Selected Podcast
Flu
Flu season is here and while the flu is often unpredictable, most flu activity in the US often begins to increase in October and tends to peak between December and February. Getting a yearly flu vaccine has always been recommended for everyone 6 months and older, but Dr. Anand Kaji is here to discuss how things have changed in this regard in light of COVID-19.
Featuring:
Anand Kaji, MD
Anand Kaji, MD is a Board-Certified Internist and Member of the Clinical Faculty.Transcription:
Prakash Chandran (Host): This COVID-19 St. Francis Medical Center podcast was recorded on October 11th, 2021. The flu season is here. And while flu is unpredictable, most flu activity in the US often begins to increase in October and peaks between December and February. Getting a yearly flu vaccine has always been recommended for everyone six months and older.
But how have things changed, especially in light of COVID? We're going to talk about it today with Anand Kaji, a Board Certified Internist and the Ambulatory Clinic Director at St. Francis Medical Center. This is the St. Francis Medical Center podcast. My name is Prakash Chandran. So Dr. Kaji, really great to have you here today. Let's start with a high level basic question around what exactly is the flu.
Anand Kaji, MD (Guest): Hi Prakash. It's great to be here on the podcast and yes, I'm happy to answer questions about flu. So in general terms, flu is a contagious respiratory illness. It's caused by influenza virus that typically infects the nose, the throat, and sometimes the lungs. It can cause most people mild illnesses, but in certain segments of the population, particularly adults above 65 years of age, it can sometimes cause severe type of illnesses and it can even lead to hospitalizations.
Host: Yeah. And you know, we talk about the flu season itself and tell us why it happens kind of during these months of October and November into the early months of January and February.
Dr. Kaji: It's one of those phenomenon where in our part of the world, we typically see the flu around these periods where in the other parts of the world, the flu typically starts in the spring. It's just one of those primary respiratory illnesses that we get at this time of the year. And that's why it's so important for all of us to be vaccinated because the vaccines do a great job of protecting us and covering most strains of influenza that are circulating in our community right now. But generally in these typical months, September from September til January is when the influenza viruses are really present in Northern hemisphere.
Host: Yeah. One of the things I wanted to dive a little bit deeper into is, you know, you're saying that it's so important to get vaccinated every year and there's different strains floating around. Can you speak to at a high level, how the mutations of the flu happen and then how these vaccines work to address them?
Dr. Kaji: Sure happy to do that. So, as we've all been through this unfortunate pandemic last year, where we dealt with COVID-19 and now we're dealing with different mutations of the same virus with the new Delta variant, just coming out recently a few months ago; a similar concept happens with influenza where different strains of the viruses come out and the virus, as it spreads through the community, it takes on a different form.
It's typically called a mutation. When that happens, is when that the viruses, you know, comes out and mutates and becomes into a different kind of a form. And that's why it's important that we get a flu vaccine every single year, because what we do is we typically take the vaccine that we have, and we target the most common variants that are out there.
And mind you, we do this, we make this vaccine in the beginning of the year, around March and April. And then we take that vaccine. We usually cover the most common strains with that vaccine. And then that usually does a great job of covering the most dominant strains that are present this particular season in our region.
Host: Okay. Understood. And when exactly should you get a flu shot?
Dr. Kaji: September and October, are generally good times to get vaccinated. Ideally, everyone should be vaccinated by the end of October, especially adults over 65 years of age, and anyone from six months onwards. From six months from a baby to now should get vaccinated because the protection in this particular group above 65 years of age may decrease over time. And so it's important to get vaccinated before the end of October.
Host: Okay, understood. So, this is similar to what you were saying with COVID is the flu is something that is mutating all the time. And researchers and scientists are coming up with vaccines that get most of the strains in the early parts of the year. And then in October, that's when those vaccines are then distributed to the public and we should all get them to basically stay protected. Is that correct?
Dr. Kaji: Correct. Even if you get the flu, the vaccine should prevent you from undergoing a severe illness. And also if you don't get the flu, then well you got lucky this year, but the vaccine again, does a great job of covering the most dominant strengths that are out there. And that's why we always recommend, as healthcare providers for all our patients to get an annual flu vaccine.
