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Top doctor says very few adverse reactions to H1N1 vaccine
) I; c% U. [0 R9 Q( j(CP) – 6 hours ago* E4 {) B9 H5 u$ L
|% I- \# n$ E! xOTTAWA — The country's chief public health officer says few Canadians have suffered serious side effects from the swine-flu shot.
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. L# n3 H/ R; B2 i# @Dr. David Butler-Jones says that of the 6.5 million people who have received the H1N1 vaccine, only 36 have had serious adverse reactions.
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"With any vaccination campaign, we expect to see some cases of serious adverse events," he said. "They are very rare, but they are part of all mass-vaccination campaigns and we expect to see a small number of them."
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( L1 ^- m& v" n1 kMore serious reactions can include life-threatening illnesses, hospitalizations, disabilities or deaths.% p1 o6 i1 f% i8 A
: p8 v. |/ d# uOne person is believed to have died from a serious reaction to the vaccine, Butler-Jones said, but the death hasn't yet been conclusively linked to the flu shot. He said it's possible the elderly person who died suffered from an underlying condition.3 m0 o) q/ v9 k7 |
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All the serious side effects came after shots of the adjuvanted vaccine, which contains a compound to boost the vaccine's potency. Butler-Jones said that's likely because the vast majority of people being vaccinated are getting the adjuvanted vaccine." {, n2 B0 V7 t) w
6 E; M2 @+ P# o0 J+ l1 t- wA version of the vaccine without the booster is being held for pregnant women.
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Butler-Jones said the serious side effects from the H1N1 shot fall into two categories: allergic reactions, or fevers and convulsions.
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Mild effects, such as nausea, soreness, headaches and fever, are far more common reactions to the swine-flu shot - just as they are for all vaccines.2 h- m* }. L U( g" _
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The federal government says it will list adverse reactions to the H1N1 vaccine on its www.fightflu.ca website.$ G: I9 z# |/ L; D/ J4 e* q, a
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So far, 198 people have died of swine flu. By comparison, seasonal flu kills between 4,000 to 8,000 Canadians each year. |
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