Infectious Disease
Influenza vaccine can provide additional protection against COVID-19
Source / information
Source:
TaghioffS, et al. Abstract 4670. Investigation of the potential benefit of influenza vaccination against SARS-CoV-2: a retrospective cohort analysis of 74,754 patients. Presented at ECCMID; 9-12 July 2021 (virtual meeting).
Disclosure:
Healio was unable to confirm any relevant financial information for Taghioff at the time of publication.
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Influenza vaccination can reduce the risk of stroke, sepsis, and deep vein thrombosis in patients with COVID-19, as suggested by data presented at the ECCMID virtual meeting.
Additionally, patients with COVID-19 who received a flu vaccine were less likely to go to the emergency room or be admitted to the intensive care unit. Susan Taghioff, a research fellow at the University of Miami’s Miller School of Medicine, and colleagues reported.
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Taghioff and colleagues performed a retrospective analysis of data from the TriNetX research database on more than 70 million patients and identified two groups of 37,377 people.
Groups were matched for factors that influenced their risk for severe COVID-19, such as age, gender, ethnicity, smoking, and health issues such as diabetes, obesity, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
Participants in one group had received a flu vaccine between 2 weeks and 6 months prior to being diagnosed with COVID-19. In the second group, participants had not received a flu vaccine prior to being diagnosed with COVID-19.
The researchers compared the frequency of 15 side effects that occurred in participants from both groups within 120 days of testing positive for COVID-19.
Participants who had not received the flu shot were up to 20% more likely to be admitted to the intensive care unit, 58% more likely to the emergency room, 45% more likely to have sepsis, 58% more likely to have a stroke, and 40% more likely to have DVT. The risk of death was not reduced.
Taghioff and colleagues said their results suggest that vaccination against influenza protects against severe COVID-19, but that more research is needed to confirm this suggestion.
“Influenza vaccination can even benefit people who are reluctant to get a COVID-19 vaccine because of the novelty of the technology,” Taghioff said in a press release. “Even so, the flu vaccine is not a substitute for the COVID-19 vaccine and we are committed to ensuring that everyone gets their COVID-19 vaccine when possible. The continued promotion of the influenza vaccine can also help the world’s population avoid a possible “twilight problem” – a simultaneous outbreak of influenza and coronavirus. “
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