Adults fail to follow flu vaccine guidelines.

2003 OCT 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Adults with asthma are considered a high-risk group for developing complications after contracting the influenza virus, yet the majority of adults with asthma do not receive an annual influenza vaccination, according to a new study.

The study found that only one-third of all asthmatic adults and one-fifth of asthmatic adults under age 50 follow the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines that recommend asthmatics receive the influenza vaccine annually. The study, published in the September 2003 issue of Chest, also found that despite similar recommendations from the 1997 National Asthma Education and Prevention Program guidelines, the vaccination rate among adults with asthma has not improved from 1999-2001.

"Upper respiratory infections like influenza are an important trigger of asthma. Vaccination guidelines for asthmatics were established to help reduce the severe impact influenza can have on patients in this group," said study author Seymour G. Williams, MD, National Center for Environmental Health, CDC. "Initially, vaccination campaigns were aimed at older adults who are more likely to acquire a high-risk health condition. The older age groups were easier to target and deliver the influenza vaccinations. It is harder to target and increase vaccination rates among groups younger than 65 years of age with high-risk conditions including asthma; hence the overall influenza vaccination rates among persons with asthma are less than optimal."

Researchers from the National Center for Environmental Health, CDC, utilized data from the National Health Interview Survey from 1999-2001 to examine the prevalence of influenza vaccinations among people with asthma. A sample of the United States population participated in the study each year, including 30,801 in 1999, 32,374 in 2000, and 33,326 in 2001. Among respondents with asthma, those who reported receiving the influenza vaccine included 35.1% in 1999, 36.7% in 2000, and 33.3% in 2001. In respondents without asthma, percentages were significantly lower with 27.9%, 28.0%, and 25.9% reporting vaccination in the respective years. Survey results also indicated the ...