A new study conducted by the Cleveland Clinic reveals that getting the flu vaccine this year doesn’t increase the risk of getting coronavirus. It doesn’t increase the mortality rate or complications associated with COVID-19 which was a prime concern of many health experts a few weeks ago.
As the flu season is approaching, the majority of health experts were worried about the situation this fall. Many of them even called this fall to be a ‘twindemic’ situation where flu and COVID-19 risk will run side by side. Some of them even shared that getting the flu vaccine may put a person’s health at risk by making him more likely to contract coronavirus.
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But this new study reveals that these two have no link and getting flu shots is mandatory to reduce getting sick by the influenza virus. The complete study findings are now published in the Journal of Clinical and Translational Science.
Flu is not deadly for most people and they only take a few days to recover from it, sometimes even without medicines. But others, especially those with underlying medical conditions are likely to develop extreme complications of flu which may make them hospitalized. As the flu season has almost started people are worried about what will happen if they got flu and coronavirus together.
Seasonal flu attacks are predictable and people who are sensitive are more likely to get them. In case they don’t get a flu vaccine on time, this ordinary-looking infection can even make them rush to the hospital. Not many people realize but CDC reports more than 30,000 deaths each year caused by flu.
This year, the risk is much higher as there is already an on-going pandemic which is restricting people to stay indoors, avoid unnecessary visits to the hospitals, and take care of their health.
This new study conducted by dr. Joe Zein is a pulmonologist from the Cleveland Clinic. He investigated 13,000 people who were screened for COVID-19 at the clinic in March-April this year.
He analyzed the patients who didn’t get flu shots (9,082) with those who got unadjuvanted vaccines (4,138 patients) last year. It revealed that the flu vaccine had no effect on the increased risk of COVID-19. It has also no impact on the severity of symptoms, hospitalization, and death caused by the coronavirus.
Dr. Zein says that these findings reveal that everyone should go for regular flu shots despite being in the middle of an ongoing pandemic. It is best to get flu shots on time before it is too late and there is absolutely no risk of coronavirus associated with flu vaccines.
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There is not much information on how COVID-19 and influenza infection may go together but the basic pathological information says that sticking to the flu vaccines is the best idea.
The situation with an increase in COVOD-19 cases is not promising as the current pandemic has revealed major flaws in healthcare systems. Regarding the approaching flu season, there is uncertainty but for the safe side, getting the vaccination is probably the best idea. Dr. Zein urges people to get the flu shots and advise more people to go for it.
