ANN ARBOR, MI—The VA continues to lag behind community hospitals in mandating annual influenza vaccine for all healthcare personal, a new study suggested. The report in JAMA Network Open said requiring HCP vaccination against the flu helps limit disease spread to...
Executive Order Enlists DoD Help in Modernizing Flu Vaccine
WASHINGTON—A new executive order is aimed at increasing the manufacturing efficiency and effectiveness of flu vaccines. The DoD and Department of Health and Human Services are co-chairing a task force in the process of implementing the order signed in September by...
Respirators No More Effective Than Masks in Flu Prevention
PITTSBURGH—How effective are N95 respirators and medical masks in preventing healthcare personnel from acquiring workplace viral respiratory infections? A study in JAMA sought to answer that question. Researchers from the National Personal Protective Technology...
‘Severe’ 2017-18 Influenza Season Hit VA Especially Hard
This likely will come as little surprise to healthcare professionals who soldiered through it, but the 2017-18 influenza season was the most severe since VA surveillance was initiated in 2009.
VA-Led Study: Absenteeism Drops With Mandatory HCP Influenza Vaccines
New research is raising questions about whether the VA is doing enough to promote influenza vaccination of healthcare personnel.
INVESTED Trial Tests High-Dose Flu Vaccine for Veterans With Cardiovascular Disease
Influenza hits veterans hard, and older veterans with cardiovascular disease face a substantially increased risk of complications and death from the common ailment.
Severe Side Effects Rare in Elderly Veterans Receiving High Dose Influenza Vaccine
Patients over the age of 65 face an increased risk of severe complications and death if they contract influenza.
Low Flu Vaccine Rates at Healthcare Facilities Without Mandatory Shots
ATLANTA –The vast majority of physicians got a flu shot before the 2015-16 influenza season. The issue is how many of their assistants and aides also were vaccinated. An article in the Morbidity & Mortality Weekly Report notes that coverage generally was highest...
Flu Complications Reduced With Early Antiviral Treatment
CLEVELAND – How does antiviral treatment, pre-existing diseases, and sociodemographic factors affect the risk of influenza-related complications and healthcare utilization? For a report in the journal Current Medical Research and Opinion, case data was obtained from...
VA, Veterans Bear High Costs for Annual Flu Season
WHITE RIVER JUNCTION, VT – For the U.S. population in general, seasonal influenza epidemics are a substantial public health and economic burden: On average, more than 200,000 people are hospitalized and an estimated 23,000 Americans die from respiratory and...
Timing of Flu in HIV Patients Vaccinated Early
SAN DIEGO – Past research has shown that patients with HIV infection vaccinated early in the flu season are generally more likely to contract influenza or influenza-like illness (ILI), compared with those receiving late vaccination. The reason likely is that antibody...
For Veterans and Armed Forces, Risk Remains Despite Flu Shots
While influenza vaccine is the first line of defense against an infectious disease that can dramatically affect troop readiness, it is far from 100% effective.
Algorithm Helps Identify Highest Influenza Activity
AMHERST, MA - A new tool can assist public health practitioners, researchers, and clinicians in defining the community-level onset of seasonal influenza epidemics. Using recent surveillance data on virologically confirmed infections of influenza, a team led by...
Rapid Vaccination Can Prevent Deaths, Costs in Flu Pandemic
STANFORD, CA - Rapid vaccination is key to averting deaths and saving tens of millions of dollars in treatment costs from a severe influenza pandemic occurring with a strain as lethal as human influenza A (H7N9), according to a dynamic transmission model used in a...
Flu Outbreak on Navy Ship Despite Mandatory Vaccinations
SAN DIEGO - Since the 1950s, a policy of mandatory annual vaccination for active duty personnel has been largely successful in limiting influenza epidemics in the military. The current DoD influenza vaccination policy mandates that all uniformed personnel receive...
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