[Sable99]

I never heard of the high dosage flu shot until this thread. What is the difference? When do you get the high dosage? I asked my 91 year old mother if she got the high dosage shot and she hadn't heard of it either!

I got both the flu shot and the adult pneumonia shot this week. No side affects with the flu shot. The arm that got the pneumonia shot has been sore all week but no other side affects.

[graciegirl]

Originally Posted by Sable99

I never heard of the high dosage flu shot until this thread. What is the difference? When do you get the high dosage? I asked my 91 year old mother if she got the high dosage shot and she hadn't heard of it either!

I got both the flu shot and the adult pneumonia shot this week. No side affects with the flu shot. The arm that got the pneumonia shot has been sore all week but no other side affects.

Here ya go, from the Center for Disease Control. In a nutshell a high dose is offered to folks over 65 because of somewhat weaker response to disease.


Fluzone High-Dose Seasonal Influenza Vaccine | Seasonal Influenza (Flu) | CDC

[mgjim]

Originally Posted by Sable99

I never heard of the high dosage flu shot until this thread. What is the difference? When do you get the high dosage? I asked my 91 year old mother if she got the high dosage shot and she hadn't heard of it either!

I got both the flu shot and the adult pneumonia shot this week. No side affects with the flu shot. The arm that got the pneumonia shot has been sore all week but no other side affects.

When I got my flu shot, the nurse told me that they also recommend the high dosage for people who have a history of respiratory issues, regardless of age. I have such a history so I opted for the high dosage. No side effects so far.

[blueash]

Originally Posted by mgjim

When I got my flu shot, the nurse told me that they also recommend the high dosage for people who have a history of respiratory issues, regardless of age. I have such a history so I opted for the high dosage. No side effects so far.

The high dose vaccine is only licensed and approved for use in patients 65 years and older. There is no CDC nor ACIP recommendation that would correspond to what that nurse told you. I am unable to find any literature supporting this off label use, although it may exist. If your insurance carrier has a good computer compliance system it may detect that the procedure code for a high dose shot does not provide coverage for a person under 65 and reject payment as it does not meet standard of care. You were of course informed this was an off label use of this product.

[Bonny]

Originally Posted by Nucky

I get the shot every year. It got me really sick this year. This has never happened to me before. Flu wise I felt like a shiny penny before the shot and within hours I had the flu. I Googled it & went to Web MD they say it can't happen that way...it did. Unbelievable what happened to the people in the story above. I guess I should listen to my wife and not get the flu shot. She always says that the side effects of the medicine advertised on TV is worse than the symptom it is supposed to help. God help those people with GBS.

Yes, that happened to me in 2007. I was feeling awesome that day. Got the flu shot about 3:00. Went to Katie Belles to listen to Rocky & The Rollers. About 6:00 I felt really awful. By 7:00, I went home. Full blown flu. I was in bed for days.

[Bonny]

Originally Posted by blueash

The high dose vaccine is only licensed and approved for use in patients 65 years and older. There is no CDC nor ACIP recommendation that would correspond to what that nurse told you. I am unable to find any literature supporting this off label use, although it may exist. If your insurance carrier has a good computer compliance system it may detect that the procedure code for a high dose shot does not provide coverage for a person under 65 and reject payment as it does not meet standard of care. You were of course informed this was an off label use of this product.

I went to Walgreen & my insurance wouldn't pay for the high dose because I'm only 64.

[PennBF]

Years ago I had an employee who got the "Swine Flu" shot and developed GBS from it. He would have seizures, lose control of his kidneys and ultimately fall to the floor and we had to help him and drive him home. By 30 minutes to an hour it was over and he just felt very weak. I only relate this as there was no question he received the GBS from the shot. We have had the shot every few
years and were just discussing if we would have one this year?

