Starting in October and the following months, the influenza vaccine should be part of the care for the winter months.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), seasonal influenza is an infectious disease caused by a virus that circulates globally, which causes 250 to 500 thousand deaths to occur each year, and 3 to 5 million cases of the disease. severe.
Dr. Mario Acosta Bastidas, Head of the Emergency Department of the National Institute of Pediatrics commented that 95% of deaths from influenza in Mexico in the 2016-2017 season corresponded to people who had one or more comorbidities, such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease and/or that you had not been vaccinated. For this reason, he made a call that in this influenza season the population, from 6 months of age, be vaccinated as the most effective form of prevention, to avoid the disease and its complications.
In addition, he indicated that the annual attack rate of seasonal influenza is estimated to be 10% in adults and up to 30% in children. ? Therefore, it is important that the entire population be vaccinated. In this case, all family members should be immunized, because otherwise, it is likely that one of them can spread the disease? he said.
Another group of concerns is older adults, particularly those over 65 years of age since it increases the risk of contracting diseases such as influenza. ? Has it been clearly shown that influenza infections in older adults can lead to complications such as pneumonia, exacerbations of chronic disease, hospitalizations, and death?