Duke Health

With the flu season underway, it’s important to get a flu vaccination for protection while COVID-19 continues to spread. Your body typically takes up to two weeks to develop an immune response from a vaccine, so getting vaccinated is the safest way to prevent the flu.

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It’s hard for 43-year-old Allison Parker to remember a time when she didn’t depend on glasses or contact lenses to correct her nearsightedness (myopia). As an adult, she hoped that LASIK eye surgery could improve her vision, but it was not possible due to the severity of her myopia. Then she learned that implantable collamer lens (ICL) surgery can permanently correct myopia. After undergoing the specialized procedure at the Duke Eye Center, Parker can now drive, work, parent, and see the world clearly, without the hassle and expense of corrective lenses. 

If you need to lower your cholesterol but cannot take a statin because of muscle aches or other side effects, you may want to try an alternative. New research shows that bempedoic acid can lower your cholesterol and reduce your risk for heart attack and stroke without causing muscle pain. According to Duke cardiologist John H.P. Alexander, MD, MHS, “statins are the cornerstone of cardiovascular event prevention, but if you can’t take a statin, you now have another good option.”