Federal health officials are concerned about a rare but life-threatening brain complication in children during this year’s harsh flu season, which has resulted in 19,000 deaths and 86 child fatalities. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported at least nine of those children experienced brain complications, including seizures or hallucinations.
Although the CDC found that this year’s flu shots are effective in preventing hospitalization from the flu among vaccinated individuals, there is still uncertainty surrounding the vaccine composition for next winter’s flu season. The Trump administration canceled a meeting of experts who were supposed to help choose the recipe for the 2025-2026 influenza season.
Despite the uncertainty, health experts emphasize that it’s not too late to get vaccinated this year and encourage parents to seek medical attention if their child experiences unusual or concerning symptoms while having the flu. The vaccine’s effectiveness varies from year to year, but its primary role is to prevent hospitalization and keep individuals alive. Preliminary CDC data found children who received this year’s vaccine were 64-78% less likely to be hospitalized than unvaccinated counterparts.
The rare brain complications associated with the flu are known as influenza-associated encephalopathy or encephalitis, which is characterized by brain inflammation. The CDC analyzed 1,840 child flu deaths since 2010 and found 166 cases of neurologic complications, mostly among unvaccinated children. However, it’s unclear if this year’s nine reported deaths with those complications mark an uptick.
Vaccine makers are already preparing for the months-long process of brewing next winter’s flu shots, but the meeting that was supposed to help choose the recipe has been canceled. The CDC will provide recommendations to manufacturers in time for updated vaccines to be available for the 2025-2026 influenza season.
Source: https://apnews.com/article/flu-vaccine-shots-kids-brain-complication-af4d9e28952f89f260fb0848ebe80626