Unvaccinated Kids More Likely To Die From Flu

Flu season is coming to an end. But over its course, millions of children in the United States have been exposed to the virus. While kids who have been vaccinated are not guaranteed to be immune from the disease, research showed that they are still less likely to die from flu than those who are unvaccinated.

In a case focusing on nearly 300 children from the U.S. who died from flu over four seasons, researchers found that most of them have not been vaccinated against the virus. The study looked at 291 children between the ages of 6 months and 17 years, who died between July 2010 and June 2014. All of them have been diagnosed with flu -- either before their death or during an autopsy.

Live Science noted that of the children studied, it was found that only 26 percent were vaccinated against the flu virus before they were sick. However, it was noted that 153 of the children had "high-risk" medical conditions like asthma, heart diseases or blood disorders, which put them at higher risk of flu complications.

Overall, it seems that the flu vaccine stil reduces the risk of death, at least for half of the kids with high-risk conditions and by nearly two-thirds among those without the said conditions. It is still rare for children to die from flu, but there are cases every year, depending on the severity of the season. For instance, in 2011-2012, around 37 children died from the flu. However, a few years before that, around 358 died in one season.

The study, published in the journal Pediatrics, only further enhances what health officials have been recommending for many years: adults and children over the age of 6 months should be vaccinated. Dr. Paul Offit, chief of infectious diseases at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, said, "This shows you, once again, that kids should get their flu shot."