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Top doctor says very few adverse reactions to H1N1 vaccine
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OTTAWA — The country's chief public health officer says few Canadians have suffered serious side effects from the swine-flu shot.& K- @9 R p7 `& q
' y0 w8 F/ J3 D" ]' H2 f! UDr. David Butler-Jones says that of the 6.5 million people who have received the H1N1 vaccine, only 36 have had serious adverse reactions.6 e* L9 D1 v$ @
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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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More serious reactions can include life-threatening illnesses, hospitalizations, disabilities or deaths.6 ^ V5 d' V& P; |1 P# G
# |! W: R5 H) L- W9 V6 gOne 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.
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( d+ G( H' v3 G/ mAll 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.2 x6 V8 n* y: |( k* c4 k
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A version of the vaccine without the booster is being held for pregnant women./ R% a) W6 |6 W; f$ B# m# }2 e
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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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; _# G! L) W7 L- a& W# e) b1 FMild 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.
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The federal government says it will list adverse reactions to the H1N1 vaccine on its www.fightflu.ca website.
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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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