What Causes Acute Bronchitis
Acute bronchitis is usually caused by a viral infection. This is most often the same viruses that cause colds and the flu. It may also be caused by a bacterial infection, or by physical or chemical agents that are breathed in. These may include dusts, allergens, and strong fumes, including those from chemical cleaning compounds or tobacco smoke.
Acute bronchitis may come after a common cold or other viral infections in the upper respiratory tract. It may also occur in people with chronic sinusitis, allergies, or those with enlarged tonsils and adenoids. It can be serious in people with lung or heart diseases. Pneumonia is a complication that can follow bronchitis.
Who Should Not Get A Flu Vaccine
Children younger than 6 months cannot get a flu shot. Those whove had a severe allergic reaction to a flu vaccine in the past should generally not be vaccinated, the CDC says.
You should not get the flu vaccine if you have a high fever.
However, if you have minor illness, like a mild cold or a headache, you can still get a flu shot, Schaffner said. The vaccine does perfectly well in those folks.
By Rachael Rettner, Senior Writer, Live Science
Side Effects Of The Flu Shot Are Nothing Compared With Flu Sickness
Many people are also concerned that the possible side effects of the flu shot could be worse than getting the flu itself, notes Horney.
The potential risks of a severe case of influenza far outweigh any very limited risk of side effects , which are typically mild, she says.
Some people equate the flu with having a bad cold. While the flu and the common cold have some symptoms in common, the flu can knock people flat for a few days to as long as two weeks, and it can also have far more dire consequences.
Some people who get the flu will develop complications such as pneumonia, inflammation of the heart , inflammation of the brain , or respiratory failure, which can lead to hospitalization and death, notes the CDC.
Even if youve been vaccinated and still get the flu, you are less likely to die, be hospitalized, or be admitted to the ICU, Horney says.
While incidence of the flu was unusually low last year, thanks to COVID-19 precautions like mandatory masking and stay-at-home orders, the CDC estimates that the 20192020 flu season led to some 400,000 hospitalizations and 22,000 flu deaths.
And we could potentially see numbers like that again this year. As people return to offices and classrooms, and COVID-19 vaccinations lead to more mask-free gatherings, doctors are expecting a major uptick in flu cases this fall and winter.
Indeed, reduced population immunity could result in an early, and possibly severe, flu season, cautions the CDC.
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Why Do Some People Get Side Effects And Others Dont
It is estimated that up to 20 percent of people with influenza do not exhibit symptoms, which further shows everyone needs to get vaccinated, explains Dr. Hanak. Similarly, varying levels of immune response occur with the flu vaccine, which can produce a wide variety of symptoms, including none at all, he says.
Many factors can play a role, including age, medications taken regularly, other health conditions, and timing .
The flu vaccine is designed to stimulate your immune system to build antibodies against the virus, and the thought here is that those people having side effects from the flu shot are those whose bodies are having a robust response to the vaccine, says Dr. Aderson.
As with many things in life, everybody and every body will respond differently to the flu shot depending on many different factors.
The bottom line: For most everyone, the flu shot is safe and only causes mild symptoms that are pretty much just annoying. The benefits of not getting the flu far outweigh the risks of getting the shot.
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Questions To Expect From The Doctor
The goal of seeing a healthcare provider is to help determine why it hurts to pee. Your provider will then seek a diagnosis to determine the underlying cause of the pain, and to provide the right type of treatment.
Your visit will likely include a physical exam, as well as a detailed history of when your symptoms started. Some questions to expect from your provider include:
- When did the symptoms begin?
- Are you urinating or feeling the urge to urinate more often?
- Does the pain happen while urinating? Or does it hurt at the end when you pee?
- Do you have any other symptoms, such as back pain, fever, or a rash?
- Is there discharge or drainage between urination?
- Are there any abnormal smells or blood in the urine?
- Have you had sexual intercourse with someone who has an STI?
- Are you pregnant or could you be pregnant?
These questions will help guide the healthcare practitioner in determining the need for further testing, such as a urinalysis or ultrasound. The physical exam and results will determine the appropriate treatment.
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What Is A Urinary Tract Infection
UTIs are common infections that happen when bacteria, often from the skin or rectum, enter the urethra, and infect the urinary tract. The infections can affect several parts of the urinary tract, but the most common type is a bladder infection .
Kidney infection is another type of UTI. Theyre less common, but more serious than bladder infections.
When To Get The Flu Shot
Get a flu vaccine before flu viruses begin spreading in your community. It takes about two weeks after vaccination for antibodies to develop in the body and provide protection against flu.
CDC recommends that people get a flu vaccine by the end of October. Getting vaccinated later can still be beneficial. Vaccination should continue throughout the flu season, even beyond January. CDC recommends that all people 6 months and older get a yearly flu vaccine.
