tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
Taipei, Nov. 17 (CNA) A recent study has found that Taiwan's children and senior citizens are not well enough protected against swine flu, Chang Gung Children's Hospital (CGCH) said Wednesday, giving added credence to a government campaign to get people vaccinated against the flu strain.
The two groups most vulnerable to influenza A (H1N1) are children below 4 years of age and adults over 45, especially those 65 and older, said Chen Chih-jung, a CGCH pediatrician who led the study, which looked at the level of serum antibodies against the virus in Taiwan's people.
Chen said people in the vulnerable age brackets not only had insufficient antibodies against the H1N1 flu strain, their symptoms were more likely to develop into severe complicated influenza, for which hospitalization is required and the risk of death higher.
The vaccination program for the H1N1 flu strain proved controversial last year after some people died not long after being given the vaccine developed specifically for swine flu, driving speculation that it was unsafe.
This year, however, the H1N1 flu vaccine is being offered as part of a three-in-one seasonal flu vaccine that also protects against the H3N2 virus and influenza B virus.
The vaccination rate this year for the seasonal flu has exceeded that of last year for most high risk groups, but Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Deputy Director-General Lin Ting cautioned that the rate for children below 3 years of age was only 22 percent, merely half of the forecast percentage.
The seasonal flu shots are being given for free to children from six months old to the sixth grade, senior citizens above the age of 65, and high risk professionals until Nov. 30, and Lin said they have few side effects and are safe.
Asked about doubts that stemmed from a 7-year-old boy who died 32 days after being inoculated last year and other similar cases, Lin said that the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program (VICP) had reviewed the cases and concluded that most conditions were not triggered by the H1N1 vaccine.
Comparing the safety of seasonal flu shots to common vaccines, he urged the public not to be misled by unsubstantiated reports or rumors, adding that the seasonal flu shots could even be incorporated into routine vaccinations in the future.
The study, commissioned by the CDC after the H1N1 pandemic in 2009, studied 1,558 people from 3-months-old to 92 in the cities and counties of Taipei, Taoyuan and Tainan. (By Nancy Liu) ENDITEM/ls
http://focustaiwan.tw/ShowNews/WebNews_Detail.aspx?Type=aALL&ID=201011170013
The two groups most vulnerable to influenza A (H1N1) are children below 4 years of age and adults over 45, especially those 65 and older, said Chen Chih-jung, a CGCH pediatrician who led the study, which looked at the level of serum antibodies against the virus in Taiwan's people.
Chen said people in the vulnerable age brackets not only had insufficient antibodies against the H1N1 flu strain, their symptoms were more likely to develop into severe complicated influenza, for which hospitalization is required and the risk of death higher.
The vaccination program for the H1N1 flu strain proved controversial last year after some people died not long after being given the vaccine developed specifically for swine flu, driving speculation that it was unsafe.
This year, however, the H1N1 flu vaccine is being offered as part of a three-in-one seasonal flu vaccine that also protects against the H3N2 virus and influenza B virus.
The vaccination rate this year for the seasonal flu has exceeded that of last year for most high risk groups, but Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Deputy Director-General Lin Ting cautioned that the rate for children below 3 years of age was only 22 percent, merely half of the forecast percentage.
The seasonal flu shots are being given for free to children from six months old to the sixth grade, senior citizens above the age of 65, and high risk professionals until Nov. 30, and Lin said they have few side effects and are safe.
Asked about doubts that stemmed from a 7-year-old boy who died 32 days after being inoculated last year and other similar cases, Lin said that the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program (VICP) had reviewed the cases and concluded that most conditions were not triggered by the H1N1 vaccine.
Comparing the safety of seasonal flu shots to common vaccines, he urged the public not to be misled by unsubstantiated reports or rumors, adding that the seasonal flu shots could even be incorporated into routine vaccinations in the future.
The study, commissioned by the CDC after the H1N1 pandemic in 2009, studied 1,558 people from 3-months-old to 92 in the cities and counties of Taipei, Taoyuan and Tainan. (By Nancy Liu) ENDITEM/ls
http://focustaiwan.tw/ShowNews/WebNews_Detail.aspx?Type=aALL&ID=201011170013