Although there are many ways to help prevent the spread of germs from various illnesses, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) approximately 36,000 people in the United States die every year from the flu.  This may be in part due to the ease in which the illness can spread.  In fact, one could be contagious a full day before exhibiting symptoms and continue to be contagious five days after falling ill.

 

 Influenza and pneumonia were listed together as the eighth leading cause of death in the United States in 2004 at 59,664, which is above CDC’s yearly approximation of 36,000.  For perspective, AIDS deaths totalled 13,063 in the same year.

 Vaccinations are one of the lines of defence used by the healthcare system to prevent the spread of influenza.  The best time to get a flu shot is October or November, but flu season can last through May and shots are often available well into December and later.

 The Charles County Health Department is holding a Family Flu Clinic on Friday Jan. 18 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Department of Health offices at 4545 Crain Highway.

 If you live in St. Mary’s County consult the St. Mary’s Health Department. Although the website states that the department holds flu clinics, it lists no specific dates.

 Calvert County Health Department has a whole list of clinics they’ve held between early October and the end of November.  However, there are no new dates listed.

 Flu shots are not entirely without risk.  Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS), a rare but frightening disease that is also quite mysterious has sometimes emerged in flu shot recipients.

 “Guillain-Barré (pronounced ghee-YAN bah-RAY) syndrome is a disease in which the body damages its own nerve cells (outside of the brain and spinal cord), resulting in muscle weakness and sometimes paralysis. GBS can last for weeks to months. Most people eventually recover completely or nearly completely, but some people have permanent nerve damage and between 5% and 6% of people who develop GBS die. GBS affects people of both sexes and all ages, and has been reported in all races.”

 It is thought that GBS may be triggered by respiratory or intestinal illnesses and also those caused by a bacterium called Campylobacter jejuni. The swine flu vaccine of 1976 was associated with people acquiring GBS.  Several studies since then have evaluated if other flu vaccines were associated