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The possibility of the dreaded triple threat of Covid, RSV and flu was eliminated last year by the effectiveness of the flu vaccine. Two recent studies from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s VISION Network found that flu vaccines were effective for all ages against both moderate and severe flu in the United States during the 2022-2023 flu season.

Both the pediatric and adult VISION Network studies analyzed flu-related emergency department (ED)/urgent care visits (indicative of moderate illness) and hospitalizations (indicative of severe illness) from October 2022 to March 2023. , a flu season with very few people. Compared to the past two flu seasons, social distancing or mask wearing was the norm.

Vaccination nearly halved the risk of flu-related ED/urgent care visits and hospitalizations from those 6 months to 17 years. For adults, regardless of age, vaccination reduced the risk of urgent care visits to the ED by nearly half and the risk of hospitalization by slightly more than one-third.

These findings led the authors of both studies to conclude that flu vaccination is likely to substantially reduce morbidity, mortality and the burden on health care resources.

“We study the effectiveness of flu and other vaccines to ensure that our processes for predicting the most effective vaccines are working well and therefore potentially translating to other diseases. can,” said Shawn Greens, MD, MS, a co-author. of both pediatric and adult VISION Network studies, vice president for data and analytics at the Reginsstreff Institute and a family practice physician. “Given the significant disease burden of influenza — for example, H1N1 (swine) flu killed more than a quarter of a million people worldwide in 2009-2010 — we want to make sure that we We understand the trends in the virus as well as other factors and that we are “continuing to do as much and as much as we can to reduce the burden of influenza illness.”

Both pediatric and adult studies reviewed electronic health record (EHR) data from three health care system sites in California, Utah, Minnesota, and Wisconsin.

Flu vaccine effectiveness: 2022-2023 flu season for ages 6 months to 17 years

Vaccination reduced the risk of flu-related ED/urgent care visits (moderate illness) by 48% and the risk of hospitalization (severe illness) by 40% overall among 6 months to 17 years of age. . Broken down by age, the reduction in risk was greater among children and adolescents aged 6 months to 4 years.

Age 6 months to four years

  • Vaccination reduced the risk of ED/urgent care visits (moderate illness) by 53%.
  • Vaccination reduced the risk of hospitalization (acute illness) by 56%.

Ages 5 to 17 years

  • Vaccination reduced the risk of ED/urgent care visits (moderate illness) by 38%.
  • Vaccination reduced the risk of hospitalization by 46%.

About 30 percent of ED/critical care visits for acute respiratory illness in children and adolescents were positive for influenza, as were 14 percent of hospitalizations.

Vaccine Effectiveness Against Pediatric Influenza-A-Associated Urgent Care, Emergency Department, and Hospital Encounters During the 2022-2023 Season, VISION Network” is published in Clinical Infectious Diseases.

Flu vaccine effectiveness: 2022-2023 flu season for ages 18-64

Vaccine effectiveness against ED/critical care visits (moderate illness) for adults younger than 65 years was 45%. Effectiveness against hospitalization (acute illness) was 23%.

Adults under the age of 65 usually receive the standard dose of inactivated vaccine.

Flu vaccine effectiveness: 2022-2023 flu season for ages 65 and older

Vaccine effectiveness against both flu-related ED/urgent care visits (moderate illness) and hospitalizations (severe illness) for this age group was 41%.

Adults age 65 and older generally receive better vaccine products.

Published in “Influenza vaccine effectiveness against influenza-A-associated emergency department, urgent care, and hospitalizations among US adults, 2022-2023.” Journal of Infectious Diseases.

“Like COVID, the dynamics of flu varies between children and adults. But we found that for both children and adults, vaccination reduced visits to the ED, or critical care center, and hospitalizations for flu-related illnesses. has significantly reduced the need to be. weather and that’s encouraging,” said Dr Greens. “I expect we’ll see similar or even better vaccine effectiveness during the current flu season. Even if they do experience symptoms, people who get the vaccine usually have But there are milder, milder cases of the flu, a viral illness that can carry a severe disease burden.

“The effectiveness of the vaccine we saw last year’s flu season is encouraging. As both a research scientist and a primary care physician, I urge everyone to get the flu shot this year and every year. Get vaccinated — it’s good for everyone’s health and well-being. Your community.”

About Sean Greens, MD, MS

In addition to his role as vice president of data and analytics at the Reginstrief Institute, Sean Greens, MD, MS, holds the Reginstrief Chair in Medical Informatics and is a professor of family medicine at the Indiana University School of Medicine.

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