Is the Flu Vaccine Linked to Any Health Risks?

With flu season approaching, some may wonder whether there are any risks associated with the flu vaccine. A recent New York Times Ask Well blog addressed these concerns in response to a reader question that asks “Thirty-five years ago, my husband’s healthy college roommate died from a reaction to the swine flu vaccine. Neither of us has ever had a flu shot, preferring to take our chances with the illness, if we catch it. As healthy individuals in our late 50’s, is this sensible? Have the risks changed since 1977?”

There are two forms of the flu vaccine: a shot or as a nasal spray. The shot does not carry a risk of flu infection because it contains a dead form of the virus. The spray, FluMist, does have a small risk of infection in people who are immunocompromised because it contains a live virus. The flu shot is grown in eggs, and as such carries a risk of allergic reactions in people with egg allergies. According to Dr. Shira Doron, an infectious disease physician and associate hospital epidemiologist at Tufts Medical Center in Boston, the shot has also been linked to Guillain-Barre syndrome, a rare nerve disorder, in a very small number of people. If an individual developed the condition within 6 months of a previous flu shot, they should seek medical advice before getting another one. Patients who receive the flu shot may experience a sore arm and a low-grade fever.

The spray should not be given to individuals with a weakened immune system, such as pregnant women, children younger than 2, people undergoing cancer treatment, frail elderly individuals and others who may be immunocompromised. The nasal spray may worsen respiratory conditions, and should not be given to people with asthma or recent wheezing. FluMist should also not be given to children taking aspirin because it has been linked to Reye’s syndrome, an extremely rare condition that causes swelling of the liver and brain.

Years of research show there is no link between the mercury-based preservative thimerosal in vaccines and autism. The risks of the flu “are much higher than the risks of the flu vaccine” according to Dr. Doron. Flu vaccinations not only protect the individual, but also those around them. “When you get the flu shot, it’s for yourself and it’s for everybody else,” said Doron, according to NYT.

from Parker Waichman http://www.yourlawyer.com/blog/is-the-flu-vaccine-linked-to-any-health-risks/