Flu jabs 'can't stop pneumonia'

BBC
Friday, Aug 1, 2008

One of the main benefits of flu jabs for the elderly - protection against pneumonia - may not exist, US scientists have claimed.

They say the risk of pneumonia for older people stayed the same, whether they received the jab or not.

The study, published in The Lancet journal, looked at pneumonia rates among thousands of vaccinated and unvaccinated people.

The Health Protection Agency said the flu jab played a vital role.

Pneumonia represents one of the biggest threats to elderly people during the annual winter flu season in the UK.

It is either caused by the direct action of the influenza virus within the lungs, or by a separate bacterial infection taking hold while the person is weakened by flu.

In the UK, the over-65s, alongside those with chronic illnesses such as asthma and diabetes, are encouraged to have a yearly flu jab in the autumn.

This is not the first study to cast doubt on whether the vaccination programme actually does any good, even though some other studies have suggested that vaccinated older people are less likely to be admitted to hospital for pneumonia.

The latest research followed 3,500 people through three flu seasons to see if it made any difference, and while slightly fewer vaccinated patients were diagnosed with pneumonia, the difference was not statistically significant.

Full article here

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