CDC releases efficacy data for children and the elderly

The flu vaccine was 68% effective in preventing hospitalizations in children, but was less protective for the elderly this season, according to preliminary data released on Wednesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The vaccine was 35% effective in preventing hospitalization of the elderly in one study and 42% in a second analysis.

For people with weakened immune systems, the vaccine reduced the risk of hospitalization by 44% in one study and 30% in another.

The flu hit early this season, when the weekly hospitalization rate peaked in December and has been declining since then, according to CDC data. The flu has caused 25 million illnesses, 280,000 hospitalizations and 18,000 deaths since October. More than 100 children have died of the flu this season.

Flu cases spiked last fall after two years in which the virus circulated at low levels due to masking and social distancing measures put in place during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Dr Jose Romero, head of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, said the simultaneous circulation of Covid, influenza and respiratory syncytial virus is putting significant pressure on hospitals and drug supply chains in states. -United.

“After a brief and anticipated increase in hospitalizations and cases during the holidays, we are now seeing a continued decrease in Covid, influenza and RSV cases and hospitalizations nationwide,” Romero told the Independent Advisory Board of the CDC Wednesday.

“Although influenza activity is decreasing, it remains possible for a second wave to occur later in the season, as it has in the past,” Romero said.

Children and the elderly are generally most at risk of contracting severe flu. About 52% of children and 70% of seniors had received a flu shot by the end of January, according to CDC data. The CDC recommends seasonal vaccination for anyone 6 months and older.

The effectiveness of influenza vaccines can vary greatly from season to season depending on the match between the strains included in the vaccines and the viruses circulating. Dr. Lisa Grohskopf, a CDC official, said vaccines and circulating flu strains are reasonably well matched this season.

Hospitals were hit last fall by the simultaneous spread of Covid, influenza and respiratory syncytial virus. The Children’s Hospital Association had called on the Biden administration to declare a public health emergency in November, calling it “alarming” the increase in the number of children hospitalized at that time.

Although there are vaccines for Covid and flu widely available, there is no vaccine for RSV. Several companies are developing vaccines for the elderly that could receive Food and Drug Administration approval this year.

Pfizer is developing a vaccine that protects infants from RSV, and Sanofi has asked the FDA to approve an antibody called nirsevimab that also protects children up to two years old.

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