

Personally, I book mine as soon as they are available. If you wait, they often run out.

There seems to be several infections circulating at the moment. My husband is a fanatic about hygiene (to an insane degree, to be honest!) and we have our flu jabs every year, but he was hospitalised last week with RSV. He'll be 75 this year and thus eligible for an RSV vaccination, but it's probably not possible to protect against every virus that's floating about.

Yes Bluecoat apparently the circulating viruses are flu of different strains, RSV and covid. It’s mainly the over 65s and young children who are hospitalised. It seems too early to tell if the flu vaccine for this year was predictive of predominant strains.

It doesn’t make sense to me that hospitals and surgeries are not insisting on mask wearing, decent ones, not the flimsy blue ones either.

Just found this:

www.sciencemediacentre.org/expert-reaction-to-high-numbers-of-flu-hospitalisations/

January 3, 2025

Peak influenza activity typically occurs in December to January, as it has this season. But it can vary widely, sometimes not peaking until February or March. When by nature there is uncertainty, any changes to the timing of the flu vaccination programs can be more a matter of judgement than for other infections.

This winter flu season is made of predominantly influenza A H1N1 cases, with some due to H3N2 and influenza B. Overall activity started to rise slowly from low levels at the end of October to more apparent hospitalisation rates for flu by mid-November.

One key reason for the later start of vaccination for older people, based on JCVI advice, was to provide better protection closer to the main start of the flu season. The earlier start in September of the vaccination programme in adults in previous years reached 80% of the final uptake by mid-October. That meant some waning of immunity would have occurred before the flu season in those years.

This season, influenza vaccine coverage in people aged 65 and over was reported as 73% for the week ending 15 December, which is slightly lower than the previous year (76.7%).

Children are offered vaccinations earlier as they are the main source of transmission of influenza infections to others. Research suggests that protection in children from the flu vaccine does not wane over a few months, unlike in adults.

This article explains quite a lot I think so I've included the link. I'm interested in the children aspect too.
The article also talks about antivirals.

We do have access to effective antiviral treatment for influenza but to be effective these treatments must be given within 2 days of first symptom onset.

Many hospitals are now insisting on face masks as they are overwhelmed with patients with respiratory conditions.