Can I Get Seasonal Flu Even Though I Got A Flu Vaccine This Year
Yes. Its possible to get sick with flu even if you have been vaccinated . This is possible for the following reasons:
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You may be exposed to a flu virus shortly before getting vaccinated or during the period that it takes the body to gain protection after getting vaccinated. This exposure may result in you becoming ill with flu before the vaccine begins to protect you.
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You may be exposed to a flu virus that is not included in the seasonal flu vaccine. There are many different flu viruses that circulate every year. A flu vaccine is made to protect against the three or four flu viruses that research suggests will be most common.
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Unfortunately, some people can become infected with a flu virus a flu vaccine is designed to protect against, despite getting vaccinated. Protection provided by flu vaccination can vary widely, based in part on health and age factors of the person getting vaccinated. In general, a flu vaccine works best among healthy younger adults and older children. Some older people and people with certain chronic illnesses may develop less immunity after vaccination. Flu vaccination is not a perfect tool, but it is the best way to protect against flu infection.
Vaccination Mandates And Their Opponents
Mandatory vaccination requirements have become increasingly prevalent as the threat of an H1N1 pandemic has intensified. A number of hospitals across the country, including Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia, Emory Hospital in Atlanta, and all 273 facilities of Hospital Corporation of America, have instituted such rules for their own personnel. Additional facilities may join them.
New York State was the first in the nation to try to mandate vaccination as a matter of law, but the effort proved to be short-lived. The Department of Health issued a rule last August that would have barred workers who declined either seasonal or H1N1 influenza vaccination from assignments involving patient contact in any hospital, outpatient clinic or home-care program. However, a group of nurses sued and obtained a restraining order suspending enforcement. Subsequently, the Department, citing vaccine shortages, withdrew the proposal. It is not clear whether other states will attempt similar measures.
For the most part, unions representing nurses have been vocal in opposing vaccine mandates. Although they generally support voluntary vaccination and strongly encourage their members to comply, they believe that each health care worker should be entitled to make his or her own decision. They point out that all vaccines can pose risks. Even for people without allergies, hazards may lurk in additives, such as thimerosal, a mercury-based preservative used in some vaccines.
Why Do I Need To Get Vaccinated Every Year
You need to get the flu vaccine every year because protection from the previous vaccination becomes less effective over time. Each year the influenza viruses can change. The strains in the vaccine usually change each year in response to the changing virus pattern. Read more about vaccination against influenza.
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How Is The Flu Vaccine Determined
Starting in 1973, the World Health Organisation began issuing guidance to all nations on the composition of the flu vaccine for each coming flu season. Each year, the World Health Organisation meets and may make different recommendations to previous years based on the data they have available and their expectations for which flu strains are likely to be the most widespread the following year.
Most nations will then have a body that determines the flu shot based on the advice of the World Health Organisation. In Australia, this body is the Australian Influenza Vaccine Committee . They meet each year at the Therapeutic Goods Administration in Canberra to determine the make-up of the flu vaccine for the upcoming flu season.
How Does Pharmac Know How Many Doses Are Needed

When evaluating how much vaccine is likely to be needed , Pharmac considers things like:
- population growth
- the total number of doses distributed in recent seasons
- any Ministry of Health flu vaccination target
- the severity of previous seasons
- any early reports about the Northern Hemisphere flu season.
Ordering and manufacturing flu vaccine happens many months before the start of the flu season. Vaccines take a long time to make and ship to New Zealand, so manufacturers cant make more product during the flu season if demand is higher than forecast.
If demand is higher in New Zealand, our only option is to see if there is stock available that had been allocated to other countries and might not be used there.
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Why Was The Spanish Flu Called The Spanish Flu
The Spanish Flu did not originate in Spain, though news coverage of it did. During World War I, Spain was a neutral country with a free media that covered the outbreak from the start, first reporting on it in Madrid in late May of 1918. Meanwhile, Allied countries and the Central Powers had wartime censors who covered up news of the flu to keep morale high. Because Spanish news sources were the only ones reporting on the flu, many believed it originated there
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People Who Need More Than One Flu Vaccine A Year
There are some people who are recommended to have a second dose of the influenza vaccine within the space of one year.
These include:
- Children less than 9 years receiving their influenza vaccine for the first time require 2 doses 4 weeks apart for an adequate immune response.
- People who have had a haematopoietic stem cell transplant or solid organ transplant and are receiving influenza vaccine for the first time after transplant.
- Pregnant women, who may be vaccinated with the next seasons influenza vaccine if it becomes available in the latter part of their pregnancy, even if they were vaccinated with the previous seasons vaccine prior to or earlier in pregnancy.