Host: Now I want to ask something that's potentially a little bit contentious, but there's going to be people, and there are certainly people in my friends and family circle that just decide not to get the flu vaccine. And it seems like sometimes nothing ever happens to them. So, can you speak to a little bit about how prevalent the flu is and what might you say to the people that say, like, I don't really need a flu vaccine.
Dr. Kaji: Well, I think that's a common concern and that's for multitude of reasons that people don't want the flu vaccine. Some people say that they got the flu from getting the flu vaccine, which is impossible. You can't get the flu from the flu vaccine. Some people say that they never get the flu, why should they get the vaccine? And again, as I said before, you got lucky and that's great. And while that may be great, we have a very efficacious tool here that does a great job of protecting you and protecting your loved ones as well.
Because when you get the flu, you can, also serve as a source of a reservoir where you may be spreading it to your loved ones or your family members or people who live with you, who may be younger than six months of age, or they may be older than 65 years of age. So there's a lot you could do by getting the flu vaccine, not just protecting yourself, but protecting the community around you as well.
Host: Okay, that makes sense. So I want to dive into some of the symptoms that tell you that you might actually have the flu, especially as it relates to how it differs from that of COVID-19.
Dr. Kaji: Prakash, that's a great question. So let's just take a step back and let's talk about how are the viruses similar and then how are they a little different? So as we already went into the details about the flu vaccine. COVID itself, COVID-19 is also contagious respiratory illness. Commonly it's also caused by different viruses.
Of course, the pandemic was caused by a special strain of it called COVID-19 more commonly known as SARS-COV-2. How is it similar to flu? Very similar in terms of the symptoms, both the symptoms, the symptomology in both COVID and influenza viruses that the patients can get are, you know, fever, cough, shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, fatigue, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, muscle aches, body aches, headaches, even vomiting and diarrhea.
So these symptoms tend to overlap and it's really difficult to tell without testing, if the patient has influenza or has gotten COVID-19. Now the major difference between the two viruses is that flu vaccines tend, oh, I'm sorry, flu itself, the infection will typically start, a patient who has influenza will typically start demonstrating symptoms, the symptoms and signs about in a day or two while in COVID patients who have COVID-19 infections, they'll typically experience their first symptoms about five days after being infected. The symptoms onset can range anywhere between two to 14 days in COVID. But if you had to compare with the flu with the influenza, the symptoms are a little bit more delayed in patients who are infected with COVID-19.
Host: Okay. So is it then fair to say that the way to stay, I guess the most protected, not only for yourself, but the loved ones around you is to really get both vaccinations.
Dr. Kaji: Absolutely. And for people who are candidates for the booster shot, right now, only Pfizer has been approved. People who have received the original Pfizer vaccines are approved for the booster vaccines. I highly recommend that those have received the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine also get the booster shot and you can also get the flu vaccine at the same time, on different arms, obviously, but you're going to be sore on both arms, you're doing yourself a great service by getting both vaccines at the same time.
Host: Okay. So I was just going to ask that question, but you're saying that it is 100% okay to get both vaccines at the same time.
Dr. Kaji: Absolutely. So if you haven't been vaccinated yet with COVID-19 vaccine, I recommend you get that. And if you already have, then I recommend if you have the Pfizer, if you received the Pfizer vaccine few months, about six months ago, then you should definitely get the booster shot. And you can discuss that with your healthcare provider.
And at the same time, if your health care providers are also offering the flu vaccine, you should get that as well. Or you can go to your local pharmacy, but you can generally get both these vaccines on the same day on different arms.
Host: Now Dr. Kaji, is there anyone that should not get the flu shot for reasons of I don't know, maybe they have a specialized health concerns or they are there in a certain demographic? Can you speak to that a little bit?
Dr. Kaji: Absolutely. So patients who should not get flu vaccines is if they had a severe allergy to the flu vaccine in the past, then they should discuss with their doctor what kind of a reaction they've had to the flu vaccine in the past. And there are different kinds of reactions that tend to warant much more concern than others. For patients would receive localized reactions from getting a flu vaccine, these patients typically can get another shot of flu vaccine next year, without much concern, but patients who have had generalized symptoms from getting the flu vaccines, something called anaphylactic reaction; these patients should obviously have a very in-depth discussion with the provider to make sure that they are either not candidates for flu vaccine, or are there any other options available?
