Flu Facts

Influenza (flu) is a contagious respiratory illness caused by flu viruses. It can cause mild to severe illness, and at times can lead to death. The best way to prevent the flu is to get a flu vaccine each fall. Children 6 to 23 months of age are considered at high-risk for flu complications and should be immunized. Consult your health care provider for more information regarding childhood flu immunization recommendations

There are two types of vaccines:

• The "flu shot" -- an inactivated vaccine containing a killed virus (sometimes called TIV for "Trivalent Inactivated Influenza Vaccine") that is given with as an injection. The flu shot is approved for people older than 6 months, including healthy people and people with chronic medical conditions.
• The nasal-spray flu vaccine -- a vaccine made with live, weakened flu viruses that do not cause the flu (sometimes called LAIV for "Live Attenuated Influenza Vaccine"). LAIV is approved for healthy people 5 years to 49 years of age who are not pregnant.
  About two weeks after vaccination, antibodies that provide protection against influenza virus infection develop in the body. Flu vaccine is the best way to prevent infection, but everyone must be re-vaccinated each year because the flu viruses change each year.

See also: Understanding Vaccines and How they Work: http://www.niaid.nih.gov/publications/vaccine/pdf/undvacc.pdf [PDF 1.38 MB]

Avian Flu

Because of concerns about the potential for more widespread infection in the human population, public health authorities closely monitor outbreaks of human illness associated with avian influenza. To date, human infections with avian influenza A viruses detected since 1997 have not resulted in sustained human-to-human transmission.

Pandemic influenza is an extreme, acute outbreak of influenza. Pandemics of influenza are explosive global events in which most, if not all, persons worldwide are at risk for infection and illness. In past pandemics, influenza viruses have spread worldwide within months. With globalization, a new pandemic can be expected to cross the globe in days not weeks. Pandemic viruses have historically infected one third or more of large populations and have lead to tens of millions deaths. The persistence of H5N1 avian influenza viruses in many Asian countries and their ability to cause fatal infections in humans have raised serious concerns about a global flu pandemic. "

More information about avian and pandemic influenza is available at the following links.

All links below open in new window.

DOH Bureau of Epidemiology: http://www.doh.state.fl.us/disease_ctrl/epi/htopics/BirdFlu.htm
http://www.doh.state.fl.us/disease_ctrl/epi/htopics/flu/panflu.htm

Department of Health and Human Services:
http://pandemicflu.gov/ - The official U.S. government Web site for information on pandemic flu and avian influenza.
http://www.hhs.gov/pandemicflu/plan/

Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services
Division of Animal Industry
http://www.doacs.state.fl.us/ai/main/avian_flu_main.shtml

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:
http://www.cdc.gov/flu/avian/gen-info/
http://www.cdc.gov/flu/avian/gen-info/avian-flu-humans.htm
http://www.bt.cdc.gov/stockpile/index.asp

National Vaccine Program Office:
http://www.hhs.gov/nvpo/pandemics/index.html

World Health Organization:
http://www.who.int/csr/disease/avian_influenza/avian_faqs/en/index.html
http://www.who.int/csr/disease/influenza/pandemic/en/
http://www.who.int/csr/disease/influenza/pandemic10things/en/index.html

National Institutes of Health:
http://www3.niaid.nih.gov/healthscience/healthtopics/Flu/default.htm

Center for Infectious Disease Research & Policy
http://www.cidrap.umn.edu/cidrap/content/influenza/panflu/index.html

National Wildlife Health Center
http://www.nwhc.usgs.gov/disease_information/avian_influenza/index.jsp