Flu jab and possible reaction

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andya700

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Had my flu jab Saturday morning and started feeling rough in the afternoon. Yesterday I had a fever and shivering, and couldn't sleep last night, had to get up several times and towel myself off. Today I feel the same, but also had dry choking fits, also don't have much appetite and feel really tired.
Last year I had the flu jab (I know they are different each year) at about this time, and then came down with the worst flu I have ever had in early December, which lasted over Christmas right through to January.
I don't really feel like going to the doc, because what can they do?
I am sweating buckets at the moment, but five minutes ago felt chilly.
The only upside was that I was a kilo lighter this morning!
 
It sounds like you were given an attenuated vaccine, where you get a mild infection, but the virus is limited in how far it spreads through your body. The shivers and sweats just confirm the vaccine is working - chances are a native flu infection would make you a lot sicker (many who think they have flu just have a nasty cold).
 
Had mine last Monday, no real issues. I did have "grumbling bowels" ( As in I looked out of the window on Monday night and asked myself, "where is that running water I can hear" only to realise it was my stomach) but other than that all OK.
 
Had mine a few weeks ago , actually stung like a wasp bite this time and this years made my arm extremely tender and sore with my elbow playing up for over a week , easing off now thankfully
 
Ever since the NHS was giving out free flue jabs my wife and I have had them. I don't remember either of us having a bad reaction, our son did though, he was quite ill. Strange how it affects some and not others. The GP's at our local practice say that you do not get flue from the injection.
 
swiftflo said:
Ever since the NHS was giving out free flue jabs my wife and I have had them. I don't remember either of us having a bad reaction, our son did though, he was quite ill. Strange how it affects some and not others. The GP's at our local practice say that you do not get flue from the injection.
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Actually the attenuated vaccine gives you flu, but not a form that can progress very far. You can't 'catch' flu from the vaccine.
 
Couple of years ago some friends had them. They both got very sick within a few days. It really put them off vaccinations. The chap said he had not felt that bad for decades.

My housemate this year got no ill effects.
 
Arm and shoulder was numb for a few days and got a bit snotty, latter could be down to allergies though.
 
attenuated flu is the nasal one only, not the jab plus its usually for the under 17s.

People do have reactions to the flu jab as with any medication plus the vaccine only helps protect you against a few strains, it does not actually prevent flu. Then you could react to the antibiotics that are built into it or if you have an allergy to eggs too. Then theres the formaldehyde which is carcinogenic but it's only a small amount.
 
Donnie said:
attenuated flu is the nasal one only, not the jab plus its usually for the under 17s.

People do have reactions to the flu jab as with any medication plus the vaccine only helps protect you against a few strains, it does not actually prevent flu. Then you could react to the antibiotics that are built into it or if you have an allergy to eggs too. Then theres the formaldehyde which is carcinogenic but it's only a small amount.
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Serious question here....Why do they build in antibiotics to an anti-viral vaccine?
 
Got mine a little while ago, got a swollen and aching arm. Lasted a few days, and that was it.
 
viv1969 said:
Serious question here....Why do they build in antibiotics to an anti-viral vaccine?
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After a little digging:

Ingredients
Several different brands of flu vaccine are used in the UK each flu season. For full information on ingredients, ask for the Patient Information Leaflet for the vaccine you are offered, or look the brand name up on the electronic Medicines Compendium (eMC) .

Inactivated flu vaccines usually contain very small amounts of egg proteins (ovalbumin), as the virus is often grown on hens’ eggs. People who are allergic to eggs should ask their doctor for advice. With specialist medical advice, they may be able to receive a vaccine with a very low ovalbumin content. See more information on egg proteins in vaccines. Public Health England have produced an information sheet showing the ovalbumin content of flu vaccines in the current flu season.

Inactivated flu vaccines used in the UK often contain very small amounts of the following ingredients:

Fluad, the vaccine recommended for people aged 65 and over, contains a small amount of an adjuvant called MF59. Adjuvants are substances which help to strengthen and lengthen the immune response to the vaccine. The main ingredient in MF59 is squalene oil, a naturally-occurring oil found in humans, plants and animals.

Flu vaccines may also contain tiny traces of these products used during the manufacturing process:

  • antibiotics (gentamicin, neomycin, kanamycin or polymyxin), used to stop bacteria growing and contaminating the vaccine
  • formaldehyde, an organic compound used to inactivate (kill) the viruses
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http://vk.ovg.ox.ac.uk/inactivated-flu-vaccine

Hopefully the formaldehyde and antibiotics are in trace amounts left over from cell culture & subsequent inactivation. It's disappointing that flu is still being produced in eggs, when recombinant technology is pretty much universally available and likely more cost effective too now. FWIW I did grow flu (and chlamydia) in eggs back in the early 80's, and it was 'old tech' even then.

Donnie said:
attenuated flu is the nasal one only, not the jab plus its usually for the under 17s.
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Interesting, and curious that it's for juveniles.
 
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