Dr. David Butler-Jones, the head of Canada’s Public Health Agency, has confirmed a total of 24 severe allergic reactions to the H1N1 vaccine. Of the 24 cases of anaphylaxis, where a patient’s airway is compromised, one person has died. Butler-Jones was quick to point out that there were extenuating circumstances surrounding the fatality.
“There were a number of other situations. So exactly what the ultimate cause was or what the issues are, that will take some time, I understand, to investigate,” he said when referring to the Quebec man in his 80s who passed away after receiving the shot.
According to the Public Health Agency of Canada, the rate of anaphylactic events is about 0.32 cases for every 100,000 shots administered – a rate that is within the normal range for public vaccination efforts. An official from the Centers for Disease Control in the U.S. confirmed this, stating that the American agency has also looked into reports of severe allergic reactions after H1N1 shots and has not seen anything out of the ordinary.
Despite reports of reactions, vaccinations among Canadians remain strong, with more than 15 million vaccination doses already shipped across the country, and an estimated 9 million people already vaccinated. However, Bulter-Jones warned that a large proportion of the population is still susceptible to the virus, estimating that between five and 10 percent of people have probably already been sick (and are thus immune to the virus), and about 25 percent have been vaccinated. That leaves more than half of the population of the country at risk of falling ill with the virus.
For the week ending November 14, the PHAC reports that there were 1674 new hospitalizations, 261 ICU admissions and 84 deaths caused by the H1N1 flu. To date, there have been 279 lab-confirmed deaths in Canada caused by the virus.
For more up-to-the-minute information on the H1N1 flu, visit the Public Health Agency of Canada’s website.
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