This article is more than 5 years old. Information may no longer be current.
Influenza vaccination among close contacts of young infants remains crucial
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts
The importance of the influenza vaccine, especially among pregnant women and those in contact with young infants not eligible for vaccination, is underscored by the effect of influenza on infants, according to recent study findings published in The Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal.
Sandra S. Chaves, MD, MSc, medical director of CDC’s Influenza Hospitalization Surveillance Network, and colleagues evaluated surveillance data from 2003 to 2012 to determine the burden of influenza on children younger than 12 months. Patients were divided by age category from younger than 3 months, 3 months to younger than 6 months, and 6 months to younger than 12 months.
During the 2003 to 2012 influenza seasons, there were 3,157 hospitalizations among infants with laboratory-confirmed influenza. Fifty percent of hospitalizations occurred in infants younger than 3 months, 18% in those 3 months to younger than 6 months, and 32% among those aged 6 months to younger than 12 months. Twenty-five percent of the infants had high-risk conditions.
Before the 2009-2010 influenza seasons, fewer than 6% of hospitalized influenza cases were diagnosed by real-time reverse transcription PCR (rRT-PCR), increasing to 56% during the 2009-2010 pandemic and 74% during the 2011-2012 season, according to the researchers.
Throughout each season, patients younger than 3 months had the highest influenza-related hospitalizations.
Influenza antiviral agents were prescribed to 28% of all patients hospitalized with laboratory-confirmed influenza. Less than 10% to 15% of patients received antivirals before the 2009 pandemic and increased to 70% or more during the pandemic and declined to about 60% during the seasons after the pandemic. Antiviral agents were used slightly more often in patients with high-risk conditions.
During the study period, ICU admission rates varied from 9% to 14%. Eight percent to 10% of otherwise healthy patients were admitted to the ICU and 4% or less had respiratory failure. Patients with high-risk conditions were three times more likely to be admitted to the ICU or have respiratory failure compared with those without high-risk conditions.
Eight deaths were documented.
“In conclusion, our results underscore the impact of influenza on infants, particularly in the youngest age group where the rates of hospitalization were highest,” the researchers wrote. “This effect was most pronounced among infants with high-risk conditions who were more likely to be admitted to the ICU or have respiratory failure in the course of hospitalization. Influenza vaccination of infants ≥6 months of age, pregnant women and those in contact with infants <6 months of age who cannot benefit from direct vaccination is the best way to protect infants from influenza and its complications. For those infants with influenza, early antiviral therapy could prevent complications, though more data on the effectiveness of antiviral treatment among severely ill children are warranted.”
Disclosure: One researcher reports financial ties with Dynavax, GlaxoSmithKline, Merck, Pfizer and Sanofi-Pasteur.
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts