H1N1

I missed this thread when I posted about H1N1.
My sons were confirmed to have this flu.  One of them took the Tamiflu and had severe reactions.
He was dizzy and actually had hallucinations.  He is not a Thal patient. 
His brother who is also non-Thal got the virus and was treated like it was a regular flu. 
He actually had the flu for a shorter time period than my son who got (only 2 doses) of the Tamiflu.
I caution parents about this medicine. 

So far, the girls (both Thal major) show no signs of the flu!   
I worry about them much more due to their compromised immune systems....

Dore

Personally i don't feel it is safe taking a vaccine that was not studied enough (long term studies). They have just come up with this vaccine a couple of months ago. It seems like a race cause i just read in the newspaper that a third chinese vaccine is now available in the market. Alsomy pediterician advised me not to tae this vaccine.

Concerning other vaccines like the seasonal flu shot, i became now more cautious about them unless i am sure that they don't contain thimerosal (mercury). Our member Bigg has really done an excellent job by pointing out the horrible effect of mercury on our bodies. So make sure that any vaccine you use does not have thimerosal.

Emommy
Happy to hear thatthe boys are fine now and thank you for sharing your expierence

manal

Concerning other vaccines like the seasonal flu shot, i became now more cautious about them unless i am sure that they don't contain thimerosal (mercury). Our member Bigg has really done an excellent job by pointing out the horrible effect of mercury on our bodies. So make sure that any vaccine you use does not have thimerosal.

For What It's Worth....

http://www.cdc.gov/FLU/ABOUT/QA/thimerosal.htm

Does the influenza vaccine contain thimerosal?
Yes, the majority of influenza vaccines distributed in the United States currently contain thimerosal as a preservative. However, some contain only trace amounts of thimerosal and are considered by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to be preservative-free. Manufacturers of preservative-free flu vaccine use thimerosal early in the manufacturing process. The thimerosal gets diluted as the vaccine goes through the steps in processing. By the end of the manufacturing process there is not enough thimerosal left in the vaccine to act as a preservative and the vaccine is labeled "preservative-free".

So many things to consider even for prevention. I usually don't take flu shots, neither do my kids get it - but this year due to the H1N1 - I was thinking to get the shots. Not sure, what I will be doing now.

Narendra,

There are a lot of mixed feelings about the vaccine.  I am not sure what I will decide either at this time.

Andy,

Little A has been going back to school since yesterday.  However, he is extremely fatigued and his legs ache when he goes up or down the stairs.  Do you think that this is because of the fever and illness that he had last week?  He will be having his transfusion on Friday.

Sharmin

Hi Sharmin and others,
My sons ( one thal intermedia and other asthmatic) had H1N1 in early August. I was unaware of the side effects of tamiflu and really didnt have a choice as my sons were hospitalised being in high risk categories . Luckily they didnt suffer any serious side effects from tamiflu and the flu also didnt last very long. The older one had asthma for a few days after recovering but he does after all viral infections and the younger one had a pretransfusion Hb of 8.3 instead of the usual around 9.5. They are both doing well now with doctors suggesting it is good they got it early on and developed some immunity before it mutates to a more dangerous form.
I hope its so.
Zahra

Hi Zahra,

I am glad that your sons have recovered:) 

My son didn't have the H1N1, but he is still exhausted from the virus he had a week ago.  His pretx hg today is 94, but he feels drained.  His legs ache so much that he is in pain while walking and he is just wiped out.  This is unusual for him because he plays soccer and ice hockey usually. 

I am hoping that all of our kids stay safe. 

Take good care,

Sharmin

Well, I had contacted CAF regarding this topic and they gave me a reply from an MD.  It is fairly common sense and nothing new, but I thought I would post it anyhow.  ,

On a positive note, my girls were spared the flu even though their brothers had it!  Antibacterial hand sanitizer and thorough hand washing does work!

Take care all,



Still nothing specific.

 

1.      Everybody should be vaccinated. Children under age 24 and pregnant women first, but everyone.  Everyone should get the seasonal flu vaccine too.

2.      It is still true that H1N1 may not be worse than regular seasonal flu, but is likely to come this fall (seasonal flu is a winter disease in North America).

3.      For the affected kids, if they need to go in for transfusion before a week is up (the usual “please stay home” time), they should call ahead, and wear masks to help protect others.

4.      In our state and others, the TEST for H1N1 is hard to get, and so if a patient has flu symptoms, he or she may still need to be seen for fever in the context of splenectomy. It would not be safe to presume  that a fever this fall is “just flu” in a patient with no spleen.

 

 

 

Ellis J. Neufeld MD, PhD

Professor of Pediatrics

300 Longwood Ave.  Karp 08210

Boston, MA 02115

EMommy,

Thank you for posting this it is very helpful,

Sharmin

Hello,

I receive this week or next week my vaccine. I can't wait to get mine! I have a few teachers who told us they had it (although they rarely test people on it) so how sooner I get the vaciine how less chance I have to be in the next dance! (kind of Dutch proverb)

I believe the vaccine is safe. It's made exactly the same way as the yearly ones.

Sharmin,

did you give the h1n1 flu shot to Little A. My wife has a concern with giving it to Little E. Just wondering what you guys are doing about it?

To other forum members - did any of you take the H1N1 flu shot?

Hello,

Returning back after sometime. We all had our H1N1 flu shot on Saturday as advised by Little Miss A's doctor. The shot is nothing but H1N1 dead virus to boost the immunity in the body. As for the mercury use, it is most common in many vaccines used today. The mercury is used to activate the immune system to a greater extent so the vaccine works faster.

Thanks

Bostonian,

We all had our vaccination last Monday.  Lil A and I had fever & shakes the next
Day but it resoved quickly.  All of the thals in our city have been vaccinated - Oakland also
Urged us to get our shots.  However, you should consult your own health care provider with
Regard to your daughter.  Children under 3 are getting the adjuvant free vaccine where a available. 

Let us know how it goes.

Canadian Family, great to hear from you!  It's been a while hope Lil Miss A is
Doing great!

Sharmin

Hi Sharmin,

Little Miss A is doing fine. Hope Little Mr. A is doing fine, the hockey season is on, so that must be exciting for him.

How was the conference in New York, we would have come but we don't have any place where we can leave the kids. Anyways, hope you can update us soon.

Thanks

Sharmin, Canadian Family,

Thanks for your replies. Now I feel better about the H1N1 vaccine.

I would like to remind everyone not to give children any asprin or other drugs that have asprin during the infection with a virus (any virus).

The sixth case (9 year old boy) here that died due to swine flu (H1N1) has died due to very severe complications as a result of taking pain killers that contained asprin. The main complication was severe brain hemorrhage. So it wasn't the swine flu that killled him but the misusage of pain killers (that had asprin) during a viral infection

manal