@ Jiaxing people, this vaccine has arrived in Jiaxing, so hurry to get it before the epidemic season.
Remember the flu "shock wave" this spring? The resurgence of influenza A (H1N1) subtype caused the school to suspend classes in a large area, and the children who had returned to school were returned home because of the flu. However, the affected children have suffered a lot, and symptoms such as headache, high fever and cough are indispensable, and parents are also worried.
As the weather gets colder and the seasons change alternately, the influenza virus becomes active. Prevent the flu, get vaccinated, now!
What is the flu?
Influenza, referred to as "flu" for short, is usually an acute respiratory infectious disease caused by influenza A or B virus. It is highly contagious and people are generally susceptible. The main manifestations are acute onset, severe systemic symptoms, sudden chills, fever, headache, systemic aches, stuffy nose, runny nose, dry cough, chest pain and other symptoms. Unlike the common cold, influenza is prone to pneumonia. In severe cases, acute respiratory distress syndrome and septicemia may occur, and if not treated in time, it may even lead to death.
Harm of influenza
Influenza brings huge health burden and economic burden to the world every year. According to the estimate of the World Health Organization (WHO), influenza can cause 3-5 million severe cases and 290,000-650,000 respiratory disease-related deaths worldwide every year. More than 90% of the influenza outbreaks reported in China every year occur in schools and kindergartens. School crowds gather, and influenza epidemic will not only lead to large-scale school suspension, parents’ absenteeism, but also aggravate community spread. A study suggests that in 2019, the national influenza-related economic burden was 26.381 billion yuan, accounting for about 0.266% of the GDP of that year.
Who needs to be vaccinated against influenza?
All people over 6 months old who are willing to be vaccinated and have no contraindications can be vaccinated against influenza.
The Technical Guide for Influenza Vaccination in China (2023-2024) gives priority to the following key and high-risk groups for timely vaccination:
1. Medical personnel: including clinical rescue personnel, public health personnel and health and quarantine personnel;
2. Older people aged 60 and over;
3. Suffering from one or more chronic diseases;
4, pension institutions, long-term care institutions, welfare homes and other places where people gather;
5. Pregnant women;
Children aged 6, 6-59 months;
Family members and caregivers of infants under 7 and 6 months old;
8. People in key places: kindergartens, primary and secondary schools, supervision places, etc.
Why do you need to get the flu vaccine every year?
Because the annual flu vaccine is "limited". Influenza virus is a single-stranded, negative-stranded, segmented RNA virus, which is very easy to mutate, and the epidemic strains may be different every year. In order to match the ever-changing influenza virus, one or more strains of influenza vaccine recommended by WHO will be updated in most seasons. Compared with the last flu season, this year’s WHO recommendation replaced the A(H1N1) subtype strain.
In addition, the antibody level after influenza vaccination generally decreases gradually within 6-8 months after vaccination, so vaccination once a year can achieve the best preventive effect.
When is the right time to get the flu vaccine?
Usually after 2-4 weeks of influenza vaccination, antibodies with protective level can be produced. It is best for people over 6 months old to complete influenza vaccination before the local influenza epidemic season every year, and they can also be vaccinated throughout the influenza epidemic season. Vaccination as soon as possible means protection as soon as possible. The peak of influenza in autumn and winter in our city is usually from November to January of the following year. Now vaccination is protected just before the high incidence of influenza!
What’s the difference between trivalent and tetravalent influenza?
The so-called trivalent and tetravalent influenza vaccine refers to the types of influenza virus strains contained in the vaccine.
Low trivalent influenza vaccine coverage strain: H1N1+H3N2+BV
Low tetravalent influenza vaccine coverage strain: H1N1+H3N2+BV+BY.
In addition to the common influenza split vaccine, there is also a live attenuated influenza vaccine by nasal spray, which is absorbed into the body through the nasal mucosa, thus producing mucosal immunity, humoral immunity and cellular immunity, thus achieving the purpose of preventing influenza. The target of vaccination is people aged 3-17. If children are afraid of injections and unwilling to cooperate, try nasal spray vaccination.
There is another big change in this year’s influenza vaccine, that is, the universal tetravalent vaccine for children and adults has appeared for the first time, which has achieved the unification of vaccination dosage forms for infants, adolescents, adults and the elderly, thus effectively improving the convenience of influenza vaccination and expanding the accessibility of vaccines.
Citizens in need
You can choose vaccination clinic consultation and vaccination nearby.
There are enough influenza vaccines this year. At present, all counties (cities, districts) in our city have supplies. For details, the general public and friends can contact the vaccination clinic where their current address is located for consultation or pay attention to the information released by their official WeChat official account.
List of influenza vaccination clinics in Jiaxing City
Please refer to the outpatient work arrangement for the specific vaccination time!