The healthcare and societal burden associated with influenza in vaccinated and unvaccinated European and Israeli children

Abstract

Few data exist regarding the healthcare and societal burden of culture-confirmed influenza illness in European and Israeli children. The current analysis describes this burden in vaccinated and unvaccinated children 2–17 years of age. Healthcare and societal burden outcomes were prospectively collected for culture-confirmed influenza illness in three previous randomized studies: a study of live attenuated influenza vaccine (LAIV) versus placebo in children aged <48 months attending day care ( N = 846–973), and studies of LAIV versus inactivated influenza vaccine (IIV) in children aged <72 months with recurrent respiratory infections ( N = 1,609) and in children aged 6–17 years with asthma ( N = 2,211). The incidence of each endpoint among enrolled subjects and subjects with influenza was determined by treatment group and by country. Among subjects with influenza, 57–91 % missed school or day care, 45–90 % used non-antibiotic medications, 29–55 % of parents missed work, 17–55 % used antibiotics, 11–62 % had additional provider visits, and 9–20 % had acute otitis media. Where evaluated, rates of outcomes were generally similar between countries. Among all children enrolled, LAIV recipients missed 324–902 and 150 fewer days of day care per 1,000 children than those of placebo and IIV recipients, respectively; parents of LAIV recipients missed 197–340 and 76 fewer days of work per 1,000 children than those of placebo and IIV recipients, respectively. Influenza illness in European and Israeli children 2–17 years of age resulted in a considerable absenteeism and healthcare utilization that was similar across the countries studied. These data underscore the potential benefits of annual vaccination of children against influenza.