Flu Vaccine
Influenza (“flu”) is a contagious disease.
It is caused by the influenza virus, which can be spread by coughing, sneezing, or nasal secretions.
Anyone can get influenza, but rates of infection are highest among children. For most people, symptoms last only a few days. They include:
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fever/chills
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sore throat
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muscle aches
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fatigue
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cough
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headache
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runny or stuffy nose
Other illnesses can have the same symptoms and are often mistaken for influenza.
Young children, people 65 and older, pregnant women, and people with certain health conditions – such as heart, lung or kidney disease, or a weakened immune system – can get much sicker. Flu can cause high fever and pneumonia, and make existing medical conditions worse. It can cause diarrhea and seizures in children. Each year thousands of people die from influenza and even more require hospitalization.
By getting flu vaccine you can protect yourself from influenza and may also avoid spreading influenza to others.
Shingles Vaccine
Shingles is a painful localized skin rash often with blisters that is caused by the varicella zoster virus (VZV), the same virus that causes chickenpox. Anyone who has had chickenpox can develop shingles because VZV remains in the nerve cells of the body after the chickenpox infection clears and VZV can reappear years later causing shingles. Shingles most commonly occurs in people 50 years old or older, people who have medical conditions that keep the immune system from working properly, or people who receive immunosuppressive drugs.
