Pneumonia and the Shot

I'm going to the doctor rather frequently these days. It seems she's got me either going for lab tests every two months, or I'm going back to find out the results of the tests. And to get prescriptions refilled.

This last time she told me I needed two shots: pneumonia and tetanus. I had never had a pneumonia shot before. She said she had seen too many people, especially those over 50, come in lately with pneumonia. They'd get a cold, then - wham! come down with pneumonia.

A recent study in the Canadian Medical Association Journal of people at high coronary risk found that those who had gotten the pneumonia vaccine at least a year earlier were less likely to have a heart attack than those who had not. Pneumonia can trigger a heart attack, and apparently the vaccine can reduce the risk of both occurring. The researchers also suggested that younger people with chronic problems (like lung or heart disease, cancer, and diabetes) should get the shot.

I recently came down with a cold, and I'm battling that currently. But at least I know it won't grow into pneumonia.