[blueash]

Originally Posted by PennBF

Years ago I had an employee who got the "Swine Flu" shot and developed GBS from it. He would have seizures, lose control of his kidneys and ultimately fall to the floor and we had to help him and drive him home. By 30 minutes to an hour it was over and he just felt very weak. I only relate this as there was no question he received the GBS from the shot. We have had the shot every few
years and were just discussing if we would have one this year?

Your employee did NOT have GBS. GBS is a peripheral nerve disorder producing weakness to in some cases paralysis but does not damage the central nervous system and does not produce seizures. A GBS patient does not have sudden events from which he recovers over an hour only to repeat similar events again. Here is a link to what is the actual presentation of GBS and its typical and atypical outcomes.

Guillain-Barré Syndrome Fact Sheet

So I will go out on a very strong limb in stating that your employee did not get GBS from a flu shot.

[mgjim]

Originally Posted by blueash

The high dose vaccine is only licensed and approved for use in patients 65 years and older. There is no CDC nor ACIP recommendation that would correspond to what that nurse told you. I am unable to find any literature supporting this off label use, although it may exist. If your insurance carrier has a good computer compliance system it may detect that the procedure code for a high dose shot does not provide coverage for a person under 65 and reject payment as it does not meet standard of care. You were of course informed this was an off label use of this product.

Well, that's not very good news.

Originally Posted by Bogie Shooter

From the CDC web site


What is Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS)?

Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) is a rare disorder in which a person’s own immune system damages their nerve cells, causing muscle weakness and sometimes paralysis. GBS can cause symptoms that usually last for a few weeks. Most people recover fully from GBS, but some people have long-term nerve damage. In very rare cases, people have died of GBS, usually from difficulty breathing. In the United States, for example, an estimated 3,000 to 6,000 people develop GBS each year on average, whether or not they received a vaccination.

What causes GBS?

Many things can cause GBS; about two-thirds of people who develop GBS symptoms do so several days or weeks after they have been sick with diarrhea or a respiratory illness. Infection with the bacterium Campylobacter jejuni is one of the most common risk factors for GBS. People also can develop GBS after having the flu or other infections (such as cytomegalovirus and Epstein Barr virus). On very rare occasions, they may develop GBS in the days or weeks after getting a vaccination.

Who is at risk for developing GBS?

Anyone can develop GBS; however, it is more common among older adults. The incidence of GBS increases with age, and people older than 50 years are at greatest risk for developing GBS.


How common is GBS? How common is it among people who have been vaccinated against flu?

GBS is rare. Medical events occur regardless of vaccination, and background rates are used to assess vaccine safety by comparing the expected rate of disease or death to the actual or observed rate in any given timeframe. The background rate for GBS in the U.S. is about 80 to 160 cases of GBS each week, regardless of vaccination.

What happened in 1976 with GBS and the swine flu vaccine?

In 1976 there was a small increased risk of GBS following vaccination with an influenza vaccine made to protect against a swine flu virus. The increased risk was approximately 1 additional case of GBS per 100,000 people who got the swine flu vaccine. The Institute of Medicine (IOM) conducted a thorough scientific review of this issue in 2003 and concluded that people who received the 1976 swine influenza vaccine had an increased risk for developing GBS. Scientists have multiple theories on why this increased risk may have occurred, but the exact reason for this association remains unknown.

The link between GBS and flu vaccination in other years is unclear, and if there is any risk for GBS after seasonal flu vaccines it is very small, about one in a million. Studies suggest that it is more likely that a person will get GBS after getting the flu than after vaccination. It is important to keep in mind that severe illness and death are associated with influenza, and vaccination is the best way to prevent influenza infection and its complications.

How do public health authorities investigate cases of GBS?

Ensuring the safety of vaccines is a high priority for CDC. Several systems are in place to monitor vaccine safety. One of these systems is the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS).

CDC and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) co-manage VAERS, which serves as an early warning system to collect voluntary reports about possible side effects that people experience following vaccinations. CDC and FDA scientists regularly review all VAERS reports and store the information in a computerized database that is monitored to detect new, unusual, or rare health events that could be possible side effects of vaccines.

