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Page: << Prev | 1 | 2 | 3 | Next >> "Flu is a killer, no question," said Dr. John Treanor, a professor of medicine and of microbiology and immunology at the University of Rochester Medical Center in New York. "And even though we usually think about flu as being a killer of old people or those with chronic disease, which it is, we've also become more aware of deaths in young children."
"Most of the kids who die of the flu were not vaccinated, and only about half of them have the kind of high-risk conditions that we normally target vaccine for," Treanor said.
As of June 14, 2008, the CDC has received reports of 83 flu-related deaths in children during the 2007-08 flu season. Seventy-six children died during the previous season, and 46 in the 2005-06 season.
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The high mortality rate during the past two flu seasons may have been due to a poor match between circulating flu strains and those included in the vaccine, which is updated every year.
Officials are predicting that this year's vaccine will be a better match and in plentiful supply.
Each year, more than 200,000 people are hospitalized due to complications from the flu, and 36,000 die, often from high-risk groups such as the elderly and those with chronic health issues.
Although the CDC recommends that anyone who wants to reduce their odds of getting the flu be vaccinated, priority groups include children aged 6 months to 19 years; pregnant women; people aged 50 and older; people of any age with chronic medical conditions; those who live in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities; and those at high risk for flu-related complications such as health-care workers, household contacts of people at high risk for complications, and household contacts and out-of-home caregivers of children under 6 months (who are too young to be vaccinated).
According to the CDC, flu season varies somewhat each year but can start as early as October, usually peaking in January or after and even as late as March.
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