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PRIOR FLU VACCINATION INCREASES RISK OF CATCHING SWINE FLU (H1N1)
When medical experts in Canada began investigating a school outbreak of "swine flu" (AKA H1N1) they came to an unexpected conclusion: Most of the people who suffered from the illness – characterized by fever and coughing had been previously vaccinated against influenza.
Researchers quickly conducted additional studies using different methods to see if this finding was being seen elsewhere: Three of the four studies were case-control studies in which the researchers compared the number of flu cases between those who had received prior vaccination and healthy members of the general population or individuals who had an influenza-like illness but no sign of infection with an influenza virus.
All four studies (which included about 1,200 laboratory confirmed H1N1 cases and 1,500 controls) showed that people who had received the vaccine the prior year had approximately 1.4 to 2.5 times increased chances of developing the swine flu.
They described this as “unexpected results of a series of Canadian epidemiological studies suggesting a counterproductive effect of the vaccine”.
Note that research showed that the flu vaccine had an effectiveness estimated at 56% (41%–67%) to prevent you from getting the flu. Correct me if I’m wrong but doesn’t this mean that if you had been vaccinated against the flu, you still had a 50/50 chance of getting it, AND now you have twice the chance of getting swine flu? I’m not liking those odds – and I’m not a gambling man!
"If the findings in the current study are real," the researchers cautiously concluded, "they raise important questions about the biological interactions between seasonal and pandemic influenza strains and vaccines, and about the best way to prevent and control both types of influenza in future."
The researchers also noted: “Because of the potential public health seriousness of the findings, complementary observational studies were launched in Ontario and Quebec, based on hospital and community cases and controls. These studies confirmed TIV as a risk factor for 2009 pH1N1 illness, but were somewhat reassuring in that TIV did not increase severity of disease.” How reassuring?
It was evident from the tone of the report that the researchers were reluctant to draw any conclusions that might scare people away from the vaccine: Even suggesting that vaccines might be ineffective, let alone dangerous, can put researchers in a precarious position.
As a result of the research, Canadian health officials did what was expected – nothing. They chose to not postpone the planned seasonal vaccination program but, instead, "decided to follow normal vaccine recommendations."