Waynesville Family Practice hosts flu clinic Oct. 1

From Haywood Regional Medical Center:

Flu Clinic on Sat Oct 1^st at Waynesville Family Practice

Flu season is officially here and the Center for Disease Control recommends a yearly flu vaccine for everyone 6 months and older. You should try to get your flu vaccine anytime between now and the end of October, if possible. Flu vaccination can reduce flu illnesses and prevent flu-related hospitalizations. Flu vaccines have been updated for the 2016-2017 season. More than 60 million doses of seasonal influenza vaccine have been distributed at this time.

A walk-in Flu Clinic will be held at Waynesville Family Practice on Saturday Oct 1, 2016 from 8 a.m. until 12 p.m. This clinic is open to current patients and the general public. Please bring your ID and insurance card or form of payment. For questions, call (828) 456-3511.

Influenza (flu) is a contagious respiratory illness caused by influenza viruses. It can cause mild to severe illness. Serious outcomes of flu infection can result in hospitalization or death. Some people, such as older people, young children and people with certain health conditions are at high risk for serious flu complications. The best way to prevent the flu is by getting vaccinated each year.

While current U.S. flu activity is low overall, in the past 2 weeks CDC has received reports of a small number of localized influenza outbreaks. This is not unusual for September. It is not possible to make any predictions about the timing or severity of the upcoming influenza season based on these outbreaks.

Misconceptions about Flu Vaccines: Can a flu shot give you the flu?

No, a flu shot cannot cause flu illness. Flu vaccines given with a needle are currently made in two ways: the vaccine is made either with a) flu vaccine viruses that have been ‘inactivated’ and are therefore not infectious, or b) with no flu vaccine viruses at all (which is the case for recombinant influenza vaccine). The most common side effects from the influenza shot are soreness, redness, tenderness or swelling where the shot was given. Low-grade fever, headache and muscle aches also may occur.

In randomized, blinded studies, where some people get inactivated flu shots and others get salt-water shots, the only differences in symptoms was increased soreness in the arm and redness at the injection site among people who got the flu shot. There were no differences in terms of body aches, fever, cough, runny nose or sore throat.

For more information, visit MyHaywoodRegional.com/Flu or www.flu.gov. If you need a primary care physician, call toll-free (800) 424-DOCS (3627) to be referred to a physician in your area.