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How Is It Diagnosed
Your healthcare provider will ask about your symptoms and medical history. You may have lab tests of your urine and discharge from the urethra and prostate gland.
For serious or repeated infections, you may need:
- An intravenous pyelogram . An IVP is a special type of X-ray of the kidneys, ureters, and bladder.
- An ultrasound scan to look at the urinary tract.
- A cystoscopy. This is an exam of the inside of the urethra and bladder with a small lighted instrument. It is usually done by a specialist called a urologist.
Flu And Kidney Disease Risk
Adults with diabetes make up 30% of flu hospitalizations reported to CDC.
“Diabetes remains one of the primary risk factors for chronic kidney disease in the U.S.,” said Ann Albright, PhD, RDN, director of the Division of Diabetes Translation at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“Good diabetes management is one of the best ways people with diabetes can support their health, including continuing to take medications as prescribed and ensuring they’ve received all recommended vaccinations. Flu and pneumococcal vaccines are especially important right now, as people with diabetes are at high risk for severe complications from both COVID-19 and the flu.”
The CDC states that people with kidney disease at any stage and kidney transplant recipients should only receive a flu vaccine by injection rather than the nasal spray flu vaccine.
Find more information about kidney disease and the flu at CDC.gov and in NKF’s Frequently Asked Questions.
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Can Vaccinations Be Administered To People Taking Stelara
Prior to starting treatment with Stelara, patients should receive all their appropriate immunizations for their age as recommended by National guidelines. It is important people administered Stelara DO NOT receive live vaccines. This includes:
- BCG vaccine for tuberculosis. This should not be given during treatment or within ONE YEAR of initiating or discontinuing Stelara
- Measles, mumps rubella vaccine
- Varicella vaccine.
Caution should also be exercised when administering live vaccines to close contacts of people taking Stelara as viral shedding and subsequent transmission of the virus to Stelara patients may occur.
In addition, non-live vaccines that are administered during treatment with Stelara may not initiate an immune response that is sufficient to prevent disease.
However, a yearly flu vaccine is currently recommended for people administered Stelara. A trial is currently underway investigating how the immune response is affected to vaccines in people taking biologics.
What Kinds Of Flu Shots Are There
Flu shots protect against three or four strains of flu virus. Trivalent flu vaccines protect against two influenza A strains H1N1 and H3N2 and one influenza B strain. Quadrivalent flu vaccines offered for the first time in the 2013-2014 flu season protect against the same strains as the trivalent vaccine, as well as an extra influenza B strain.
In addition to the standard-dose flu vaccine given through a needle, flu shots are available in several different forms, including a high-dose version for those ages 65 and older, a small-needle version for people ages 18 to 64, an egg-free version thats grown in animal cells rather than hens eggs and is approved for people ages 4 and older, and a nasal spray, which is approved for healthy people ages 2 to 49.
There is also a needle-free flu shot, delivered by a so-called jet injector, which uses a high-pressure stream of fluid to inject the vaccine, the CDC says. It is approved for adults ages 18 to 64.
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The Relationship Between The Flu And Bladder Infections
One thing that many people dont realize is that flu symptoms are often very similar to those of a bladder infection. However, the flu cannot directly cause a bladder infection. There is no proven research that getting the flu will lead to the development of an infection. The only connection between the two is that the flu can weaken your immune system, which can make you more susceptible to a bladder infection under the right circumstances.
The flu is caused by an influenza virus that enters your body through a mucus membrane. It leads to an infection in the throat, nose, and lungs and can spread between individuals through droplets in the air. Flu viruses can also live on objects for up to 48 hours, so transmission from surfaces is possible. Bladder infections, on the other hand, are caused by bacteria. They are two different microorganisms and are in no way tied to one another.
While the flu cannot cause a bladder infection and vice versa, it is possible to suffer from both the flu and a bladder infection simultaneously. As flu season gets closer, make sure that you are familiar with common symptoms of infection. These can include:
- Vomiting and/or diarrhea
When Should You Get A Flu Shot
Exactly when the flu season starts and ends is unpredictable, so health officials recommend that people get their flu shot in early fall, preferably by the end of October, the CDC says. Flu activity typically peaks in January or February.Wed like to get as many people protected against influenza before influenza becomes active in communities across the country, Schaffner said.
Most flu vaccines are given before Thanksgiving, Schaffner said, but people can still get their shot throughout the winter months. Each seasons flu shot expires in June of that year, but Schaffner said that he would consider it too late to get a flu vaccine after March, unless a person is traveling to the Southern Hemisphere .
After vaccination, it takes a person about two weeks to build up immunity against the flu.
