The expert: “Programming influenza vaccination to protect the elderly and the frail”

“The planning of the vaccination campaign is the key to ensuring the benefits of flu vaccination for the entire population, starting with the most vulnerable and the elderly. Programming the flu vaccination means giving the Regions the possibility, through the ministerial circular, to organize themselves as soon as possible for the purchase of vaccines and allow hospitals, general practitioners, vaccination centers and pharmacies to take action for the distribution and execution of vaccination. All this is fundamental, because although the 2020-2021 vaccination coverage data is better than the previous season, there is still some way to go to be able to reach at least the minimum target in populations at risk (75%, the optimal would be 95%). In the over 65s, coverage has reached 66.5%, so we are still very far from the target ”. So Michele Conversano, director of the Asl Prevention Department of Taranto, speaking at the Media Master Class “Telling the flu at the time of the pandemic” which was held at the La Sapienza University of Rome. Objective of the event: to inform and train the media on the innovation brought about by the new flu vaccines, on the impact of influenza today in the current social context and on the risks related to its non-prevention, and on the specific needs of the new post- Influenza – emerged from the three sessions of the Master Class – is an underestimated disease: its impact on people’s health and on the health system is much more significant than what is monitored and perceived and the lack of knowledge of its severity can lead to outcomes fatal. It has in fact caused more victims than those generated by the pandemics of the last century (from 1918 to the present day): 48.41 million against over 24 million. The global impact of influenza is over 1 billion cases per year, with consequences that lead to a number of deaths ranging between 290,000 and 650,000. It severely affects the elderly, often with nuanced symptoms. 65% of hospitalizations related to influenza and 85% of deaths related to the contraction of this virus mainly concern people over 65. Among the most known complications of influenza are those that affect the respiratory system, such as bronchitis, pneumonia, sinus infections and ear infections. It is also well known that influenza can aggravate a number of underlying chronic conditions of the respiratory system, including asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (BPCO). of the population, and the growing share of long-lived elderly people. According to the population forecasts of Istat in 2030 there will be more than 16 million over-65s. comorbidities. In the last 20 years the percentage of Italians suffering from at least one chronic disease has increased from 35.1 to 37.9%, while the percentage of subjects suffering from at least two chronic diseases has increased from 17.7 to 20%. In absolute values, this means an increase of about 2.7 million patients with at least one chronic disease, of which about 2 million with at least two chronic diseases. For these reasons, Conversano has no doubts: “It is very important to have an effective organization to reach more widely to all citizens who, from a health point of view, should be vaccinated against the flu virus – underlines the expert -. The post-pandemic context, with the administration of anti-Covid vaccines facilitates the vaccination process of the population groups most susceptible to the flu, especially through the possibility of co-administering the two vaccines, the anti-covid and the flu vaccine “. Moreover “last year the flu did not circulate due to the various lockdowns, because there was the use of masks and attention to social distancing. This means that this year the number of people susceptible to the flu has increased and therefore it is necessary to guarantee more coverage to the over 60s and to the population at risk of diseases, also thanks to the possibility that we have been given to administer the flu vaccine together with the Covid vaccine. Those who are undergoing the third dose, in particular the elderly and frail subjects, can get the flu shot at the same time, “he recalls. “It is a possibility that was allowed to us because it is safe and because it helps us to increase vaccination, booster and flu coverage,” he concludes.