The other subset of patients that should not get the flu vaccine are patients with allergies to eggs. Now, again, there are new vaccines that have been recently designed for this particular subset of patients who have allergies to eggs, because they could also get the flu vaccine, but they have to let other provider know that they have an allergy that, that they have this allergy and that there are any other options with the flu vaccines that doesn't contain the substance that elicits the allergies.
Host: And, you know, you've mentioned before that it's impossible to get the flu from getting the flu shot, but there are definitely some mild symptoms that you're going to experience after the shot, in addition to soreness in the arms, isn't there?
Dr. Kaji: Correct. There might be, and you may feel like, you know, you are you're, you know, you're under the weather. You may feel like you're tired more that day, but these symptoms typically go away in the next 24 hours and they shouldn't really linger on. The alternative unfortunately is far worse. Getting the flu itself well that will last a long time in your body and wreak havoc on your body. So the vaccine itself should not elicit the same degree of flu like symptoms, but may cause fatigue, may cause a little bit of feeling of being under the weather.
Host: Okay. Understood. So just as we close here today, Dr. Kaji, is there anything else that you would like our audience to know about the flu or the flu shot?
Dr. Kaji: I encourage all of us to get the vaccine. I know that there is a little bit of question amongst all of us that, hey, do I need to really get the flu vaccine this year? It wasn't much of a threat during the pandemic last year. And that's true because we practiced safe distancing. We were all wearing a masks. A lot of us were staying home last year. And so the risk of contracting influenza last year, was much lower than it is this year where we're going back to our normal levels of activity. The holiday season is upon us and we're going back to hustling and bustling.
So, there is a real concern that the flu could spread much quicker this year than it did last year when we were taking all the proper precautions for COVID-19 and the pandemic. So, I encourage everyone again to get the flu vaccine and please talk with your provider for any other questions you may have.
Host: Well, Dr. Kaji, I think that is the perfect place to end. Thank you so much for educating us today.
Dr. Kaji: Thank you so much Prakash for having me. And I thank you again for your time.
Host: Of course, that's Dr. Anand Kaji, a Board Certified Internist and the Ambulatory Clinic Director at St. Francis Medical Center. For more information, you can visit StFrancismedical.org. If you found this podcast helpful, please share it on your social channels and be sure to check out the entire podcast library for topics of interest to you.
My name is Prakash Chandran. Thank you so much. And we'll talk next time.
Prakash Chandran (Host): This COVID-19 St. Francis Medical Center podcast was recorded on October 11th, 2021. The flu season is here. And while flu is unpredictable, most flu activity in the US often begins to increase in October and peaks between December and February. Getting a yearly flu vaccine has always been recommended for everyone six months and older.
But how have things changed, especially in light of COVID? We're going to talk about it today with Anand Kaji, a Board Certified Internist and the Ambulatory Clinic Director at St. Francis Medical Center. This is the St. Francis Medical Center podcast. My name is Prakash Chandran. So Dr. Kaji, really great to have you here today. Let's start with a high level basic question around what exactly is the flu.
Anand Kaji, MD (Guest): Hi Prakash. It's great to be here on the podcast and yes, I'm happy to answer questions about flu. So in general terms, flu is a contagious respiratory illness. It's caused by influenza virus that typically infects the nose, the throat, and sometimes the lungs. It can cause most people mild illnesses, but in certain segments of the population, particularly adults above 65 years of age, it can sometimes cause severe type of illnesses and it can even lead to hospitalizations.
Host: Yeah. And you know, we talk about the flu season itself and tell us why it happens kind of during these months of October and November into the early months of January and February.
Dr. Kaji: It's one of those phenomenon where in our part of the world, we typically see the flu around these periods where in the other parts of the world, the flu typically starts in the spring. It's just one of those primary respiratory illnesses that we get at this time of the year. And that's why it's so important for all of us to be vaccinated because the vaccines do a great job of protecting us and covering most strains of influenza that are circulating in our community right now. But generally in these typical months, September from September til January is when the influenza viruses are really present in Northern hemisphere.
Host: Yeah. One of the things I wanted to dive a little bit deeper into is, you know, you're saying that it's so important to get vaccinated every year and there's different strains floating around. Can you speak to at a high level, how the mutations of the flu happen and then how these vaccines work to address them?
