Warning about this winter for flu and COVID

[Montero]

Article in the Conversation predicting higher flu and COVID based on data on Australia's winter

Flu is set for a big comeback now COVID restrictions are lifted – here’s what you need to know

People are strongly urged to get a flu shot and a COVID booster shot ahead of the potential ‘twindemic’ expected this winter.

theconversation.com

But a scientist in the comments disagrees with some of their findings - with references. Over to you to see what you think.

 

[HareBrain]

I'm just getting over a cold -- my first for two years -- and that's been bad enough.

 

[Astro Pen]

I'm with commenter Al Mgoo

 

[Toby Frost]

When can I upgrade to Global Brain Control Chip v 2? In seriousness, I've got some kind of cold right now, and I feel rough. I'd be up for booster jabs and the like, but I think I'd be quite low down the national priorities list (which is fair enough).

 

[Montero]

JCVI statement on the COVID-19 booster vaccination programme for autumn 2022: update 3 September 2022

www.gov.uk

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and immunisation (JCVI) previously advised who would be offered a COVID-19 booster vaccine in autumn 2022. This includes:

• residents in a care home for older adults and staff working in care homes for older adults
• frontline health and social care workers
• all adults aged 50 years and over
• persons aged 5 to 49 years in a clinical risk group, as set out in the Green Book
• persons aged 5 to 49 years who are household contacts of people with immunosuppression
• persons aged 16 to 49 years who are carers, as set out in the Green Book

The latest bivalent vaccination came out mid-September and the centres were busy doing the highest priority groups, who should largely be done by now. If you've got a drop in centre in your area you could try ringing them. When the high priority people were being done, they asked anyone who had any kind of infection, not just COVID, to wait until they were better, as they didn't want other people catching it, but I don't know if that is still the case. Try phone 119 - some of the operators are really up to date on the requirements and helpful. (Some less so.)

 

[hitmouse]

It is thought likely that we will see coinciding peaks of covid, flu, and rsv. The fact that covid and flu, and the common cold have similar symptoms and that we are not testing as much means that it is difficult to do precise epidemiology. The points of the first commentator are not mainstream, references or not: covid variants seem to compete with each other but influenza occupies a slightly different niche.

It is worth noting that proper flu is really nasty, generally underestimated by those that havent had it, and often kills 20k in the uk in a single season.
Get yer vaccinations.

 

[Montero]

We had proper flu for the new millenium. Had really filthy virus before, but yes, proper flu is in a class of its own - deep aches, higher temperature, muzzy head, no energy, no appetite - in bed for three days on maximum paracetamol and shuffling around for over a week afterwards. Fortunately we didn't catch it on the same day - one caught it from the other we suspect - and so the peak of it for each of us was a couple of days apart and so one of us was just about functional enough to keep an eye on the other.

You can also get a pneumonia vaccination - only ever need one. Not sure how old you have to be to qualify.

 

[Mouse]

You can also get a pneumonia vaccination - only ever need one. Not sure how old you have to be to qualify.

Not just age related, I qualify because I have an autoimmune condition for example.

As for colds/flu/covid... I don't get colds* and I've never had the flu, however covid put me in hospital (if only for a day, luckily). So I'm just going to avoid everyone with any sort of lurgy.


*in my last job, I was the only person out of an office of ten to turn up to work one day because literally everyone else had a cold. I was fine. Whenever anyone around me has had a cold, I've never caught it.

 

[Danny McG]

As for colds/flu/covid... I don't get colds

"Beware thou the mutant!"

 

[Phyrebrat]

I've just ordered another 500 face masks. Freelance work in schools over london exposes me to loads of lurgies, but I'm like @Mouse in that I rarely get anything when other people are sick.

So, fwar fwar faaar, aren't I special...