With Fresno’s flu season around the corner, time to roll up the sleeve and get a shot

The runny nose you have now most likely is a simple head cold, but influenza season is around the corner, and public health officials say it’s time to get a flu shot.

“We would prefer people get their vaccine sooner, rather than later,” said Dr. Dee Lacy, an infectious disease specialist at Kaiser Permanente-Fresno.

Flu season officially starts next month, but it takes about two weeks for a flu shot to provide protection, and “we recommend people get vaccinated now so they’re ready when the flu hits,” Lacy said.

Health officials say there’s no way to to know how severe this flu season will be until it hits, but each year, influenza causes hospitalizations and even deaths. Last season, for example, four people died in Fresno County of complications from the flu, said Natalia Vargas-Leanos, a health education specialist for the Fresno County Department of Public Health.

The influenza vaccine was a poor match for virus strains that circulated in the United States in 2014-15, but public health officials are hopeful this season’s vaccine will be effective.

The influenza A (H3N2) and influenza B (Yamagata lineage) strains have been updated to match the viruses Californians are likely to encounter, the state Department of Public Health said this month.

Flu vaccine is recommended for anyone ages 6 months and older, but it’s particularly a good idea for people with chronic lung conditions, such as asthma, said Tammie Weyker, spokeswoman for the Tulare County health department. Children, the elderly, pregnant women and people with weakened immune systems also are at greater risk of complications from the flu, she said.

Vaccine supplies are ample, health officials said. And there’s a mercury-free vaccine available for children and pregnant women and a nasal-spray vaccine for people ages 2 to 49 who are healthy and don’t have asthma. And there’s a high-dose vaccine that seniors can request. “Mainly, we want everyone to get a vaccine,” Lacy said.

Madera County Health Director Van Do-Reynoso’s take-home message: “Vaccine is the only reliable way for people to be protected against the flu and transmitting it to others, perhaps to the vulnerable – the children and the seniors.”

Health departments, such as the Kings County Health Department, offer flu shots at various days and various times. The county clinics are designed to help people who are without health insurance or are under-insured. No one is turned away for inability to pay. Vaccine also is available at some retail stores and pharmacies, and doctors should have supplies.

This story was originally published October 7, 2015 at 4:19 PM with the headline "With Fresno’s flu season around the corner, time to roll up the sleeve and get a shot."