How come doctors don't advise the public to get to a meningitis and pneumonia shot for the next flu pandemic?

Question

We heard a lot about Tamiflu and handwashing, but in 1918, during the Spanish Flu, millions of people died of secondary bacterial infections (pneumonia and menigitis). And it was the young healthy soldiers that got it most. So, why not give everyone these vaccines?


http://www.amazon.com/Great-Influenza-Deadliest-Plague-History/dp/0143036491/sr=1-1/qid=1158696725/ref=pd_bbs_1/102-2239764-8141705?ie=UTF8&s=books

will doctor's current fear of fear of prescibing antibiotics then potentially kill thousands thinking it work for for a viral infection?

Answer 1

You are comparing apples and oranges. Of the thousands of potential bacterial pathogens, meningitis and pneumococcal pneumonia are but two, and are not likely to be the ones in the post influenza pneumonias anyway. It looks like you have some small piece of the picture, and have extrapolated into areas in which you have no knowledge and have come to some incorrect conclusions.

So, you go out and vaccinate everyone to these two bacteria, it would not change one bit the rate of secondary infection in the post influenza person.

I take it you have never had a microbiology course.

Addendum: the person posting directly above is incorrect in their understanding of the "pneumonia" vaccine. That is to a vaccine for a specific bacteria, Streptococcus pneumoniae, and it confers lifelong immunity. I think they have the concepts mixed up with the influenza vaccine, which is administered yearly. Likewise, the bacteria that cause meningitis are two: Neisseria meningitidis and Haemophilus and are present in the environment and are passed person to person during an outbreak.

Addendum to addendum:
Good grief, I have just read the other posts. They are all wrong. I had no idea how many misconceptions there were out there regarding viral and bacterial illnesses. Some of them have some misconceptions, some are just dead wrong, but not a one of them have any real medical knowledge of this subject, but apparently just enough to convince themselves they are experts.
Working in a nursing home for a short time does not make someone an expert in this field.

Now I have to go back and re-evaluate how much faith I have put in answers in other fields other than my own.

This serves as a good reminder to me to evaluate information I gain here with a grain of salt, and hope it does for you also.

Answer 2

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Answer 3

Most flus do not work this way, and chances are future flus will not work this way either.

Also many young people are getting menigitis vaccines before they go to college. Though this is only for the viral form of menigitis, and the bacterial kind is the more dangerous type.

Also there is no vaccine for pneumonia. Pneumonia is a symptom not a disease. It simply means fluid in the lungs, many many things can cause that.

But just so you understand it is impossible to vaccinate against bacterial infections. Vaccinations are only for viruses. We have antibiotics for bacterial infections.

Answer 4

Because the strains of the viruses and bacteria change so much, drug manufactoring companies cannot keep up with it near as quickly or in the quanities that requires. There is a pneumonia shot that senior citizens and people with low immunity are heavily advised to take yearly, but it is only good for a particular strain and it will more than likely be different the next year. Meningitis is secluded in the spinal cord or in the brain, and there are only a handful of known medications that will pass their protective barriers, so it is hard enough to treat but I can imagine how much harder to prevent.

Still, that is a very good point. It wakes you up and makes you think. Scary...

Answer 5

Well, it isn't advised to get the pneumonia shot anymore unless you've had it before, you're a high risk, or you're elderly. When it was advised, me and my 2 daughters got it, we'd never had pneumonia before. One of my daughters has gotten in every year since, sometimes twice a year and my other daughter just got it.

Answer 6

Because doctors rely on their Organizations such as the American Medical Association and the Centers for Disease Control to make those announcements for them. Otherwise, it would come out of their own pockets, it would be like a Mechanic advertising about car tune-ups and responsibilities out of their own pockets, it would only reach a small audience and cost them too much. While if a national organization did it, the air-time would be free or "pro-rated" and the cost would be covered by the medical association to which they belong and pay fee's too.

Answer 7

Very simple: they didn't have any and believe me, in 1918, you wanted to have every soldiers available so they just gave their rations to soldiers and officials, letting the populace die.

The other point is that normally not everybody needs a flu shot. It would be highly recommended for elderly people, people who work in hospitals....

The reserves are not high enough for everybody and it costs a lot to produce...

Answer 8

Only a very few doctors are interested in preventive medicine.

Answer 9

They do for high risk populations.