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Being hospitalised with the Flu

(6 Posts)
62Granny Thu 21-Oct-21 11:00:57

I worked in NHS for nearly 30 years first in a GP surgery then in a hospital day care unit . During this time I have never heard of anyone being hospitalised with flu. Pneumonia yes , respiratory problems but never the flu, yes I know one can lead to the other but usually people have underlying conditions so why do Politicians keep saying that people are being admitted with flu during the winter months why not say respiratory problems. Perhaps I am being to pedantic.

Riverwalk Thu 21-Oct-21 11:39:50

Patients are admitted with respiratory problems as a consequence of 'flu, just like being admitted as a consequence of Covid.

Respiratory problems have many origins e.g. trauma or disease, so it's important to categorise the cause in each case.

wildswan16 Thu 21-Oct-21 11:58:09

If catching flu results in someone being admitted to hospital - whether for respiratory or other complications - then it seems reasonable to give figures for those admitted because of flu.

The more people who catch flu, the more people have the opportunity to be admitted. Therefore the more vaccinated against flu will result in lower admission rates.

Esspee Thu 21-Oct-21 12:01:06

My grandmother died as the result of flu. Not in hospital but if she hadn’t caught flu she would have survived.

Callistemon Thu 21-Oct-21 12:22:52

Yes, there have always been a substantial number of hospital admissions and deaths due to flu or complications from flu such as pneumonia.

Here is a report on the H1N1 flu epidemic:
Excess influenza hospital admissions and costs due to the 2009 H1N1 pandemic in England:
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30338588/

LtEve Thu 21-Oct-21 15:03:11

Just as people are admitted with respiratory problems caused by covid, people are admitted with respiratory problems caused by flu. In 2017 there were 25000 deaths caused by flu. Most of these would have been in the winter months so would have been in excess of 100 per day. We forget just how dangerous flu can be. It’s why flu vaccinations are so important.