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Healthy infants could benefit
from the influenza (flu) vaccine during the 2002-2003 season, the American
Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention.
In the past, only young children
at high risk for flu complications, such as those with chronic lung disorders,
were recommended to get the vaccine.
However, recent studies have
revealed that children under 2 years of age are at risk for hospitalization
from flu-related complications. The rate of disease and the amount of
hospitalization for infants is really comparable to that of older people
for whom the vaccine is recommended.
What's more, inoculating more
people against the flu, a leading cause of pneumonia and death in the
elderly, would reduce the rate of transmission in the entire population.
American
Academy of Pediatrics and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
May 7, 2002
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