- Overseas travellers, who may benefit from a second dose of this seasons influenza vaccine if going to the northern hemisphere winter and receiving the northern hemisphere formulation there is not feasible.
Please check with your GP to find out whether you fall into one of these categories.
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How Long The Flu Shot Lasts
Your bodys immunity to the flu decreases over time. This is true whether youve had a vaccination or a flu infection.
Additionally, influenza viruses are constantly changing. Because of this, a vaccine from the previous flu season may not protect you through an upcoming flu season.
Generally speaking, receiving the seasonal influenza vaccine should help to protect you for the duration of the current flu season.
Youll need to receive a seasonal influenza vaccine every year in order to have the best protection against influenza viruses.
The flu vaccine is produced by a number of private manufacturers and typically begins to ship to healthcare providers in August. However, theres some evidence that it may not be advantageous to receive your vaccine this early.
A indicated that maximum immunity is achieved shortly following vaccination and decreases with each passing month. Therefore, if you get your vaccine in August, you may be more susceptible to infection late in the flu season, around February or March.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends getting the flu vaccine before influenza activity begins to pick up within your community, ideally by the end of October.
If you receive your vaccine later, dont worry. Late vaccination can still provide adequate protection, as influenza can circulate within your community through March or even later.
Side effects from the flu shot are typically mild and only last a few days.
Flu vaccine side effects can include:
The Flu Vaccine Is Your Best Protection Against Flu
- DOH recommends a yearly flu vaccine for everyone aged six-months and older, including pregnant and nursing people. If you are 65 or older, talk to your provider about flu vaccine and other important vaccines for your age group.
- It takes two weeks for the flu vaccine to protect you from flu. The flu vaccine does NOT protect against coronavirus, colds, or other viruses that cause respiratory illness.
- The flu vaccine keeps many people from getting the flu. Some people who get the flu vaccine may still get sick. If you do get the flu, the vaccine will help reduce the severity of your illness. It will also lower your chance of needing to go to the hospital.
- When you get the flu vaccine you will also protect your family and community.
- You may also stop flu by covering your coughs and sneezes, washing your hands for 20 seconds with soap and water, and staying home when you’re sick. Cloth face coverings help prevent the spread of COVID-19 and the flu.
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The History Of The Flu Vaccine From 1940 To 2030
Home> Blog> The History of the Flu Vaccine From 1940 to 2030?
Featured on BBC Twos Trust Me, Im a Doctor, the history of the influenza virus and development of a new type of influenza vaccine a Universal Influenza Vaccine provided viewers with some useful and interesting insight. Unlike the current conventional vaccine, this new future vaccine would protect people over multiple seasons, and even in the event that a brand new flu virus appears, as happened in 2009.
We aim to develop a Universal Influenza Vaccine which means people do not need to be vaccinated each year, and are prepared for the unexpected. In this blog, were going to be exploring the history of the vaccine as well as a brief history of the virus itself to set the scene.
How Long Does The Flu Last
For most healthy people, the flu is an uncomfortable but short-term illness that resolves itself as the immune system fights it off. Symptoms usually appear from one to four days after exposure to the virus, and they last five to seven days. For people who’ve had a flu shot, the symptoms may last a shorter amount of time, or be less severe. For other people, the symptoms may last longer. Even when symptoms resolve, you may continue to feel fatigued.
Some people are at increased risk for complications from influenza. These people include:
- the very young
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Pandemic 2009 Briefing Note 7
It takes approximately five to six months for the first supplies of approved vaccine to become available once a new strain of influenza virus with pandemic potential is identified and isolated. These months are needed because the process of producing a new vaccine involves many sequential steps, and each of these steps requires a certain amount of time to complete. The vaccine development process from start to end is summarized below.
Activities at WHO Collaborating Centers
1. Identification of a new virus: As part of a network set up for surveillance, laboratories around the world routinely collect samples of circulating influenza viruses and submit these to WHO Collaborating Centres for Reference and Research on Influenza for analysis. The first step towards the production of a pandemic vaccine starts when a Centre detects a novel influenza virus that differs significantly from circulating strains and reports this finding to WHO.
Vaccine virus is grown in eggs because the flu virus grows well in them, and eggs are readily available.
3. Verification of the vaccine strain: After its preparation, the hybrid virus needs to be tested to make sure that it truly produces the outer proteins of the pandemic strain, is safe and grows in eggs. Upon completion of this process, which takes roughly another three weeks, the vaccine strain is distributed to vaccine manufacturers.
Activities at vaccine manufacturers
This process takes two weeks.
Can I Get The Influenza Vaccine And Covid

You can get the Pfizer or AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine and the flu vaccine but not on the same day. You should wait at least 7 days between receiving a dose of COVID-19 vaccine and the flu vaccine.
