Articles Tagged with ''vaccinations''

Flu vaccination prevented an estimated 6.6 million influenza-associated illnesses, 3.2 million medically attended illnesses, and 79,000 hospitalizations during the 2012-2013 flu season, according to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR).

Vaccinations aren't just for children. Older adults need them, too, to ward off preventable infectious diseases, especially influenza and pneumonia. Yet many adults aren't following the recommended vaccination schedule.

As we enter another influenza season, one question continues to vex medical and public health professionals: How do you stop people from catching the flu? The best way to prevent the flu is by getting an influenza vaccine every year. However, in the event of a large-scale influenza outbreak of a new virus strain or a pandemic, when influenza vaccine may not be promptly available, we will see tremendous demands on the health care system and its workers.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says that with flu activity currently low, it's the perfect time to get vaccinated.