TY - JOUR
T1 - The influenza landscape and vaccination coverage in older adults during the SARS-Cov-2 pandemic
T2 - data from Several European Countries and Israel
AU - Kassianos, George
AU - Cohen, Jean Marie
AU - Civljak, Rok
AU - Davidovitch, Nadav
AU - Pecurariu, Oana Falup
AU - Froes, Filipe
AU - Galev, Andrei
AU - Ivaskeviciene, Inga
AU - Kõivumägi, Kadri
AU - Kristufkova, Zuzana
AU - Kuchar, Ernest
AU - Kyncl, Jan
AU - Maltezou, Helena C.
AU - Marković, Miloš
AU - Nitsch-Osuch, Aneta
AU - Ortiz de Lejarazu, Raul
AU - Rossi, Alessandro
AU - Schelling, Jörg
AU - van Essen, Gerrit A.
AU - Zavadska, Dace
N1 - Publisher Copyright: © 2024 Sanofi. Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
PY - 2024/1/1
Y1 - 2024/1/1
N2 - Introduction: The Raise Awareness of Influenza Strategies in Europe (RAISE) group gathered information about the healthcare burden of influenza (hospitalizations, intensive care unit [ICU] admissions, and excess deaths), surveillance systems, and the vaccine coverage rate (VCR) in older adults in 18 European countries and Israel. Areas covered: Published medical literature and official medical documentation on the influenza disease burden in the participating countries were reviewed from 2010/11 until the 2022/23 influenza seasons. Information on the framework for monitoring the disease burden and the provision for ensuring older adults had access to vaccination in their respective countries was provided. Data on influenza VCR in older adults were collected for the 2019/20 to 2022/23 influenza seasons. Data are reported descriptively. Expert opinion: Influenza presents a significant healthcare burden in older adults. Reporting outcomes across participating countries is heterogeneous, highlighting the need for standardized approaches. Although older adults receive free influenza vaccination, vaccine uptake is highly variable among countries. Moreover, hospitalization rates remain high even in countries reporting a high VCR. Increased awareness and education on the burden of disease and the broader use of improved influenza vaccines for older adults may help reduce the disease burden on this population.
AB - Introduction: The Raise Awareness of Influenza Strategies in Europe (RAISE) group gathered information about the healthcare burden of influenza (hospitalizations, intensive care unit [ICU] admissions, and excess deaths), surveillance systems, and the vaccine coverage rate (VCR) in older adults in 18 European countries and Israel. Areas covered: Published medical literature and official medical documentation on the influenza disease burden in the participating countries were reviewed from 2010/11 until the 2022/23 influenza seasons. Information on the framework for monitoring the disease burden and the provision for ensuring older adults had access to vaccination in their respective countries was provided. Data on influenza VCR in older adults were collected for the 2019/20 to 2022/23 influenza seasons. Data are reported descriptively. Expert opinion: Influenza presents a significant healthcare burden in older adults. Reporting outcomes across participating countries is heterogeneous, highlighting the need for standardized approaches. Although older adults receive free influenza vaccination, vaccine uptake is highly variable among countries. Moreover, hospitalization rates remain high even in countries reporting a high VCR. Increased awareness and education on the burden of disease and the broader use of improved influenza vaccines for older adults may help reduce the disease burden on this population.
KW - Influenza
KW - Influenza surveillance
KW - burden of disease
KW - older adults
KW - vaccine coverage rate
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85192553326&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - https://doi.org/10.1080/17476348.2024.2340470
DO - https://doi.org/10.1080/17476348.2024.2340470
M3 - Review article
C2 - 38652642
SN - 1747-6348
VL - 18
SP - 69
EP - 84
JO - Expert Review of Respiratory Medicine
JF - Expert Review of Respiratory Medicine
IS - 3-4
ER -