KDHE Home - News 1999 - News Release
Kansas
Department of Health & Environment
Bill Graves, Governor
Clyde D. Graeber, Secretary
For Immediate Release
Contact: Don Brown, 785-296-1529
Vaccines Can Be A Life Preserver for People With Diabetes
An influenza (flu) shot and pneumococcal vaccine (pneumonia shot) can substantially reduce the risk of dying with flu and pneumonia for people with diabetes, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Deaths among people with diabetes increase 5 to 15 percent during flu epidemics, and people with diabetes are about three times more likely to die with flu or pneumonia. In 1996,
3.8 percent of adult Kansans (72,015) had diabetes. Yet, only half of people with diabetes get an annual flu shot, and only a third have gotten a pneumococcal shot.
"People with diabetes may be unaware that their disease can make their immune system more vulnerable to severe cases of, or even death with, the flu and pneumonia," said Dr. Frank Vinicor, Director of the Division of Diabetes Translation at CDC. "Flu and pneumonia shots are easy, safe, preventive measures that people with diabetes can take to protect themselves from the risks associated with flu and pneumonia."If you have not yet received a flu shot, KDHE recommends you receive it as soon as possible, while it is still early in the flu season. Local health departments have more information about dates, times, and places where flu shots are administered locally. People should consult their doctors before receiving a flu shot, pneumococcal vaccine or any other vaccine; some people should not be vaccinated.
Diabetes is a serious health problem that affects approximately 16 million people in the United States. Unfortunately, only two-thirds of them are diagnosed, leaving a third who are not under care for the disorder. Those at high risk for diabetes include African Americans, Native Americans, Hispanics and Asians, or anyone who is overweight, has high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or a strong family history of the disease.