2009.10.22 19:32:26

Dr. Bryan McEachern

 

It's mid-October!!!!

Good news and bad news, so we'll start with the good news! We have received our government shipment of "Swine Flu" (H1N1) nasal spray vaccine! Children over the age of two years are eligible for receiving this terrific vaccine, which is painless and easily administered. The bad news is that not all children can receive this vaccine. Children with chronic illnesses such as asthma, cystic fibrosis, diabetes mellitus, cardiopulmonary diseases and immunocompromised disorders are not candidates for this spray form of H1N1 immunization.

Not to worry. We should have the injectible form of the H1N1 vaccine for such kids "soon." We are simply dependant on government shipments to make this happen, so please bear with us. The injectible form is approved for all kids over the age of six months, especially those not elligible for the spray form mentioned above.

All children are strongly urged to get one of these two vaccines, shot or nasal spray. Children under 6 months are not allowed to receive either of these. Children with allergies to eggs should not get either vaccine as well, sorry about that.

There is a lot of hoopla and disinformation regarding these vaccines, especially regarding their safety. The media advertisers thrive on such nonsense. Simply put, these immunizations are very safe. I just fired the H1N1 spray up my nose, and I have lived to type about it. (I also gave myself the season flu vaccine the same way over a month ago...with style, of course...).

You are out of your mind if you do not vaccinate your kids against H1N1 influenza, and season influenza for that matter. It is especially important to do so to protect the more fragile members of our society.

See my previous blog for the skinny on H1N1 in general, not too much has changed since I wrote that in the spring. The one exception is that the H1N1 vaccination is now a reality, and it is a reality you and your beloved kids should live with. I urge you to get vaccinated for H1N1 as soon as possible, and do not forget to schedule your seasonal (wintertime) influenza vaccines as well.

Wash your hands, cover when you cough, and be good to each other. We will get through this in one piece if we all work together. I promise.

2009.04.30 19:04:08

Dr. Bryan McEachern

We have been seeing a lot of media attention regarding the new outbreak of a new strain of influenza virus. Please keep in mind that our media derives advertising revenue by making you glue your eyes onto the television. I am just waiting for the gleaming reporter to say, "You could all die in seconds, we'll explain at 11."

 

Swine flu is simply another strain of influenza. It is not the harbinger of the end of days. We already had influenza strain A and B come through our area over the winter. We had vaccinations to help prevent influenza A and B, and that helped keep those viruses away from people who could get very sick from them (like the elderly, people with heart disease, emphysema, severe asthma etc.). The human herd immunity created by the vaccines really did a good job keeping the lid on these viruses this last year.

 

Unfortunately, we do not have a vaccine for swine flu currently, as it has just popped up on the scene. This should not put you in a state of panic. Nonetheless, we should all do things to protect ourselves from this icky nuisance illness, and thus protect the more fragile people in our community who could get really sick with complications from this infection. Also, you can find timely and credible reports at www.cdc.gov.

 

It's really easy to limit the spread of this influenza strain:

1. Cover your mouth when you cough and instruct you kids in this polite and time-honored tradition. It's good manners, and it's effective. You can go the mask route if you want, especially if your kids are hacking away in everyone's faces.
2. Washing your hands a couple times a day is very effective, as is washing off your eyes and nose if someone hacks a goober or some spray into your face. You can use portable hand sanitizers if you like, but a good wash should do.
3. Stay home if you are sick with a high fever, runny nose, cough and feeling just plain yucky. Keep influenza at home, unless you are out seeing your doctor. Don't send kids with high fevers to school, it's not just rude, it's risky.

 

There is some good news with all this. We have two antiviral medications that can have solid impact on this current strain of swine flu. We are also rapidly sorting out how to best detect and confirm a diagnosis of swine flu in the office setting. Interestingly, it does test positive for influenza A on our rapid test kits. We working closely with our health department to keep ourselves to date with our local and national situation, and are prepared to give the health department some field response as well.

 

If you do get the swine flu, drink lots of fluids and consider treating your fever and discomfort with agents like acetaminophen (Tylenol), or ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin). You will come out of it all ok. Do not hesitate to check in with your doctor if things seem to become complicated.