Flu Season could be Bad, CDC Says

Dec. 04--Local doctors continue to urge patients to get their flu shots, even though U.S. health officials say the vaccine may not be as effective this season.

Although still in its earliest stages, flu season has begun to develop, and officials say the vaccine does not protect well against the dominant strain seen most commonly so far this year. That strain tends to cause more deaths and hospitalizations, especially in the elderly.

"Though we cannot predict what will happen the rest of this flu season, it's possible we may have a season that's more severe than most," Dr. Tom Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told the Associated Press at a news conference Thursday.

CDC officials think the vaccine should provide some protection and still are urging people to get vaccinated. But it probably won't be as good as if the vaccine strain was a match.

Dr. Harold Ashcraft, infection control director for Conemaugh Health System, echoed that advice.

Apparently, only one strain of flu has mutated enough that it isn't covered by the vaccine, Ashcraft said, explaining that there are usually three or four strains of dead virus in the vaccine.

"You are still protecting a lot of people against some strains of the flu," he said.

If you catch the flu despite getting your shot, the symptoms may not be as severe, Somerset Hospital's director of infection prevention said.

"If a flu vaccine is not a good match for the most widely circulating strain of the flu virus, it can still provide some protection against the virus by lessening the severity of symptoms," Stephanie Faidley said.

"Antibodies made in response to vaccination with one flu virus can sometimes provide protection against different but related viruses."

The CDC issued an advisory on Wednesday evening to doctors about the situation.

CDC officials said doctors should be on the lookout for patients who may be at higher risk for flu complications and consider treating them immediately with antiviral medications.

If a patient is very sick or at high risk, a doctor shouldn't wait for a positive flu test result to prescribe the drugs -- especially this year, CDC officials said.

But the antiviral medicine is expensive, and must be prescribed by a physician within

48 hours of the onset of symptoms, the Johns-town Free Medical Clinic's medical director said.

"There are side effects with the (antivirals)," Dr. Loretta Opila said from the free clinic. "It will only shorten your duration of symptoms by one or two days."

What's more, the antivirals' effectiveness can vary for different strains of influenza virus, Ashcraft said.

"Viruses are difficult to treat," he said.

Antivirals can be a valuable tool, Windber Medical Center's quality and safety practitioner said.

"If you begin to show signs and symptoms of the flu -- even if you received the vaccine -- please notify your physician so that you may start on the antivirals," nurse Carol Pugh said. "These medications assist with shortening the signs and symptoms."

All the local health care expert continue to support flu shots.

"I don't think people should change anything they are doing," Opila said. "There is only one strain that it's not good for."

In fact, Johnstown Free Medical Clinic is stepping up efforts to get the word out on its free flu shot clinic from 11 a.m. to

2 p.m. Monday at the 340 Main St. clinic.

"We feel it's extremely important that people get the flu shot," clinic Executive Director Rosalie Danchanko said.

Among infectious diseases, flu is considered one of the nation's leading killers. On average, about 24,000 Americans die each flu season, according to the CDC.

Nearly 150 million doses of flu vaccine have been distributed for this winter's flu season.

Vaccine developers started working on this year's formula last winter, Ashcraft said.

"They sample different parts of the globe to see what's most likely to come here," he said.

One of the vaccine components chosen last February was a certain strain of the H3N2 virus. About a month later -- after vaccine production was underway -- health officials noted the appearance new and different strain of H3N2.

"This is not something that's been around before," Frieden said.

Health officials said they weren't sure if the new strain would become a significant problem in the United States this winter until recently. Lab specimens from patients have shown that the most commonly seen flu bug so far is the new strain of H3N2. Specifically, about 48 percent of the H3N2 samples seen so far were well matched to what's in the vaccine, but

52 percent were not, the CDC said.

CDC officials believe H3N2 will be the most common flu bug this winter.

Randy Griffith is a multimedia reporter for The Tribune-Democrat. He can be reached at 532-5057. Follow him on Twitter @PhotoGriffer57.

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