People can visit the CDCs HealthMap Vaccine Finder to find flu shot locations, although they should call the location ahead of time to see if they have the vaccine in stock.
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You Eat A Lot Of Sugar
Bacteria that cause UTIs love feeding on sugar, so you run the risk of providing a feast for them whenever your sweet tooth strikes. Kalas V, et al. Structure-based discovery of glycomimetic FmlH ligands as inhibitors of bacterial adhesion during urinary tract infection. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1720140115
If you eat tons of added sugars and get a real surge in your blood sugar, you may end up with some of that sugar in your urine, says Mary Jane Minkin, MD, a clinical professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the Yale School of Medicine.
Some foods and beverages, like coffee, booze, and chocolate, can also irritate your delicate urinary tract and exacerbate an existing UTI.
How Does It Occur
Normally the urinary tract does not have any bacteria or other organisms in it. Bacteria that cause UTI often spread from the rectum to the urethra and then to the bladder or kidneys. Sometimes bacteria spread from another part of the body through the bloodstream to the urinary tract. Urinary tract infection is less common in men than in women because the male urethra is long, making it difficult for bacteria to spread to the bladder.
Urinary tract infection may be caused by a sexually transmitted disease. Sometimes a stone in the urinary tract blocks the flow of urine and causes an infection. In older men, an enlarged prostate can cause a urinary tract infection by keeping urine from draining out of the bladder completely. Infection might also be caused by the use of a catheter used to drain the bladder or by urethral stricture, which is a narrowing of the urethra by scar tissue from previous infections or surgical procedures.
You may be more likely to have a UTI if you have diabetes or another medical problem that affects the immune system.
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What About The Nasal Spray Vaccine
In addition to the flu shot, a nasal spray vaccine is available for non-pregnant individuals who are between the ages of 2 and 49. This vaccine uses a weakened form of influenza that cant cause disease.
As with the flu shot, people who have a mild illness can receive the nasal spray vaccine. However, people with moderate to severe illnesses may need to wait until theyve recovered.
What About Other Medications
This completely depends on the type of medication. With most drugs, you are fine to get your flu shot. However, certain drugs can interact with the vaccine medications, including certain steroids and immune-suppressing drugs. Your doctor can give you advice based on the specific drugs youre on. They can also help you weigh the pros and cons of getting the flu shot with a pre-existing condition.
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What Are The Main Side Effects Of The Flu Shot
The CDC lists the following common side effects that people may experience from getting a flu shot:
- Soreness, redness, or swelling where the shot was given
If these reactions occur, they usually begin soon after vaccination and last one to two days.
You can have a sore arm, feel a little achy for a day or two, and maybe have a low-grade fever as your immune system gets turned on, says James Conway, MD, a pediatric infectious disease specialist at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health in Madison.
If so, take some Tylenol or some ibuprofen and ride it out its a small inconvenience and certainly well worth the protection from what could be a potentially devastating disease, he adds.
Another occasional reaction to be aware of is fainting a handful of people may temporarily lose consciousness after getting any type of vaccination.
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Itching At The Injection Site Or A Full
This would signal an allergic reaction, but its very rare to have an allergic reaction to the flu shot, Dr. Adalja notes. There are lots of myths about egg allergies and the vaccine,” he explainsbecause most flu shots and nasal sprays are manufactured using technology that involves small amounts of egg proteins, per the CDC.
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“If you can eat scrambled eggs, youre not going to have a problem with the flu shot, Dr. Adalja says. If you have a confirmed egg allergy, you can likely still get the shot, the CDC says.
The caveat: If you experience severe itching at injection site, a rash all over your body, or signs of anaphylactic shock, seek immediate medical attention. And if youve had an allergic reaction to the flu shot in the past, you are among those few groups of people who the CDC recommends skip the flu shot.
What to do: Dr. Hanak recommends taking an allergy medication like Benadryl or using any anti-itch creams or lotions like a topical Benadryl cream to help with the discomfort.
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What Are The Side Effects
According to the CDC, mild side effects from the flu shot include soreness, redness or swelling at the injection site, low-grade fever and aches. Only about 1 percent to 2 percent of people who get a flu shot will have fever as a side effect, Schaffner said. Rare but serious side effects can occur, including allergic reactions. Symptoms of serious side effects include difficulty breathing, swelling around the eyes or lips, hives, racing heart, dizziness and high fever. If you experience serious side effects, you should seek medical care immediately, the CDC says.
For children, side effects from the flu nasal spray can include runny nose, wheezing, headache, vomiting, muscle aches and fever. For adults, side effects include runny nose, headache, sore throat and cough. These side effects last a short time compared to the actual flu illness, the CDC says.