Parents are being urged to get their children vaccinated for flu, as the UK is witnessing an early spike in kids under five being hospitalised with the virus.
Data shows cases of flu have climbed quickly in the past week, indicating that the season has begun earlier than normal.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said it is witnessing rising cases of hospitalisations and admissions to intensive care units among children under five.
Yet children aged six months to two years old are still not eligible for the free flu vaccine in the UK.
Vaccination for flu is also currently behind last season for pre-schoolers. Just 12.1% of all two year-olds have been vaccinated and 12.8% of all three year-olds. This is compared to 17.4% of two year-olds and 18.6% of three year-olds this time last year.
Dr Mary Ramsay, director of public health programmes at UKHSA, said: “We’re urging parents in particular not to be caught out as rates of hospitalisations and ICU admissions are currently rising fastest in children under 5.
“This will be a concern for many parents and carers of young children, and we urge them to take up the offer of vaccination for eligible children as soon as possible.”
Which children are eligible for a free flu jab?
- all children aged 2 or 3 years on August 31 2022
- all primary school aged children (from reception to Year 6)
- secondary school-aged children focusing on Years 7, 8 and 9 and any remaining vaccine will be offered to years 10 and 11, subject to vaccine availability
- those aged 6 months to under 65 years in clinical risk groups
Earlier this autumn, an Australian paediatrician who worked on the front line during the country’s flu season told HuffPost UK that vaccinating children is “critical” for the upcoming flu season.
Associate professor Margie Danchin, who works as a paediatrician at The Royal Children’s Hospital, in Melbourne, said: “I recommend that all parents with children aged six months or older get a flu vaccine [for their children].
“It’s so critical, especially if they’re travelling or they have any other risk factors such as underlying medical conditions. But especially children aged six months to five years.”
She suggested children under the age of two are particularly more vulnerable to flu because they’ve been exposed to fewer viruses during the pandemic. “We saw that 25% of our hospitalised children were under two years old, but many more would have had flu and been cared for at home,” she said.
Yet, in the UK, this group isn’t eligible for free flu vaccinations unless they have an underlying health condition.
When HuffPost UK asked the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) about the under-twos and their eligibility for a free flu jab in September, a spokesperson said parents of under-twos can contact their GPs to get the best advice on vaccination.
Since the release of the new data on under-fives being hospitalised, HuffPost UK has been made aware that the JCVI (Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation) is responsible for making decisions on vaccine eligibility and is keeping this under review.
In Australia, all children (not just those deemed ‘high risk’) aged six months to five years were eligible for a free flu vaccine and, during the month of June when flu was rife, all children under 18 were able to get a free vaccine.
Why is flu hitting children so hard this year?
Due to Covid-19, children’s immunity to many viral infections, including flu, is lower, suggested Danchin.
“They have very little or no pre-existing immunity due to such low flu seasons in 2020 and 2021, and very low flu vaccine coverage over these two years.
“Children in this age group [under two years old] can get very sick and, of course, their parents need to stay home from work to care for them – and other family members can get sick too, such as elderly grandparents.”
What happened in Australia?
In Australia, the flu season was “moderate”, but there were more children than usual admitted to hospital. Around half of hospitalised flu cases there have been in people under 19 years of age.
Somewhat unusually, older children aged five to 15 years old seemed to make up a higher proportion of hospitalisations from flu than usual, with nearly half (48%) of all cases being in that age group.
About a quarter of the children hospitalised were under two years old (25%), she added.
Tragically there were two deaths: one child who had secondary pneumococcal pneumonia, and another who experienced respiratory arrest with an underlying neurological condition.
Most of the children admitted to hospital had issues such as dehydration or secondary bacterial infections.
“A small proportion have had neurological complications,” she said, “but it hasn’t been unusual this year. We do know that 6% were admitted to ICU, about a third had underlying medical conditions, and the length of hospital stay was mostly shorter than in adults.”
How to prevent flu
While protection from the flu vaccine is by no means perfect – effectiveness is around 50% – it is still one of the best ways to protect against the virus.
As Danchin explained, the vaccines could be the barrier that stops children from ending up in hospital with complications from flu.
“Flu is preventable and it is the most common vaccine preventable disease that children get admitted to hospital for, so we need to strongly message the importance of flu vaccine to parents,” she said.
Lots of children will be receiving their vaccines at school, while toddlers and under-twos with health conditions will be called forward for vaccination at their GP surgeries.
If you have a child under two who doesn’t have an underlying health condition, but you’re worried about flu, it’s worth calling your GP to see if you can get them booked in for a vaccine.
The jab can’t be given to babies under six months of age, which is why it’s worth getting the vaccine in pregnancy.
Vaccines aside, frequent hand-washing, sneezing into tissues (or elbows) and staying home from school or childcare when sick are some other important ways to reduce the chance of spreading the virus this winter.
Symptoms of flu
The most common flu symptoms in children are:
- fever of 37.9°C or above
- breathlessness
- rapid breathing
- cough
- runny nose
- blocked nose
- sneezing
If your child is alert, playing and behaving normally it’s unlikely that they’re seriously ill, according to NHS Inform. However you should phone your GP or NHS 111 if your child has a temperature higher than 39C, has fewer wet nappies than usual, or isn’t getting better after a few days.
Treating flu at home
You can help ease your child’s symptoms by:
- using infant paracetamol or ibuprofen (only use over the counter remedies recommended by your pharmacist)
- encouraging your child to drink more fluids