Dr. Kaji: Sure happy to do that. So, as we've all been through this unfortunate pandemic last year, where we dealt with COVID-19 and now we're dealing with different mutations of the same virus with the new Delta variant, just coming out recently a few months ago; a similar concept happens with influenza where different strains of the viruses come out and the virus, as it spreads through the community, it takes on a different form.
It's typically called a mutation. When that happens, is when that the viruses, you know, comes out and mutates and becomes into a different kind of a form. And that's why it's important that we get a flu vaccine every single year, because what we do is we typically take the vaccine that we have, and we target the most common variants that are out there.
And mind you, we do this, we make this vaccine in the beginning of the year, around March and April. And then we take that vaccine. We usually cover the most common strains with that vaccine. And then that usually does a great job of covering the most dominant strains that are present this particular season in our region.
Host: Okay. Understood. And when exactly should you get a flu shot?
Dr. Kaji: September and October, are generally good times to get vaccinated. Ideally, everyone should be vaccinated by the end of October, especially adults over 65 years of age, and anyone from six months onwards. From six months from a baby to now should get vaccinated because the protection in this particular group above 65 years of age may decrease over time. And so it's important to get vaccinated before the end of October.
Host: Okay, understood. So, this is similar to what you were saying with COVID is the flu is something that is mutating all the time. And researchers and scientists are coming up with vaccines that get most of the strains in the early parts of the year. And then in October, that's when those vaccines are then distributed to the public and we should all get them to basically stay protected. Is that correct?
Dr. Kaji: Correct. Even if you get the flu, the vaccine should prevent you from undergoing a severe illness. And also if you don't get the flu, then well you got lucky this year, but the vaccine again, does a great job of covering the most dominant strengths that are out there. And that's why we always recommend, as healthcare providers for all our patients to get an annual flu vaccine.
Host: Now I want to ask something that's potentially a little bit contentious, but there's going to be people, and there are certainly people in my friends and family circle that just decide not to get the flu vaccine. And it seems like sometimes nothing ever happens to them. So, can you speak to a little bit about how prevalent the flu is and what might you say to the people that say, like, I don't really need a flu vaccine.
Dr. Kaji: Well, I think that's a common concern and that's for multitude of reasons that people don't want the flu vaccine. Some people say that they got the flu from getting the flu vaccine, which is impossible. You can't get the flu from the flu vaccine. Some people say that they never get the flu, why should they get the vaccine? And again, as I said before, you got lucky and that's great. And while that may be great, we have a very efficacious tool here that does a great job of protecting you and protecting your loved ones as well.
Because when you get the flu, you can, also serve as a source of a reservoir where you may be spreading it to your loved ones or your family members or people who live with you, who may be younger than six months of age, or they may be older than 65 years of age. So there's a lot you could do by getting the flu vaccine, not just protecting yourself, but protecting the community around you as well.
Host: Okay, that makes sense. So I want to dive into some of the symptoms that tell you that you might actually have the flu, especially as it relates to how it differs from that of COVID-19.
Dr. Kaji: Prakash, that's a great question. So let's just take a step back and let's talk about how are the viruses similar and then how are they a little different? So as we already went into the details about the flu vaccine. COVID itself, COVID-19 is also contagious respiratory illness. Commonly it's also caused by different viruses.
Of course, the pandemic was caused by a special strain of it called COVID-19 more commonly known as SARS-COV-2. How is it similar to flu? Very similar in terms of the symptoms, both the symptoms, the symptomology in both COVID and influenza viruses that the patients can get are, you know, fever, cough, shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, fatigue, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, muscle aches, body aches, headaches, even vomiting and diarrhea.
So these symptoms tend to overlap and it's really difficult to tell without testing, if the patient has influenza or has gotten COVID-19. Now the major difference between the two viruses is that flu vaccines tend, oh, I'm sorry, flu itself, the infection will typically start, a patient who has influenza will typically start demonstrating symptoms, the symptoms and signs about in a day or two while in COVID patients who have COVID-19 infections, they'll typically experience their first symptoms about five days after being infected. The symptoms onset can range anywhere between two to 14 days in COVID. But if you had to compare with the flu with the influenza, the symptoms are a little bit more delayed in patients who are infected with COVID-19.
