Specialist warns vs deadly flu complications

MANILA, Philippines - The flu won’t kill you, but its complications can.

“A bout with influenza (medical term for flu) is now known to increase the likelihood of serious and even fatal outcomes when secondary bacterial invaders are pre­sent,” warns infectious disease specialist Prof. Lulu Bravo.

Bravo is referring to invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD), a life-threatening infection caused by the bacteria Streptococcus pneumoniae which can normally be found in the nose and throat of up to 70 percent of healthy adults.

Pneumococcus bacteria are opportunistic; they lie in wait and attack only when their host’s defenses are weakened.

IPD causes three life-threatening conditions: pneumonia, bacteremia (blood infection), and meningitis (infection of the covering of the brain or spinal cord).

“When preceded by flu, IPD is deadlier,” says Bravo, vice-chancellor for research and executive director of the National Institutes of Health of University of the Philippines Manila.

“Infants below two years old and the elderly are at greatest risk, but children, adolescents and adults are by no means safe from IPD,” adds Bravo.

History bears out Bravo’s concern. The 1918-1919 influenza pandemic — the most devastating epidemic in recorded world history — killed between 20 million and 40 million people.

A recent review of autopsies by researchers of the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) revealed that most deaths during the influenza pandemic were caused not by flu but by secondary bacterial pneumonia.

The great influenza pandemic killed more than 675,000 people in the US. NIH researchers re-examined post-mortem samples from 58 fatalities and reviewed tissue and blood information from 109 published autopsy series on more than 8,000 persons who died during the pandemic.

They found that most deaths resulted not from direct effects of the influenza virus, but rather from severe secondary pneumonia caused in most cases by Streptococcus pneumoniae.

This is why Bravo strongly recommends annual flu vaccination for people at risk. These include children six months to 19 years old, elderly persons, and persons of any age considered at high risk for influenza-related complications due to underlying health conditions.

Healthcare workers are also recommended to be given annual flu shots to prevent themselves from acquiring it and transmitting to others who might be at risk or vulnerable to he disease.

A sub-unit flu vaccine for children aged six months and older as well as the elderly will soon be available in the Philippines. This vaccine is a product of the Novartis Vaccines Unit and will be marketed in the country by a trusted Novartis partner, Glovax.

“Flu vaccination protects you against flu and consequently, prevents opportunistic bacterial complications that often follow an influenza infection,” Bravo says. “It helps saves lives, lowers healthcare expenses, and reduces absences from school and work.”

Influenza vaccines are proven safe and effective in preventing both mild and severe effects of influenza, as well as in reducing the risk of complications.

Because influenza viruses mutate constantly, the virus composition of flu vaccines must be adjusted annually to include the most recent circulating influenza viruses.

In the Philippines, experts recommend getting the flu vaccine during the first quarter of the year, February to June, and before the start of the influenza season, which is around the months of June to August.