Children have been hit particularly laborious by the early-onset flu season, in line with a research from Tennessee that raises considerations about US immunization charges following the pandemic-fueled pattern of vaccine hesitancy. (Also learn: Flu, Covid and RSV are on the rise and already burdening hospitals)
Kids had been hospitalized at excessive ranges sooner than standard and had been twice as probably as adults to get sick from different family contacts who examined constructive within the present season, in line with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report on 14 of the state’s 95 counties.
Flu started spreading in September within the US, a month sooner than standard, in a season that mixed with Covid-19 and RSV, one other respiratory illness, to create what US well being officers known as a “tripledemic.” Hospitalizations for flu alone additionally peaked early in Tennessee youngsters and youths, reaching 6.9 per 100,000 youngsters within the week ending Nov. 26, greater than twice as many as in the identical week in 2019.
“About one in four kids in Tennessee had received a flu vaccine at the time of this study,” Christine Thomas, a CDC Epidemic Intelligence Service Officer who helped write the report, mentioned in an electronic mail. The severity of the season “highlights the need for everyone, including kids 6 months and older, to get their flu vaccine as soon as possible.”
Immunization charges for a lot of childhood ailments suffered within the wake of widespread suspicion of Covid-19 photographs. Flu vaccination protection for youngsters as of Dec. 31 fell to 48% in contrast with virtually 53% on the similar time in 2020. The CDC is conducting focused outreach to oldsters, encouraging them to get their youngsters vaccinated in opposition to the flu, Thomas mentioned.
Flu exercise has declined in Tennessee and nationally since early December, in line with the report, however a number of weeks of the season stay. Children are at better danger for flu-related morbidity and mortality, and the seasonal flu vaccine stays the easiest way to guard them — particularly this yr, as flu-related pediatric deaths are on the rise for the primary time because the pandemic started.
The CDC has reported 79 flu-related deaths to date this season in youngsters, in comparison with a seasonlong complete of 44 deaths in 2021-22 and only one demise within the 2020-21 season, when Covid management measures minimized instances.
This story has been printed from a wire company feed with out modifications to the textual content. Only the headline has been modified.
