Originally Posted by
DiscoMick
There are numerous varieties of the flu, so the vaccination only works against the most common ones. This year the vaccine covered four flu versions, including one which carried with it very high temperatures, vomiting and diarrhoea. Apparently the success rate has been about 60%, which is lower than in previous years. Even if you get sick, people who have been vaccinated usually recover faster. This is because the flu vaccine, like all vaccines, acts by stimulating the body's natural resistance. For example, I had a couple of miserable days and bounced back, but my wife, who didn't have the flu shot, was knocked out for two weeks.
As for success rates, I also had the rabies vaccine, for unrelated reasons, and so far have not caught rabies, so that's a 100% success rate!