Thinking of skipping your flu shot? Here’s why you should reconsider.
The Washington Post reports:
By Dr. LEANA S. WEN
“ A rift is growing between federal health officials and public health experts over who most needs protection from respiratory viruses. Coronavirus vaccine guidance remains contentious, with major medical societies diverging from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s recently changed recommendations on the shots.
But one message has remained consistent: Everyone 6 months and older should receive the seasonal influenza vaccine.
Four recent studies, all published in CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Reports, highlight the necessity of getting this year’s influenza vaccine. Here are my takeaways from these studies.
1. Last year’s flu season was especially bad.
The 2024-2025 influenza season was associated with at least 43 million illnesses, 560,000 hospitalizations and 38,000 deaths. The hospitalization rate for the disease surpassed that of covid-19 and respiratory syncytial virus.
In fact, more people were hospitalized for influenza in last year’s season than any year since 2010-2011. Researchers believe this is because more people than usual caught the virus, not because cases were more severe.
Children were among those hit especially hard. Last season, 280 children died from influenza, the highest number since pediatric flu deaths became nationally reportable in 2004 (excluding the 2009-2010 H1N1 pandemic). The median age of death was 7.
2. Influenza can lead to severe complications.
As in past seasons, the most common complication among hospitalized patients with influenza was pneumonia, affecting approximately 30 percent of cases. More than 18 percent of patients developed the life-threatening, body-wide infection known as sepsis, and about the same amount ended up with acute kidney failure. Six percent required mechanical ventilation, and 3 percent died in the hospital.
One CDC report examined a rare but devastating brain complication from the flu that leads to swelling, seizures and sometimes death. Last season, 109 children were diagnosed with this condition, called influenza-associated encephalopathy, which killed roughly 1 in 5. Thirty-seven had an especially severe form, of which a little more than half survived.
3. Flu is most dangerous for people with underlying conditions.
As in prior years, most hospitalized patients last season (89 percent) had one or more medical conditions that made them more vulnerable to severe illness. Among children, asthma was the most common underlying issue. Among older adults, cardiovascular issues and metabolic diseases such as diabetes predominated.
Age itself is another major risk factor. The highest hospitalization rates were among adults 75 and older. Influenza-related deaths among children were most frequent in infants younger than 6 months.”
My comments:
Dr. Wen is an emergency medicine physician and Associate Professor at George Washington University.
By Dr. LEANA S. WEN
“ A rift is growing between federal health officials and public health experts over who most needs protection from respiratory viruses. Coronavirus vaccine guidance remains contentious, with major medical societies diverging from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s recently changed recommendations on the shots.
But one message has remained consistent: Everyone 6 months and older should receive the seasonal influenza vaccine.
Four recent studies, all published in CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Reports, highlight the necessity of getting this year’s influenza vaccine. Here are my takeaways from these studies.
1. Last year’s flu season was especially bad.
The 2024-2025 influenza season was associated with at least 43 million illnesses, 560,000 hospitalizations and 38,000 deaths. The hospitalization rate for the disease surpassed that of covid-19 and respiratory syncytial virus.
In fact, more people were hospitalized for influenza in last year’s season than any year since 2010-2011. Researchers believe this is because more people than usual caught the virus, not because cases were more severe.
Children were among those hit especially hard. Last season, 280 children died from influenza, the highest number since pediatric flu deaths became nationally reportable in 2004 (excluding the 2009-2010 H1N1 pandemic). The median age of death was 7.
2. Influenza can lead to severe complications.
As in past seasons, the most common complication among hospitalized patients with influenza was pneumonia, affecting approximately 30 percent of cases. More than 18 percent of patients developed the life-threatening, body-wide infection known as sepsis, and about the same amount ended up with acute kidney failure. Six percent required mechanical ventilation, and 3 percent died in the hospital.
One CDC report examined a rare but devastating brain complication from the flu that leads to swelling, seizures and sometimes death. Last season, 109 children were diagnosed with this condition, called influenza-associated encephalopathy, which killed roughly 1 in 5. Thirty-seven had an especially severe form, of which a little more than half survived.
3. Flu is most dangerous for people with underlying conditions.
As in prior years, most hospitalized patients last season (89 percent) had one or more medical conditions that made them more vulnerable to severe illness. Among children, asthma was the most common underlying issue. Among older adults, cardiovascular issues and metabolic diseases such as diabetes predominated.
Age itself is another major risk factor. The highest hospitalization rates were among adults 75 and older. Influenza-related deaths among children were most frequent in infants younger than 6 months.”
My comments:
Dr. Wen is an emergency medicine physician and Associate Professor at George Washington University.
