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New study shows that those who receive flu vaccines are more likely to spread the flu than those who are unvaccinated. Authors conclude that with additional confirmation, this could impact vaccination policies.
Infectious virus in exhaled breath of symptomatic seasonal influenza cases from a college community
Jing Yan, Michael Grantham, Jovan Pantelic, P. Jacob Bueno de Mesquita, Barbara Albert, Fengjie Liu, Sheryl Ehrman, Donald K. Milton and EMIT Consortium
PNAS 2018; published ahead of print January 18, 2018, https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1716561115
Self-reported vaccination for the current season was associated with a trend (P < 0.10) toward higher viral shedding in fine-aerosol samples; vaccination with both the current and previous year’s seasonal vaccines, however, was significantly associated with greater fine-aerosol shedding in unadjusted and adjusted models (P < 0.01).
In adjusted models, we observed 6.3 (95% CI 1.9–21.5) times more aerosol shedding among cases with vaccination in the current and previous season compared with having no vaccination in those two seasons.
Vaccination was not associated with coarse-aerosol or NP shedding (P > 0.10). The association of vaccination and shedding was significant for influenza A (P = 0.03) but not for influenza B (P = 0.83) infections (Table S4).
The association of current and prior year vaccination with increased shedding of influenza A might lead one to speculate that certain types of prior immunity promote lung inflammation, airway closure, and aerosol generation. This first observation of the phenomenon needs confirmation. If confirmed, this observation, together with recent literature suggesting reduced protection with annual vaccination, would have implications for influenza vaccination recommendations and policies.
I have never received a flu shot and never get the flu. I am not elderly or in a high risk group. Perhaps if I was I might.
What I don't get is if the flu shot is so great and so many more people each year are getting the shot why is this year so terrible?
What is interesting is I have a friend who works in a hospital just across the border in Mexico. Mexicans are much less likely to get the flu shot yet they have no big issues with the flu this year. And tens of thousands of people cross back and forth across the border daily it could have spread.
The association of current and prior year vaccination with increased shedding of influenza A might lead one to speculate that certain types of prior immunity promote lung inflammation, airway closure, and aerosol generation.
This first observation of the phenomenon needs confirmation.
one study with 355 study participants doesn't support the assertion in your post, newtovenice.
the researchers in the research paper don't make your assertion and, in fact, specifically say that in their paper this is a "first observation" which needs confirmation.
The association of current and prior year vaccination with increased shedding of influenza A might lead one to speculate that certain types of prior immunity promote lung inflammation, airway closure, and aerosol generation.
This first observation of the phenomenon needs confirmation.
one study with 355 study participants doesn't support the assertion in your post, newtovenice.
the researchers in the research paper don't make your assertion and, in fact, specifically say that in their paper this is a "first observation" which needs confirmation.
Also, the various strains vary in how infectious they are. The question is how many viral particles does an infected person need to produce in order to infect someone else. If it is only a very small number, then six times that number becomes clinically insignificant.
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