Between UCLA Health System and the Arthur Ashe Student Health and Wellness Center, UCLA has administered more than 18,300 vaccines thus far this flu season, which kicked into full gear this month.
On Friday, the California Department of Public Health released a statement declaring influenza as widespread, which is defined as being reported by more than 50 percent of the state’s regions.
Seven people have died from influenza in Los Angeles County so far and 28 other deaths around California are under investigation, according to the statement.
Since fall quarter, the Ashe Center has diagnosed six students with influenza-like symptoms, a number consistent with past years’ trends, said Dr. David Baron, the executive director of the Ashe Center.
People tend to misconstrue what the “flu” is, but influenza is a much more severe illness, Baron said. Individuals typically have high fever, severe body aches and may be bedridden for up to two weeks.
About 36,000 individuals die from influenza and its related complications in the United States each year, said Dr. T. Warner Hudson, the medical director of UCLA Occupational Health Services.
Most deaths occur among those over 65 and under 2 years old and result from complications due to the influenza, Baron said.
Flu season usually begins during the fall, going into full swing in January and peaking in February and March, Hudson said.
Different strains of the virus go around each year, prompting the need to create a new influenza vaccine annually, Baron said.
This year, the H1N1 influenza strain – responsible for the “swine flu” epidemic in 2009 – is one of the dominant strains, Baron said.
Unlike other flu strains that typically affect the old and young, the circulating H1N1 strain is more attuned to attacking people that are healthier, said Dr. Peter Katona, a clinical professor of medicine in infectious diseases at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.
This may explain why the seven deaths thus far have all been among healthy individuals under 65, Katona said.
Since its initial outbreak in 2009, the H1N1 strain has been included in the influenza vaccine annually, Baron said.
The benefit of the vaccine extends to those who are not immune, as it reduces their exposure to the virus when most of the rest of the population has been immunized – a phenomenon called herd immunity.
Some students who have never gotten the flu, however, choose not to take the vaccine, as they tend to underestimate the severity of the illness, Baron said.
“I just shrug it off,” said Karen Quintanilla, a second-year Asian humanities student. “I think I have strong defenses.”
Quintanilla said she lost trust in the vaccine after hearing that a friend fell sick after getting vaccinated.
Misconceptions about how the vaccines work are often shared by many who avoid the vaccine, Baron said. Vaccines take up to two weeks to completely kick into effect, as the body takes time to develop the antibodies to fight the virus, he said.
Other students dropped by the Ashe Center for the vaccines, which are free and accessible to all students.
Second-year computer science student Shubham Joshi got his shot at the Ashe Center in fall quarter because it was easy to access.
“I didn’t want to fall sick, and it’s free and it’s just there, I might as well,” he said.
UCLA has also taken other steps to amp up flu prevention.
Since October 2012, all acute care hospital employees at UCLA must be vaccinated, unlike before when vaccination was voluntary, Hudson said. The new system better limits the spread of influenza, especially to patients in the intensive care units, Hudson said.