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CNN Live Saturday
Interview With Marc Siegel
Aired December 06, 2003 - 12:19 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.
RENAY SAN MIGUEL, CNN ANCHOR: Also scary, the influenza outbreak that has put a run on the nation's supply of vaccine. Some drug companies say they've run out of vaccine.
Colorado could not fill an order for 2,000 doses of the vaccine. The state is one of 13 hit hard by an early and virulent flu season that has killed at least six children. The doctors are urging healthy people to get the nasal spray version of the vaccine.
If you haven't had your flu shot yet, is it too late? Let's hear on that from Dr. Marc Siegel, he's an internist and clinical associate professor of medicine at New York University.
Thanks for being on today.
DR. MARC SIEGEL, INTERNIST: Hi, Renay. How are you?
SAN MIGUEL: Doing fine, thanks. And not sick from the flu although it did hit me a couple weeks ago. I'm wondering if it's unusual for drug companies, in the first week of December, in this flu season, to say that they've already shipped all they have of the vaccine?
SIEGEL: It is unusual and it did happen two years ago. Last year there was enough to go around. We ended up with a scarcity two years ago. What the good news is, is that plenty of doctors stocked up on this early in the season, so because the vaccine makers are out, it doesn't mean that the vaccine itself it is out. You can still probably get it from your physician if you need it.
SAN MIGUEL: This year's flu season worst than others you've seen?
SIEGEL: Yes, the last two years were mild years. They were called influenza B seasons. We have two types of flu, A and B. A is worse. It looks like this is going to be an influenza A season. That's the predominant bug out there. The bug that has been isolated is mainly resistant to the vaccine. The good news is that the vaccine has some cross protection. The people that are in risk groups should try to get that vaccine, even now.
SAN MIGUEL: And the young and the very old being the two risk groups that we have been talking about.
We've heard a lot about how this year's vaccine -- I think, you just kind of teased on that -- not covering one of the strains that is causing a lot of the problems. How does that happen? Take us through the process of when the Centers for Disease Control and the drug companies are determining how to put together the vaccines for the strains that might appear?
SIEGEL: The World Health Organization and CDC have a very good system set up called flu.net. They look around the world they examine flu at the very beginning down in South America. They see which strain is predominant. There was a strain this year called the Panama flu, an influenza A, they made the vaccine cover that.
But there was this other strain called Fujia (ph) that they didn't think was going to be a predominant strain, and it turns out it is. Again, the vaccine that we have, though it doesn't this exact strain, covers one similar to it. So, it should be pretty effective. They have to figure this out several months in advanced and that's why they have this good tracking system in place.
SAN MIGUEL: And is it one strain that can be more potentially lethal? I mean, is it just based on the risk groups that we've been talking about, or is there one strain out there that can really attack the immune system more --
SIEGEL: Right.
SAN MIGUEL: It can be more effective in attacking the immune system than others?
SIEGEL: Right, this strain is one of those. This is a bad flu. Because the flu that is out there now is more deadly than the ones we've seen previously. Again, the groups that you mentioned, the very young, under two years old, the elderly, people with chronic diseases, people with asthma, people with breathing problems, pregnant women, these are the groups that should get vaccinated.
The vaccine you mentioned, that can be inhaled has to be used in very healthy people because is a live virus. Our traditional vaccine that we use injecting is a dead virus, so you in fact cannot get the flu from the regular vaccine.
SAN MIGUEL: I was just going to ask you if the nasal flu mist was making a difference this year? There's not that many doses of that as there is for the regular vaccine, right?
SIEGEL: Right. That's right. Again, the vaccine manufacturers anticipate what kind of season there is going to be by the season previous, determine how many vaccines to make. Unfortunately, it takes two to four months to make vaccine from stock. So, it's a not like they can play catch-up at this point. But again, a lot of physicians stock up very early. You should check with your physician about this.
SAN MIGUEL: All right, we have to end it there. Dr. Mac Siegel of New York University.
Thanks so much for you're insight. We do appreciate it.
