Influenza vaccination: the interest in children with asthma remains to be demonstrated

The flu vaccine appears to be no effect on respiratory symptoms in asthmatic children, even if moderately improves their quality of life, suggest the results of a study published in the journal of the "European Respiratory Journal."

Vaccination against influenza is recommended for children with asthma in most European and North American countries, although no randomized trials have demonstrated the benefit of influenza vaccine in this population, explained Dr. Herman Bueving and colleagues the Erasmus Medical Center in Rotterdam (Netherlands).

They therefore wanted to test whether the influenza vaccine in inducing protection against influenza and other related infections, which reduces respiratory symptoms in asthmatic children face.

To do this, they followed during the winter season, 696 asthmatic children aged 6 to 18 years. Youth participants received randomly and without the doctor or the child are aware of the injected product, or the influenza vaccine or placebo vaccine.

Throughout the study, the children and their parents had noted the daily occurrence of any respiratory symptoms and report the occurrence of severe symptoms. Upon the occurrence of such problems, a nurse was sent to perform various tests before returning a week later to assess the quality of life of young asthmatic since his first visit.

The onset of respiratory symptoms prompted a call for researchers to 178 children vaccinated against influenza (51.3%) and 169 youth participants who received placebo (48.4%).

Surveys conducted indicated that the symptoms of upper respiratory infection or cold affected the children in both groups in a similar way, the comparison is made on the weeks in which influenza was detected or the entire winter season .

The evaluation by spirometry lung function of young participants did it either revealed no significant difference between the two groups.

In fact, the only significantly improved influenza vaccination setting proved to be the quality of life of young asthmatics, but only during the weeks following the onset of severe respiratory symptoms and in which infection by the influenza virus proved . When the comparison is all the winter period, the quality of life shows comparable in both groups.

These results do not detect a beneficial effect of influenza vaccination on asthma exacerbations associated with influenza or respiratory symptoms throughout the winter season, the authors conclude.

Other rigorous testing and an evaluation of the cost / effectiveness are needed to justify routine influenza vaccination in asthmatic children, they say.