Flu Vaccine Reduces Risk of Early Death for Seniors in Intensive Care

A study in Intensive Care Medicine showed that seniors in an intensive care unit (ICU) have lower odds of dying and suffering a blood clot or bleeding in the brain if they have been vaccinated for influenza, reports ScienceDaily . Of roughly 90,000 survivors admitted to the ICU due to influenza, vaccinated individuals had a 16 percent reduced risk of stroke, and an 8 percent lower risk of dying during the first year following hospitalization. "This supports the current recommendation that older people should be vaccinated," says Aarhus University Hospital Professor Christian Fynbo Christiansen. The study is the first time that researchers have examined the effect of flu vaccine specifically on critically ill seniors. Although other researchers learned that the vaccine reduces the risk of bacterial infections and heart attacks, this research shows this not to be the case for seniors in the ICU. "This raises new research questions about what effect of the vaccine on the immune system and whether there were other differences between the subjects," notes Christiansen.