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CNN Live Saturday

Doctors Urge Patients To Get Flu Shot

Aired September 27, 2003 - 18:41   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: OK, well you know you don't really want to hear this but it's almost flu season in the northern hemisphere. In fact, we've been looking at a site on the Internet. It's called FluNet and it seems as if the area in the world with the most activity right now is Australia and Argentina. They're highlighted in red.
But their winter is ending and ours is just beginning so we have a doctor, Dr. Marc Siegel from New York University's Medical School joining us now. Doctor, we were just wondering if the flu activity in the southern hemisphere is any indication of the kind of year we're going to have here.

DR. MARC SIEGEL, NYU MEDICAL SCHOOL: Well, Carol, we're preparing as though it is. We never know for sure and if we say this is going to be a bad year and we say that too loudly and we end up being wrong people won't take us seriously the next year.

It's really hard to predict but it's definitely been a bad year for Australia and for South America, so we're gearing up for a possibly bad year, plus we've had two mild years prior to this and so people get complacent but we're kind of due for a bad year. It may not be this year.

LIN: Well, how is it determined whether it's going to be a light or a heavy year?

SIEGEL: Well, by just what you showed with that map. We look and see how it starts out in the Southern Hemisphere and it's been very heavy. Now, the good news is that the World Health Organization has a global surveillance network in place with 114 centers worldwide.

And they track this very carefully and they prepare the vaccine in coordination with the bugs that are seen down there and we've been very good the last several years at getting the right vaccine. Seventy million people on the average receive the vaccine in the United States every year. We really need double that amount to receive it.

LIN: Yes, anything particular about the flu that you're seeing down in the Southern Hemisphere and Australia?

SIEGEL: Well, it is a pretty bad influenza and, again, you know, that it affects elderly people, very young children, people with respiratory conditions, so those are the population that we need to target up here and make sure that they get vaccinated early. Another bit of good news we have a lot of vaccine this year available. We're not having a shortage. LIN: Oh, that is good news so you should be able to just go to your doctor and get a vaccine?

SIEGEL: Absolutely and for Medicare people the vaccine is free and we have a lot of it. We have over 87 million doses available right now. So, again, we can't be sure that it being a bad start down there is going to lead to a bad season here but we're due for one and it has been a pretty heavy season there. As you know their winter is our summer.

LIN: Right.

SIEGEL: So, that's how come we get a head start.

LIN: Right. Dr. Siegel, I don't know whether I'm superstitious or just suspicious of the vaccine. I just feel like if I go and get a flu vaccine, I've never had one, if I go and get one I'm going to get sick. I don't know why I believe that. Maybe I think that there's a live virus in the flu shot that may, you know, may actually make me sick initially before I'm inoculated.

SIEGEL: Well, Carol, actually it's a dead virus in the flu vaccine. It's not live but there are many patients that have told me they get flu-like symptoms from the vaccine. It's one of the reasons I don't recommend it for everyone.

I think, you know, people over 50 should get it and people with chronic disease should get it. You probably don't need one. Now, if you're in contact with people who are sick then you might need one.

LIN: Yes.

SIEGEL: So, healthcare workers.

LIN: Right. What about people with children?

SIEGEL: Well, that's a really good question. I think, you know, people with infants or people that may be thinking of becoming pregnant, you know, during the period of time when the flu is here they ought to get one.

LIN: Good advice. Thank you very much, Dr. Marc Siegel.

SIEGEL: Thank you.

LIN: Always good to have a doctor in the house.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired September 27, 2003 - 18:41   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: OK, well you know you don't really want to hear this but it's almost flu season in the northern hemisphere. In fact, we've been looking at a site on the Internet. It's called FluNet and it seems as if the area in the world with the most activity right now is Australia and Argentina. They're highlighted in red.
But their winter is ending and ours is just beginning so we have a doctor, Dr. Marc Siegel from New York University's Medical School joining us now. Doctor, we were just wondering if the flu activity in the southern hemisphere is any indication of the kind of year we're going to have here.

DR. MARC SIEGEL, NYU MEDICAL SCHOOL: Well, Carol, we're preparing as though it is. We never know for sure and if we say this is going to be a bad year and we say that too loudly and we end up being wrong people won't take us seriously the next year.

It's really hard to predict but it's definitely been a bad year for Australia and for South America, so we're gearing up for a possibly bad year, plus we've had two mild years prior to this and so people get complacent but we're kind of due for a bad year. It may not be this year.

LIN: Well, how is it determined whether it's going to be a light or a heavy year?

SIEGEL: Well, by just what you showed with that map. We look and see how it starts out in the Southern Hemisphere and it's been very heavy. Now, the good news is that the World Health Organization has a global surveillance network in place with 114 centers worldwide.

And they track this very carefully and they prepare the vaccine in coordination with the bugs that are seen down there and we've been very good the last several years at getting the right vaccine. Seventy million people on the average receive the vaccine in the United States every year. We really need double that amount to receive it.

LIN: Yes, anything particular about the flu that you're seeing down in the Southern Hemisphere and Australia?

SIEGEL: Well, it is a pretty bad influenza and, again, you know, that it affects elderly people, very young children, people with respiratory conditions, so those are the population that we need to target up here and make sure that they get vaccinated early. Another bit of good news we have a lot of vaccine this year available. We're not having a shortage. LIN: Oh, that is good news so you should be able to just go to your doctor and get a vaccine?

SIEGEL: Absolutely and for Medicare people the vaccine is free and we have a lot of it. We have over 87 million doses available right now. So, again, we can't be sure that it being a bad start down there is going to lead to a bad season here but we're due for one and it has been a pretty heavy season there. As you know their winter is our summer.

LIN: Right.

SIEGEL: So, that's how come we get a head start.

LIN: Right. Dr. Siegel, I don't know whether I'm superstitious or just suspicious of the vaccine. I just feel like if I go and get a flu vaccine, I've never had one, if I go and get one I'm going to get sick. I don't know why I believe that. Maybe I think that there's a live virus in the flu shot that may, you know, may actually make me sick initially before I'm inoculated.

SIEGEL: Well, Carol, actually it's a dead virus in the flu vaccine. It's not live but there are many patients that have told me they get flu-like symptoms from the vaccine. It's one of the reasons I don't recommend it for everyone.

I think, you know, people over 50 should get it and people with chronic disease should get it. You probably don't need one. Now, if you're in contact with people who are sick then you might need one.

LIN: Yes.

SIEGEL: So, healthcare workers.

LIN: Right. What about people with children?

SIEGEL: Well, that's a really good question. I think, you know, people with infants or people that may be thinking of becoming pregnant, you know, during the period of time when the flu is here they ought to get one.

LIN: Good advice. Thank you very much, Dr. Marc Siegel.

SIEGEL: Thank you.

LIN: Always good to have a doctor in the house.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com