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191004 FluMist Immunization Decreased Flu Related Absenteeism One Year After Administration in a School Based Immunization Program in Alachua County, Florida

Sunday, October 26, 2008

Cuc Thi-Hong Tran, MPHc , School of Public Health, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL
Krystin Engelhardt, MPHc , School of Public Health, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL
Parker A. Small Jr, MD , Department of Pathology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL
John Glenn Morris, MD , Emerging Pathogens Institute, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL
BACKGROUND: Schools are virus exchange system ultimately spreading the virus to the whole community. Children are “super spreaders”. They shed more virus and do so for longer periods of time than adults. Computer models have suggested that immunizing school children could protect the whole community. This study assessed if there was a decrease in flu related school absenteeism one year after FluMist was administered at a time when the inactivated vaccine was shown to be only 40% effective.

METHODS: 25% (n=5,198) of Alachua County K-8 school children were immunized with FluMist during the fall of 2006. A year later, flu related absenteeism was evaluated for a thirteen week period (January 7th -April 13th,2008). This time frame was determined by the health department as the height of a flu outbreak. Children in grades kindergarten and 10-12 acted as controls for this time period, having not received the vaccine.

RESULTS: Absenteeism of students in grades 1-9 (75.6%), 25% of whom had been immunized, was lower than the control (78.3%), who had not been immunized (P=<.0001).

CONCLUSION: FluMist immunization decreased school absenteeism during a flu outbreak one year after vaccine administration, even though the virus had shifted. Given the apparent boarder protection provided by FluMist, immunizing school children might reduce the severity of the next flu pandemic.

Learning Objectives:
Learning Objectives: •Describe the role FluMist and school absenteeism. •Evaluate the importance of school base immunization program. •Indentify when a flu outbreak most likely to occur. •Construct a flu vaccination program in a small community. •Assess why it is crucial to vaccination school children rather than the elderly.

Keywords: School Health, Infectious Diseases

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am a student conducting this research.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

See more of: Late Breakers Infectious Disease Epidemiology Poster Session
See more of: Epidemiology