Illness as vaccination and questions about re-infection

1918 experience

I am not in this field, but recall reading that in 1918 those who got the "mild" spring flu and recovered (almost all did) were unlikely to die but not immune to falling ill in the deadly fall version. You are right that either a vaccination or disease is useful for preventing future disease only to the extent that the flu has not drifted so far that the previous antibodies are useless. My sense is that up to now, H1N1 is not drifting so much that vaccination or prior sickness would be useless. Outside of flu (e.g. cowpox and smallpox), there is evidence of similar "mild" diseases being effective in preventing or lessening much worse ones. But smallpox does not mutate as flu does.  

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by: INFOMASS @ Fri Aug 28, 2009 at 23:32:10 PM UTC

IIRC, having the illness grants a better kind of immunity than vaccination,

because being ill is a "whole body" experience.  (Sorry, that's all I remember.)

"The truth does not change according to our ability to stomach it."  Flannery O'Connor

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by: Jane @ Sat Aug 29, 2009 at 01:19:43 AM UTC

it's the other way round

Conceptually, the idea of vaccination is to simulate an infection - give someone a sub-clinical immune challenge so that they can produce immune responses and immunological memory for the next time when they are exposed.  

So, illness confers immunity, and in general, the immunity is superior to that from vaccination.



All 'safety concerns' are hypothetical.  If not, they'd be called side effects...

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by: SusanC @ Sat Aug 29, 2009 at 01:35:27 AM UTC

there have beem lots of flu cases

but if you have not been documented to have it, get the shot. if you had the real deal, you'll have some immunity.

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by: DemFromCT @ Sat Aug 29, 2009 at 11:45:24 AM UTC

Thanks!

These responses help a lot. What about re-infection? Can someone get it again within 2 weeks or 2 months? Have animal studies been done on this question? Does the virus have to mutate for someone to be susceptible to it again, or can a person (or animal) be re-infected with the exact same virus?

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by: magdelaine @ Sat Aug 29, 2009 at 20:37:02 PM UTC

not likely, yes and no ;-)

if you really had it, it'd take a mutation to get it again. guaranteed? no.

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by: DemFromCT @ Sat Aug 29, 2009 at 20:40:56 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

LOL!

Great answer ;-)

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by: magdelaine @ Sat Aug 29, 2009 at 20:49:35 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

interesting

This was a interesting topic!

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by: marlas @ Thu Oct 14, 2010 at 22:19:49 PM UTC