59 people in South Korea died after being vaccinated with influenza. Can they be vaccinated safely？

According to South Korean media reports, as of October 26, South Korea has reported 59 deaths after influenza vaccination. Although people are worried and the number of people vaccinated has dropped sharply, the government has not stopped.

South Korean President Moon Jae in said at the meeting in Cheongwadae that there was no direct causal relationship between the deaths after influenza vaccination and vaccination. In order to prevent influenza and the simultaneous infection and spread of influenza and COVID-19, it is necessary to continue to expand the scope of influenza vaccination. I hope that people will not be too upset, miss the timely vaccination, and accidentally catch the flu with a high mortality rate, which will lead to greater danger.

It is reported that most of the cases that died after influenza vaccination were elderly people over 70 years old, and the shortest death was 4 hours after vaccination, and a 17-year-old boy died 2 days after vaccination.

Every winter and spring is the high-incidence season of influenza. At present, the whole world is in the epidemic stage of COVID-19. Academician Wang Chen, Dr. Zhang Wenhong and other experts recommend influenza vaccination to avoid catching the flu, reduce the chance of going to a fever clinic, and also reduce the chance of co-infection of two viruses and reduce a hidden danger.

Therefore, there are many people in China who want to get the flu vaccine, and there is a great demand for the vaccine. So, how can we vaccinate safely?

Why do vaccination have serious adverse reactions?

First of all, one thing must be affirmed: the vaccine ingredients contained in the flu vaccine will not cause the flu.

But at the same time, as a medicine, influenza vaccine is not absolutely safe. There are a lot of possible adverse reactions, such as redness, induration, pain and burning sensation at the inoculation site. A few people may have systemic reactions, such as fever, headache, dizziness, lethargy, fatigue, myalgia, general discomfort, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain and diarrhea. Most people’s adverse reactions are mild, which can disappear by themselves within 3 days. Serious adverse reactions are very rare. There is no difference in safety between tetravalent influenza vaccine and trivalent influenza vaccine; There is no significant difference in safety between domestic and imported influenza vaccines. Adverse reactions may be related to the following three reasons:

One is immune response. Because influenza vaccine is a medicine made by processing, inactivating, sterilizing and cracking influenza virus, it will simulate the immune response induced by real virus and promote the body to produce antibodies, which is often accompanied by various adverse reactions.

Second, trace endotoxin and impurities may remain in the process of influenza vaccine production and preparation.

Third, it may be a coupling reaction. That is to say, when the flu vaccine is injected, it may just be the incubation period of other diseases, and after the flu vaccine is injected, the disease will break out.

No matter what causes it, if the body’s immune response is too intense, or the original disease is aggravated and serious, and it is not treated in time and properly, serious adverse reactions may occur.

One of the serious adverse reactions is Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS). The annual incidence of GBS in the general population is 10 ~ 20 cases per 1 million adults, which is very rare.

The other is immediate hypersensitivity. Any vaccine has the risk of immediate hypersensitivity. Severe anaphylaxis may be life-threatening, and it usually occurs within minutes to hours after inoculation. Its symptoms include urticaria, angioedema, severe anaphylaxis, etc. The incidence rate is usually 1-2 cases per million people.

Two types of people prone to adverse reactions

Adverse reactions after influenza vaccination may be related to the sensitivity of the immune system of people of different ages. Because children and young people are more sensitive, a slight invasion of harmful substances such as viruses will trigger obvious immune reactions, so the probability of adverse reactions will increase; On the other hand, with the increase of age, the elderly are prone to chronic pain, which is stubborn and difficult to treat. Therefore, all kinds of pain after vaccination will be covered up by chronic pain, so they think that they have no adverse reactions and delayed treatment.

Children: The probability of adverse reactions after influenza vaccination is higher than that of adults, and the most common one is fever. The younger the age, the higher the probability of fever, but it usually disappears on its own after 1-2 days of vaccination. At the same time, the risk of febrile convulsion in children within 1 ~ 2 days after vaccination will also increase.

Elderly: The most common adverse events in adults include injection site pain, fever, myalgia and headache; In the elderly, the pain at the inoculation site is the most common, but the duration is generally less than 2 days, and the degree is usually slight, which basically does not affect daily activities.

A large number of data show that vaccination with inactivated influenza vaccine will not harm pregnant women and fetuses, and will not increase the risk of congenital malformation of fetuses.

Precautions for vaccination

Contraindications for influenza vaccination are those who are allergic to any ingredients (including excipients, formaldehyde, cracking agents and antibiotics) contained in the vaccine; Patients with mild to moderate acute diseases with or without fever symptoms are advised to be vaccinated after the symptoms subside.

It should also be noted that people who are allergic to eggs are not taboo at present, so people who are allergic to eggs can be vaccinated against influenza.

Influenza vaccination can be given during the prevention and treatment of influenza antiviral drugs, and it is suggested that the elderly over 65 should be vaccinated with influenza vaccine and pneumococcal vaccine at the same time.

The common causes of adverse reactions are fasting and psychological factors, and the treatment methods are drinking warm sugar water, keeping warm and keeping a quiet and comfortable environment, and making appropriate psychological adjustment. Local pain and redness can be treated with local dry and hot compress; Respiratory symptoms such as dry mouth and cough can be relieved by drinking warm water.

However, if you feel unwell after vaccination, you should communicate with the doctor of the vaccination institution in time. If the symptoms have not subsided for more than 3 days, you should see a doctor in time.

In a word, influenza has always been an infectious disease that is harmful to health. Now it is the epidemic period in COVID-19. Vaccination of influenza can not only protect itself from influenza virus infection, but also play a good barrier role in the occurrence of influenza in groups. Influenza vaccination should be actively carried out, especially for high-risk groups such as the elderly, children and pregnant women.