Reducing Avoidable Flu-Related Deaths
How many influenza-associated deaths in children have been reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention during the current flu season?
a. 41
b. 51
c. 61
d. 71
Answer: c
Children rarely die from the flu, but it continues to happen every year. Since the 2004-2005 flu season, when influenza-related pediatric deaths were first reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the number of deaths has ranged from 37 during the 2011-2012 season to a staggering 358 during the 2009 flu pandemic. As of March 25, 61 pediatric flu deaths have been reported to the CDC during the current season.
To determine influenza vaccine effectiveness in preventing flu deaths in children between 6 months and 17 years old, CDC researchers recently analyzed data from July 2010 through June 2014, a span that covered 4 seasons during which vaccination proved effective in preventing the flu (Pediatrics. April 2017).
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They found that only 26% of 291 children who died from laboratory-confirmed influenza had been vaccinated. Their research also showed influenza vaccine was 65% effective in preventing influenza-related deaths in healthy children and cut the risk of death by 51% in children with underlying high-risk medical issues such as neurologic disorders and conditions associated with chromosomal abnormalities and genetic syndromes.
Although the study indicated that vaccine effectiveness was higher in healthy children, the researchers said significant protection against influenza-related death was demonstrated for both groups of children for most flu seasons. Ultimately, the findings showed that children deaths can be prevented by increasing vaccine coverage among this vulnerable population, according to Dr. Brendan Flannery, the study’s lead author and an epidemiologist in the influenza division of the CDC. He said the findings reemphasize the importance of vaccinating all children older than 6 months against the flu.
—Dan Cook