In addition to the normal vaccine safety monitoring systems, CDC has proactively put additional monitoring systems in place to ensure safety after licensing. Some of these systems include: actively observing persons in defined geographic areas, collaborating with professional organizations for reports of any adverse events after vaccination, and conducting thorough investigations when severe adverse events occur to determine whether they may have been associated with the vaccine. Through these numerous approaches, we are able to detect any possible risk of GBS that might be associated with the 2015-2016 flu vaccines as early as possible and take appropriate action.

Thank you for this information. The wife of a good friend of mine where I moved from contacted GBS after receiving a flu shot. I have gotten one every year for many years and will continue to do so.

[Barefoot]

Originally Posted by asianthree

Hospital employees are given shots in October. Hospital reminds us flu season lasts till march, and we need to take precautions. I am an opt out for flu shot.

Hey retired doctors ....
For those who opt out of the flu shot, is Tamiflu after the fact effective?

[golfing eagles]

Originally Posted by blueash

Your employee did NOT have GBS. GBS is a peripheral nerve disorder producing weakness to in some cases paralysis but does not damage the central nervous system and does not produce seizures. A GBS patient does not have sudden events from which he recovers over an hour only to repeat similar events again. Here is a link to what is the actual presentation of GBS and its typical and atypical outcomes.

Guillain-Barré Syndrome Fact Sheet

So I will go out on a very strong limb in stating that your employee did not get GBS from a flu shot.

Couldn't agree more. GBS is essentially an ascending motor paralysis, usually mild to moderate in severity and almost always self limited but could take months to resolve. It is a form of AIDP (acute idiopathic demyelinating polyradiculopathy), in some ways similar to the chronic form (CIDP), but resolves. The chances of getting GBS from a flu shot, especially a dead viral strain, are infinitesimal. There were people who contracted GBS after the swine flu vaccine, since the first batch of that vaccine was live attenuated, but quite rare. On the other hand, your chances of getting GBS after the having the flu (or any viral illness) are much higher. GET YOUR SHOT!!!!
Taking Tamiflu after the fact is not a viable alternative, it's kind of like going to traffic school AFTER you accumulated a bunch of tickets---it may fix your license, but you had to go through the pain.

[rubicon]

Originally Posted by CFrance

If a flu shot only lasts three months, why do they put them out in September?

Hi CFrance: I just happened on your response this PM 12/6/15. I went back and looked at my post and said the flu shot has an efficacy of three months. I should have explained what i meant and that is it begins to lose its potency. since the flu season goes beyond the holidays, my wife and I choose to get innoculated mid-to late October to extend a more effective period when the flu season is likely to begin.

Personal Best Regards:

[lightworker888]

For anyone that is interested, we take the homeopathic Influenzinum once in October and again January as a prophylactic JIC dose. Have done this for years and have never had the "flu". Can't even remember having a bad "cold". We also do our best to keep our immune system up with various supplements. If I feel anything coming I will up my Vit C ( I make lipo C - you can google how and why) and take Astragalus Root capsules which you can get at The Vitamin Shoppe. It is an antiviral and antibacterial herb that is used in Traditional Chinese Medicine. Just a personal perspective on the flu shot.

Also eat organic and grass fed and gluten free, at home and whenever possible. I believe we are what we eat and we can use good food as medicine. The challenge is to find it. BTW the Lucky Lady Eggs at The Fresh Market are THE BEST TASTING eggs we have ever eaten. They are pasture raised, non-GMO eggs that unfortunately we can't get in Canada because of our winters. Wish they could keep. I'd bring them back with me!!

Wishing everyone a Happy and Healthy Holiday Season and New Year,


LW888

[OhioBuckeye]

Geez, I hope flu shots don't have serious side effects & they're going to keep us in the dark about it. I wouldn't be surprised if it was govt. thing to get rid of some of us. Nothing would surprise me! If it does have serious side effects why do the Drs. keep pushing flu shots, then, are they in on the big secret.