Flu shots' benefit varies among elderly
(Reuters)
Updated: 2006-10-13 09:19 NEW YORK - If an elderly
person is not in good health, flu vaccination does little to help ward off lung
infections, Dutch investigators report.
They found that annual flu shots appear to reduce the risk of developing
lower respiratory tract infections among healthy individuals age 65 and older
during years with mild to moderate influenza epidemics, but this benefit was not
evident among subjects with other illnesses.
Despite this finding of modest risk reduction, reported in the Archives of
Internal Medicine, Dr. Bettie C. G. Voordouw and colleagues still recommend flu
vaccinations for all elderly subjects because the researchers had previously
established that these treatments reduced mortality rates.
The team evaluated the extent to which annual influenza vaccination alters
the overall risk of developing an infection among 26,071 community-dwelling
individuals age 65 and older, who had medical records in the database at the
researchers' institution, Erasmus University Medical Center in Rotterdam during
the period from 1996 to 2002. Approximately half of the subjects had other
illnesses.
During the study, more than 59,000 flu vaccinations were administered to
almost 21,000 patients. Out of the entire cohort, some 3400 developed a first
episode of pneumonia, acute bronchitis or exacerbation of chronic bronchitis.
Overall, influenza vaccination did not alter the risk for developing one of
these lung conditions.
However, the team noted a 33 percent reduction in risk of lung infections in
moderate flu seasons following any flu vaccination or revaccination among the
subjects who were otherwise healthy. On the other hand, subjects with
pre-existing illness were not protected in the same way.
Nevertheless, Voordouw's group still recommends that, "although the
protective effect is modest, influenza vaccination should be advised in view of
the high background incidence of lower respiratory tract infection and because
of the observed reduced mortality in elderly individuals."
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