SIEGEL: Thank you, Renay. 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 December 6, 2003 - 12:19 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
RENAY SAN MIGUEL, CNN ANCHOR: Also scary, the influenza outbreak that has put a run on the nation's supply of vaccine. Some drug companies say they've run out of vaccine.
Colorado could not fill an order for 2,000 doses of the vaccine. The state is one of 13 hit hard by an early and virulent flu season that has killed at least six children. The doctors are urging healthy people to get the nasal spray version of the vaccine.
If you haven't had your flu shot yet, is it too late? Let's hear on that from Dr. Marc Siegel, he's an internist and clinical associate professor of medicine at New York University.
Thanks for being on today.
DR. MARC SIEGEL, INTERNIST: Hi, Renay. How are you?
SAN MIGUEL: Doing fine, thanks. And not sick from the flu although it did hit me a couple weeks ago. I'm wondering if it's unusual for drug companies, in the first week of December, in this flu season, to say that they've already shipped all they have of the vaccine?
SIEGEL: It is unusual and it did happen two years ago. Last year there was enough to go around. We ended up with a scarcity two years ago. What the good news is, is that plenty of doctors stocked up on this early in the season, so because the vaccine makers are out, it doesn't mean that the vaccine itself it is out. You can still probably get it from your physician if you need it.
SAN MIGUEL: This year's flu season worst than others you've seen?
SIEGEL: Yes, the last two years were mild years. They were called influenza B seasons. We have two types of flu, A and B. A is worse. It looks like this is going to be an influenza A season. That's the predominant bug out there. The bug that has been isolated is mainly resistant to the vaccine. The good news is that the vaccine has some cross protection. The people that are in risk groups should try to get that vaccine, even now.
SAN MIGUEL: And the young and the very old being the two risk groups that we have been talking about.
We've heard a lot about how this year's vaccine -- I think, you just kind of teased on that -- not covering one of the strains that is causing a lot of the problems. How does that happen? Take us through the process of when the Centers for Disease Control and the drug companies are determining how to put together the vaccines for the strains that might appear?
SIEGEL: The World Health Organization and CDC have a very good system set up called flu.net. They look around the world they examine flu at the very beginning down in South America. They see which strain is predominant. There was a strain this year called the Panama flu, an influenza A, they made the vaccine cover that.
But there was this other strain called Fujia (ph) that they didn't think was going to be a predominant strain, and it turns out it is. Again, the vaccine that we have, though it doesn't this exact strain, covers one similar to it. So, it should be pretty effective. They have to figure this out several months in advanced and that's why they have this good tracking system in place.
SAN MIGUEL: And is it one strain that can be more potentially lethal? I mean, is it just based on the risk groups that we've been talking about, or is there one strain out there that can really attack the immune system more --
SIEGEL: Right.
SAN MIGUEL: It can be more effective in attacking the immune system than others?
SIEGEL: Right, this strain is one of those. This is a bad flu. Because the flu that is out there now is more deadly than the ones we've seen previously. Again, the groups that you mentioned, the very young, under two years old, the elderly, people with chronic diseases, people with asthma, people with breathing problems, pregnant women, these are the groups that should get vaccinated.
The vaccine you mentioned, that can be inhaled has to be used in very healthy people because is a live virus. Our traditional vaccine that we use injecting is a dead virus, so you in fact cannot get the flu from the regular vaccine.
SAN MIGUEL: I was just going to ask you if the nasal flu mist was making a difference this year? There's not that many doses of that as there is for the regular vaccine, right?
SIEGEL: Right. That's right. Again, the vaccine manufacturers anticipate what kind of season there is going to be by the season previous, determine how many vaccines to make. Unfortunately, it takes two to four months to make vaccine from stock. So, it's a not like they can play catch-up at this point. But again, a lot of physicians stock up very early. You should check with your physician about this.
SAN MIGUEL: All right, we have to end it there. Dr. Mac Siegel of New York University.
Thanks so much for you're insight. We do appreciate it.
SIEGEL: Thank you, Renay. TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