Host: Okay. So is it then fair to say that the way to stay, I guess the most protected, not only for yourself, but the loved ones around you is to really get both vaccinations.
Dr. Kaji: Absolutely. And for people who are candidates for the booster shot, right now, only Pfizer has been approved. People who have received the original Pfizer vaccines are approved for the booster vaccines. I highly recommend that those have received the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine also get the booster shot and you can also get the flu vaccine at the same time, on different arms, obviously, but you're going to be sore on both arms, you're doing yourself a great service by getting both vaccines at the same time.
Host: Okay. So I was just going to ask that question, but you're saying that it is 100% okay to get both vaccines at the same time.
Dr. Kaji: Absolutely. So if you haven't been vaccinated yet with COVID-19 vaccine, I recommend you get that. And if you already have, then I recommend if you have the Pfizer, if you received the Pfizer vaccine few months, about six months ago, then you should definitely get the booster shot. And you can discuss that with your healthcare provider.
And at the same time, if your health care providers are also offering the flu vaccine, you should get that as well. Or you can go to your local pharmacy, but you can generally get both these vaccines on the same day on different arms.
Host: Now Dr. Kaji, is there anyone that should not get the flu shot for reasons of I don't know, maybe they have a specialized health concerns or they are there in a certain demographic? Can you speak to that a little bit?
Dr. Kaji: Absolutely. So patients who should not get flu vaccines is if they had a severe allergy to the flu vaccine in the past, then they should discuss with their doctor what kind of a reaction they've had to the flu vaccine in the past. And there are different kinds of reactions that tend to warant much more concern than others. For patients would receive localized reactions from getting a flu vaccine, these patients typically can get another shot of flu vaccine next year, without much concern, but patients who have had generalized symptoms from getting the flu vaccines, something called anaphylactic reaction; these patients should obviously have a very in-depth discussion with the provider to make sure that they are either not candidates for flu vaccine, or are there any other options available?
The other subset of patients that should not get the flu vaccine are patients with allergies to eggs. Now, again, there are new vaccines that have been recently designed for this particular subset of patients who have allergies to eggs, because they could also get the flu vaccine, but they have to let other provider know that they have an allergy that, that they have this allergy and that there are any other options with the flu vaccines that doesn't contain the substance that elicits the allergies.
Host: And, you know, you've mentioned before that it's impossible to get the flu from getting the flu shot, but there are definitely some mild symptoms that you're going to experience after the shot, in addition to soreness in the arms, isn't there?
Dr. Kaji: Correct. There might be, and you may feel like, you know, you are you're, you know, you're under the weather. You may feel like you're tired more that day, but these symptoms typically go away in the next 24 hours and they shouldn't really linger on. The alternative unfortunately is far worse. Getting the flu itself well that will last a long time in your body and wreak havoc on your body. So the vaccine itself should not elicit the same degree of flu like symptoms, but may cause fatigue, may cause a little bit of feeling of being under the weather.
Host: Okay. Understood. So just as we close here today, Dr. Kaji, is there anything else that you would like our audience to know about the flu or the flu shot?
Dr. Kaji: I encourage all of us to get the vaccine. I know that there is a little bit of question amongst all of us that, hey, do I need to really get the flu vaccine this year? It wasn't much of a threat during the pandemic last year. And that's true because we practiced safe distancing. We were all wearing a masks. A lot of us were staying home last year. And so the risk of contracting influenza last year, was much lower than it is this year where we're going back to our normal levels of activity. The holiday season is upon us and we're going back to hustling and bustling.
So, there is a real concern that the flu could spread much quicker this year than it did last year when we were taking all the proper precautions for COVID-19 and the pandemic. So, I encourage everyone again to get the flu vaccine and please talk with your provider for any other questions you may have.
Host: Well, Dr. Kaji, I think that is the perfect place to end. Thank you so much for educating us today.
Dr. Kaji: Thank you so much Prakash for having me. And I thank you again for your time.
Host: Of course, that's Dr. Anand Kaji, a Board Certified Internist and the Ambulatory Clinic Director at St. Francis Medical Center. For more information, you can visit StFrancismedical.org. If you found this podcast helpful, please share it on your social channels and be sure to check out the entire podcast library for topics of interest to you.
My name is Prakash Chandran. Thank you so much. And we'll talk next time.
powered by: 