Influenza : the babies siblings are at risk for complications

phakimata/epictura

Published the 28.09.2017 at 18: 40

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Siblings make the happiness of the families. But they could also increase the risk of certain contagious diseases. For example, a study published in the journal European Respiratory Journal shows that babies under six months of age who have a brother or sister older than them have a higher risk of being admitted to the hospital for a severe influenza, compared with babies who did not.

Risk of hospitalization doubled

In fact, children have a high potential for contamination. To assess the risk exact of severe influenza related to the presence of bigger kids under the same roof, the researchers examined data from the health and birth of almost all children born in Scotland between October 2007 and April 2015 – 400 000 people in total.

The results show that the babies of less than six years old who have a brother or a sister have a risk doubled to be hospitalized for severe influenza. If these babies had several big brothers or sisters, the risk was tripled.

The children, the “fearsome vectors”

“The children are formidable vectors of viruses that cause respiratory illness, like the flu. Our work suggests the presence of elders is a risk of severe infection to the baby, ” explain the authors. The risk was even higher when the baby was born between July and December, was very young at the beginning of the flu season.

The researchers believe that this risk can be eliminated if the children are vaccinate, to protect their little brother or sister. In fact, no vaccine exists to this day for babies less than six months, only vaccination of the elderly can reduce the risk.

In addition, previous studies have shown that maternal immunization during pregnancy could protect babies from an infection related to the flu.