State Officials Encourage Influenza Vaccinations

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE), along with the Kansas Department of Aging (KDOA) and Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitative Services (SRS) urge all Kansans to get a flu shot.

KDHE Secretary Roderick Bremby, KDOA Secretary Pamela Johnson-Betts, and SRS Secretary Janet Schalansky are joining together to encourage Kansans to take the time to get influenza vaccinations before the flu season arrives. In Kansas the flu season usually peaks after the holidays in January.

Anyone can become ill from influenza, but the elderly and young children are most at risk for very serious complications. Influenza is estimated to cause 114,000 hospitalizations and 36,000 deaths every year.

Some experts predict the 2003 - 2004 influenza season is expected to be more severe than in recent years. This is based on what has been seen in other countries where the flu season has already arrived. The strain that has been identified there is in the vaccine that is available this year.

Sufficient supplies of flu vaccine should be available during the coming influenza season. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) predicts that everyone wanting to get a flu shot to avoid influenza, regardless of age or health status, should be able to get vaccinated this year. Vaccines will be provided through local health departments, physicians offices, pharmacies, and grocery stores.

Certain individuals are at greater risk of complications from the flu:

• Children age 6 - 23 months
• Individuals over 50
• Individuals with chronic (on-going) long term health problems
• Women who are at least 3 months pregnant during flu season

KDHE recommends the following before and during flu season:

• Get a flu shot, even if not in a high risk group.
• Individuals in high risk group and those who have contact with those in the high risk groups are especially encouraged to get a flu shot.
• Limit contact with large crowds of people.
• Wash your hands before and after coming in contact with people.
• Contact your medical provider first if you are experiencing cold or flu symptoms that you believe require medical attention.

Flu Symptoms

If you begin to feel achy and feverish with a dry cough, get plenty of rest, drink plenty of liquids, and use aspirin or acetaminophen to reduce fever. Due to the risk of Reye’s Syndrome, aspirin and other medicines containing salicylate should not be given to children.

New medications are available to reduce the severity and shorten the duration of influenza, but they must be administered within 48 hours of illness onset.

Influenza is a highly contagious respiratory illness, and its symptoms include sudden onset of fever, sore throat, muscle aches, and non-productive cough. More serious illness can result if pneumonia occurs. Influenza is spread by direct contact with an infected person or by airborne droplets which produce infection when they are inhaled or ingested off the hands. Persons are most contagious during the 24 hours before they develop symptoms and are usually somewhat infectious for the next six or seven days. The incubation period, the time from when the virus enters the body until symptoms appear, is usually one to three days.

Treatment

Treatment for uncomplicated influenza includes bed rest, adequate fluid intake, relief of cough and sore throat symptoms, and aspirin or acetaminophen to reduce fever.

The flu vaccine is usually around 80 percent effective in preventing illness from influenza virus. This means that it is possible to get influenza after having the vaccine, but even when illness occurs symptoms are usually less severe and complications less frequent.

It takes at least two weeks to build immunity after getting your shot. The vaccine itself cannot cause you to get the flu because it does not contain any live virus.

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