Posted: Wednesday, October 14, 2009 2:50 pm | Updated: 7:48 pm, Wed Oct 14, 2009.
By Peter Adelsen Perspective staff writer padelsen@kokomoperspective.com | 0 comments
The Howard County Health Department received an additional 1,900 H1N1 (swine) flu vaccines Tuesday to combat the virus.
"This is a drop in the bucket to what our community needs," said Karen Lopke, H1N1 coordinator for the Howard County Health Department. "So we have to be very selective on who will be getting the vaccine."
The vaccines received were nasal mist, multi-dose and single-dose syringe and will be going to Howard Regional Health System and St. Joseph Hospital, as well as to obstetrics, pediatric and general practitioners, she said.
Lopke said the health department is expecting weekly deliveries of the vaccine. Last week, the department received 800 vaccines.
"I have a good feeling that we will be getting doses that will be increasing each and every week," she said.
She said that the H1N1 flu is much different in terms of who comes down with it than the seasonal flu.
"The seasonal flu usually only affects the older population," she said. "With this flu virus, we are seeing it more prevalent in the younger kids and the pregnant women."
Lopke says the vaccine is safe and she recommends that the vaccine be taken.
Each of the school corporations will be offering a day or two for sixth graders through high school to be vaccinated. She said the parents of the students will receive information about the vaccine, describing when it will take place and a parent consent form.
"Parents should look for that and ask their children for the consent form when it comes home so it just doesn't just lie around," she said.
For younger children between the ages of six months to fifth grade (about 10 years old), Indiana University Kokomo will have a free open clinic for the vaccine. There is no pre-registration and will not be taking names or times. The clinics will be Nov. 8, Nov. 15 and Nov. 22, she said.
Young children may need a second dose of the vaccine because they have not been exposed to the flu virus in their life experiences, she said. A second date may be in early January, she said. The time span between the first dose and the second dose has to be a minimum of 21 days apart, she said.
Lopke says there should be no concern about the vaccine.
"There has been a lot of controversy and rumor," she said. "The vaccine has been made, tested, manufactured by the same companies that have manufactured seasonal flu vaccines for years. So the quality control and the methods of manufacture have been the same and the seasonal flu vaccine has been safe for years."
She said the side-effects from the vaccine are mild and are similar to the seasonal flu vaccine. Some side-effects are soreness in the arm from the shot and flu-like symptoms.
Lopke said that about 90 percent of the flu in the area is H1N1 and they are not getting confirmed unless they have been hospitalized. And for some in hospitals, she said they are not confirming them by test because it is so prevalent. Fortunately the cases in the area have been mild, she said.
"It is a concern because viruses do change and this is going to be a situation where it will come in waves," she said. "We will be going through peaks and valleys in the numbers of people that we see being affected by the flu."
She admits that the medical industry is more prepared now than it was during the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic, but people still need to take precautions.
"This doesn't mean to say that people should take it lightly, they should be vaccinated, especially the pregnant ladies and children," she said.
http://kokomoperspective.com/news/article_905386d2-b8f2-11de-8943-001cc4c002e0.html
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