Influenza News

Study findings indicated that an electronic vaccination reminder that utilized immunization information from a population-based system increased influenza vaccination later in the winter when few vaccine doses are administered.

Embedding vaccine education information within text message vaccine reminders significantly improved timely receipt of a second dose of influenza vaccine among low-income, urban, minority populations, according to a study published in Pediatrics.

There are approximately 36,000 influenza-related deaths and over 200,000 hospitalizations due to influenza reported in the United States each year. These numbers vary annually and depend on various factors including circulating influenza strains and fluctuating vaccination rates. 

The FDA has approved the IV drug peramivir for the treatment of influenza in adults, according to a press release.

From Sept. 28 to Dec. 6, almost 125,000 respiratory specimens in the United States were tested for influenza and 10.9% were positive, according to a CDC report published in MMWR.

From 2000 to 2001 through 2010 to 2011, influenza vaccination increased among children living in Tennessee, but the proportion of fully vaccinated children remained less than 50%, according to study findings.

The CDC recommends annual influenza vaccination for everyone aged at least 6 months. Influenza vaccination options for the 2014-2015 season include the traditional trivalent vaccine, which protects against H1N1 and H3N2 and one influenza B virus, and the quadrivalent vaccine, which protects against two influenza A viruses and two influenza B viruses.

The FDA today approved an intradermal quadrivalent influenza vaccine containing two influenza A and two influenza B strains, according to a press release from the manufacturer.

The high prevalence of a drifted influenza A(H3N2) strain could lead to a worse influenza season, CDC Director Thomas R. Frieden, MD, MPH, announced today during a media briefing.

SAN DIEGO — Educating health care workers on the importance of annual influenza immunization for children with asthma and modifying electronic medical record processes improved influenza vaccination rates, according to data presented at the 2014 AAP National Conference and Exhibition.