Flu vaccine: still probably for the best

[steuard]

Last weekend, I decided to go ahead and take advantage of the college's flu vaccination offerings. I had a choice between a shot and a nasal spray.

With the shot, you get jabbed with a needle that squirts dead flu viruses into your arm. This inspires your body to produce antibodies to them, so side effects may include a sore arm, fever, and aches.

With the nasal spray, you get live flu-like viruses squirted up your nose. They're designed to be inactive in internal body heat, so they can infect your nose and possibly throat but not your lungs. Not surprisingly, side effects may include runny nose, headache, sore throat, and a cough.

I opted for the nasal spray, but maybe I should have just opted for a different week: I've got to grade exams, but I've felt tired and sniffly for days. Annoying, that. (It may not be entirely the vaccine's fault, but I'd be surprised if there were no connection at all.)

Comments

[feuervogel]

Well, it's a live attenuated virus, so it *will* replicate and produce (generally) milder symptoms as your immune system kicks in and starts sending cytokines and pro-inflammatory agents to kill those bugs.

Most symptoms from (most common) viral infections are actually from your immune system, not from the virus itself. (Bacterial infections are a different story; some of them produce toxins that cause symptoms.)

http://merck.com/mmhe/sec17/ch198/ch198a.html
http://www.merck.com/mmhe/sec17/ch190/ch190a.html