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Joni Stasiak MD
Steve Stasiak MD
Care for the entire family...
So why do we care which one of these you have? Mainly because of Influenza. Influenza can have serious complications such as pneumonia, dehydration, and hospitalization. Certain people have a higher chance of getting these complications. People at risk are those over age 65, those with certain medical problems (like asthma, diabetes, heart disease), pregnant women, and young children.
Because of the potential complications of influenza, we recommend the “flu shot” to those at risk patients to help prevent the illness. Even if you are not considered to be at risk, the flu shot is not a bad idea since the side effects are low, and the flu is just plain miserable to have.
I do hear the common misconception about the flu shot on almost a daily basis...”Last time I got that flu shot, I got the flu” or “I was sick all winter” and so on and so on. The flu shot does not cause you to catch the “flu”, so most likely you had the flu shot and then caught either acute nasopharyngitis or gastroenteritis, which you would have caught wether you had the flu shot or not...so if you do get the “flu” after having a flu shot, at least you know it is not Influenza!
Lets face it, the word “flu” is a bit generic and can refer to several different types of illnesses. Most people use the word to describe three different illnesses: Influenza, Gastroenteritis, or Acute Nasopharyngitis.
Influenza is the type of flu that we give “flu shots” for each year. It is also called the seasonal flu and mainly causes high fever, dry cough, and body aches.
Gastroenteritis is also known as the “stomach flu” and causes intestinal symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. It is not caused by the influenza virus so the flu shot does not protect you from this.
Acute nasopharyngitis is basically the “common cold” and usually causes runny nose, sore throat, sneezing, and cough. Some of these symptoms are similar to influenza but influenza is usually more intense, especially the fever and body aches. The flu shot does not prevent nasopharyngitis.
The word “flu” means different things to different people and gets confusing. Lets try to clear it up a bit.
It’s a bit confusing...
