[Influenza – Not innocuous, but preventable].
Influenza is an infectious disease that can be prevented by a vaccine but the readiness to vaccinate against this recurrent infection is weak in the general population. However, influenza is not always a harmless illness as illustrated in our authentic case report. Individuals with an impaired immune response, particularly pregnant women and the elderly are particularly at risk for a complicated course of influenza. But it is precisely this population, which also has an attenuated immune response to the vaccine. The limited efficacy in this target group is a potential “loss of image” for any flu vaccination campaign. This raises the question whether we should not try to motivate healthy individuals to get vaccinated, particularly if they are living or working next to vulnerable individuals. Epidemiologic data but also recent mathematical models indicate that consistent vaccination of (school-)children results in reduced mortality in elderly people.
1 Infektiologie/Spitalhygiene, Kantonsspital St. Gallen.
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D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007121:Immunocompetence / Q000276:immunology; D007153:Immunologic Deficiency Syndromes / Q000276:immunology / Q000401:mortality; D007252:Influenza Vaccines / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000276:immunology; D007251:Influenza, Human / Q000276:immunology / Q000401:mortality / Q000517:prevention & control*; D008297:Male; D055624:Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus; D008875:Middle Aged; D011023:Pneumonia, Staphylococcal / Q000276:immunology / Q000401:mortality / Q000517:prevention & control*; D011024:Pneumonia, Viral / Q000276:immunology / Q000401:mortality / Q000517:prevention & control; D011247:Pregnancy; D012307:Risk Factors; D013203:Staphylococcal Infections / Q000276:immunology / Q000401:mortality / Q000517:prevention & control*
D007252:Influenza Vaccines