You arent required to have the vaccines in any particular order. The order will likely depend on vaccine availability, so you may receive whichever vaccine you have access to first.
If youre having the Pfizer vaccine, this means you may be able to get a flu vaccination in between the 2 doses, if appropriate.
In special cases, your healthcare provider may consider shortening the time period between the different vaccines or they may suggest you receive the vaccines on the same day. This will only be considered if:
- theres a high risk that youll be exposed to one of the diseases
- its highly likely that the opportunity of receiving either vaccine will be missed
If this is suggested, youll be counselled about any possible adverse events from each vaccine. Youll be advised to report any adverse events.
Ask your doctor or pharmacist for more advice on how to schedule vaccinations.
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Which Vaccines Are Used
This year, the Adjuvanted Quadrivalent Influenza Vaccine is being offered to people aged 65 or over. This vaccine contains a substance, known as an adjuvant, to help to stimulate the immune system and create a better response.
This vaccine has been widely used in many other countries and has been shown to offer better and longer-lasting protection in older people than flu vaccines without an adjuvant.
What Vaccines Are Available For The 2021
There are nine vaccines that have been approved and released by the FDA for the 2021-2022 flu season. This year, all FDA-approved flu vaccines are quadrivalent meaning they protect against four different strains of influenza . Heres a rundown of the available flu vaccines for the year.
Vaccine name | |
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Intramuscular | Egg protein |
Its important to note that pharmacies and healthcare providers may only carry a few brands of flu vaccine not all nine that are FDA-approved. If you are interested in or know you need a certain flu vaccine, its best to call ahead and see if your preferred vaccine is available.
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Why Do I Need A Flu Shot Every Year
You need to get the flu vaccine every year because protection from last year’s vaccine becomes less effective over time. Each year the flu vaccine is made to match the different strains of flu virus likely to be in New Zealand. Occasionally the vaccine strains are the same for more than one year, but it is still recommended that you have the vaccine each year, as the protection provided by the vaccine lessens over time.The new vaccine is usually made available in early April. Get your vaccination before winter when the flu is around the most.
Northern Hemisphere Influenza Season
The composition of trivalent virus vaccines for use in the 2017â2018 Northern Hemisphere influenza season recommended by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices on August 25, 2017, was:
- an A/Michigan/45/2015 pdm09âlike virus
- an A/Hong Kong/4801/2014 -like virus
- a B/Brisbane/60/2008âlike virus
In addition to these components, quadrivalent vaccines will also include a B/Phuket/3073/2013âlike virus .
In California, some emergency systems were strained by a spike in H3N2 flu cases. In addition, some areas experienced local shortages of oseltamivir. The severity of the flu season seemed somewhat comparable to the 2009â10 swine flu outbreak. A February 2018 CDC interim report estimated the vaccine effectiveness to be 25% against H3N2, 67% against H1N1, and 42% against influenza B.
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Where Did The Spanish Flu Come From
Scientists still do not know for sure where the Spanish Flu originated, though theories point to France, China, Britain, or the United States, where the first known case was reported at Camp Funston in Fort Riley, Kansas, on March 11, 1918.
Some believe infected soldiers spread the disease to other military camps across the country, then brought it overseas. In March 1918, 84,000 American soldiers headed across the Atlantic and were followed by 118,000 more the following month.
When Should I Get My Flu Vaccine
Flu vaccine effectiveness can have a lot to do with when you get it. Its recommended to get your flu vaccine about 2 weeks before flu season begins in your area preferably by the end of October. However, if you get the flu vaccine too early July or August, for instance you may not be protected for the entire flu season.
While September or October are the ideal times to get your flu vaccine, its still recommended to get it later than that if you were unable to do so earlier. If youre unsure when flu season begins in your area, talk to your local pharmacist or healthcare provider.
If youve recently received or will be receiving a COVID-19 vaccine including booster doses you dont have to wait a certain time to get the flu vaccine. You can even get them on the same day, if thats more convenient. These two vaccines arent known to interfere with each other.
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Why Should I Get Vaccinated
The flu vaccine is a safe and effective vaccine, and gives the best protection against flu. Its offered every year for free by the NHS to help protect people at risk of flu and its complications.
Flu vaccines help protect against the main types of flu viruses, although theres still a chance you might get flu after having the vaccine. If you do get flu after vaccination, its likely to be milder and not last as long.
Having the flu vaccine will also stop you spreading flu to other people who may be more at risk of serious problems from flu.
Flu can be serious and life-threatening, so getting vaccinated is the safest and most effective way to protect yourself.
The vaccine takes around 10 days to work and should help protect you during this years flu season. You have to get immunised every year because flu viruses change constantly and your immunity reduces over time.
The flu vaccine cant give you flu, but it can stop you catching it.