All children between 6 months and 5 years old should be vaccinated against influenza, Reuters quoted a panel of US vaccine advisers as saying on Wednesday. The unanimous vote by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention s immunization advisory committee in Atlanta delighted pediatricians and infectious disease specialists, who have been pressing for universal flu vaccination standards. Starting with the next influenza season we will not only have children 6 to 24 months but all children up to 5 years of age, said Dr. Carol J. Baker, president-elect of the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases, who asked the panel to expand its recommendations. Vaccination of children 24 to 59 months old will likely reduce the risk of influenza-related complications for all children in this age group, not just those identified with the highest risk of complications from influenza, said Dr. Anne Schuchat, director of CDC s National Immunization Program. Baker had hoped to persuade the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices to recommend better vaccination of young children with asthma. But she said the committee members decided to recommend that all children under 5 get a flu shot. The reason for (vaccinating) young children is they have the same amount of hospitalizations and illnesses as older groups, excluding the elderly, Baker, a pediatrician at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, said in a telephone interview. The infrastructure for vaccinating these young children is in place the annual visit to the pediatrician. The CDC says influenza killed 153 children in the 2003-2004 flu season more US children than chicken pox, whooping cough and measles combined. Nearly two-thirds of those who died were under age 5, and half were previously healthy. Forty-three percent had asthma. The effort of the ACIP to pass this crucial vote represents an important first step in protecting the safety and well-being of children, said Richard Kanowitz, president of Families Fighting Flu, which also testified to the committee. Kanowitz s 4-year-old daughter, Amanda, died from influenza in March 2004. --more 13 36 Local Time 10 36 GMT
