Five reasons to get a flu shot, especially this year

This fall, COVID-19 and the flu will circulate in the United States at the same time, and what happens then will be something of a wild card. Wearing masks, washing your hands, and staying six feet away from other people to avoid COVID-19 are steps you can take that will also help protect yourself from the flu. But some will still get the flu, and COVID-19 is still with us. What if both viruses crop up and then mix in the ER, depleting healthcare resources while doctors try to treat everyone?

Doctors and public health experts have no way of predicting how things will go in the next few months, so they are responding with an urgent message: get a flu shot. Even if you’ve never been vaccinated before, get it this year.

“I would tell people who don’t normally get the flu vaccine that the coronavirus makes this year a different story,” says Matthew Grant, MD, an infectious disease specialist at Yale Medicine. The flu alone fills many hospital beds in normal years, so doctors are already preparing for the increased number of sick patients that could happen this season, he says. “This year, if we don’t do things right, the flu has the potential to take a much higher price.”

Children should also get vaccinated, says Caitlin Hansen, MD, a pediatric infectious disease specialist. “I’m starting to sound like a broken record, but the only thing we know you can do is get a flu shot. It’s the best thing we have in our flu toolbox.”

What does the next flu season look like?

Based on reports of fewer flu cases in Australia and other countries below the equator (where the virus peaks during winter, which is our summer), US public health experts are expecting a mild season. But no one knows for sure: There are many flu viruses, and the predominant ones are always changing.

Vaccine manufacturers have increased supply and are producing enough flu vaccine for a record 194-198 million doses. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that all adults and children older than 6 months be vaccinated in September or October (although the vaccine will be available until the end of the season in March 2021).

There are several vaccination options, including standard-dose injections, high-dose injections for people 65 years of age and older, injections made with viruses grown in cell culture (making it safe for people with egg allergies), and the live vaccine. attenuated administered nasally. spray (for people from 2 to 49 years old).

If you’re still in doubt, here are five reasons to consider getting a flu shot this year.

1. It will help avoid overwhelming a system that can stretch while handling both flu and COVID-19

Even in years when there is no threat like COVID-19, “the flu can lead to a shortage of hospital beds,” says Dr. Grant. At Yale, he has been participating in extensive planning about the possibility of a “double demic” that could result from severe outbreaks of COVID-19 and flu, a scenario that some doctors say would mean initially treating all patients as COVID-19. . case, isolating them until they are tested and diagnosed.

“A lot of work is required to react to the epidemiology of the outbreak in the community and discover the best way to meet the needs of our patients,” says Dr. Grant. “If the rate of flu or coronavirus infections increases by just 10%, it will affect the way healthcare workers will respond.”

Also, avoiding the flu can protect other people, says Dr. Grant. The flu is contagious 48 hours before infected people start to have symptoms, so you can spread it to others before you know you have it, he says.

2. The flu shot can help reduce the confusion of symptoms

The flu and COVID-19 share many symptoms. While you can always call your doctor if a symptom is confusing, it might be easier to find out what it means if you’ve had a flu shot. “There is a lot of overlap,” says Dr. Hansen, “and I think it will be a challenge for us to differentiate between these illnesses. Although getting a flu shot doesn’t mean that someone can’t get the flu, knowing if a patient had one is a important information during a pandemic. “

Both viruses can cause illnesses that can range from mild to severe. According to the CDC, both the flu and COVID-19 can cause the following symptoms:

• Fever or feeling feverish / chills
• Cough
• Shortness of breath or trouble breathing
• Fatigue (tiredness)
• Sore throat
• Stuffy or runny nose
• Muscle or body aches
• Headache
• Some people may have vomiting and diarrhea, although this is more common in children than adults.

However, it is important to note that loss of taste and smell is a symptom of COVID-19 that does not occur with the flu.

3. You can have more protection against worst-case scenarios

Precautions like social distancing that already exist for COVID-19 could help prevent the flu. “We know from years of experience with influenza that there are things that can interrupt transmission. Surgical masks are the primary way to reduce the spread of influenza in the hospital, along with hand washing,” says Dr. Grant. But the flu vaccine is considered the most important tool to prevent flu and is indirectly a strategy to prevent COVID-19, because it can keep people out of the emergency room. “The emergency room is a place where you are at risk of being exposed to the coronavirus,” says Dr. Grant.

A flu shot can protect people from COVID-19 in other ways, too. Doctors can’t say for sure whether getting the flu would make someone more susceptible to COVID-19, or vice versa, although they know that having the flu makes people more vulnerable to bacterial infections like pneumonia, says Dr. Grant. They also can’t say what would happen if someone got the flu and COVID-19. “We really don’t know, but one could imagine that the two viruses could act synergistically and make you sicker.”

4. A severe flu can be life-threatening

While the statistics of illness and death from COVID-19 have been alarming, the number of people severely affected by the flu is also formidable. During the 2018-2019 season, an estimated 35.5 million people contracted the flu. Many had a case mild enough to be able to care for themselves at home. But 16.5 million consulted a healthcare provider, 490,600 were hospitalized, and 34,200 died, according to the CDC. “People who have had the flu before know how serious it can be,” says Dr. Grant.

But it could have been worse: According to the CDC, over the same period, the flu vaccine is believed to have prevented approximately 4.4 million flu-associated illnesses, 2.3 million doctor visits, 58,000 hospitalizations and 3,500 deaths. .

As with COVID-19, older people are at the highest risk for complications from influenza, but young, healthy people also get seriously ill. “Sometimes we see perfectly healthy teenagers and young adults who have such severe flu that we need to put them on ventilators, and some die. It can be very tragic,” says Dr. Grant.

Dr. Hansen adds: “Younger children can also get a very serious flu that makes them seriously ill, takes them to the hospital and even the intensive care unit. It can be a very serious illness for children, even if they are sick. otherwise healthy. “

5. The vaccine can help even if it is not 100% effective

It is true that the effectiveness of the flu vaccine varies from year to year. (Studies show that when it is most effective, it reduces the risk of getting the flu by 40 to 60%.) But if you happen to be one of the people who gets sick despite getting the vaccine, you likely have a milder flu and a lower chance of being hospitalized.

Contrary to what some people think, the flu shot will not give you the flu, although some have experienced mild flu-like reactions, such as pain and fever. Another myth is that the flu vaccine could protect against COVID-19. It won’t, but scientists are currently testing more than 35 potential vaccines for the new coronavirus in clinical trials and hope to find one that can be considered safe and effective enough for general use.

The way and where you get your flu shot may change this year due to the pandemic. If you’re not sure where to go, call your doctor or go to VaccineFinder, an online tool recommended by the CDC to help you find a vaccination site near your home.