Influenza Vaccine Jabs Gives Protection Against Severe Effects Of Covid-19: Report

A study conducted on about 75,000 participants has revealed that individuals already vaccinated against influenza might be protected against many severe effects of Covid-19.

The study reported that the probability of such people requiring emergency care will be less, and added that the annual flu shot also cuts down the risks of sepsis, deep vein thrombosis and stroke.

The analysis was carried out on participants belonging to Israel, Italy, the United States (US), United Kingdom (UK) and Singapore and it was presented at the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases (ECCMID).

Professor Devinder Singh, employed at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, told PTI, “This finding is particularly significant because the pandemic is straining resources in many parts of the world. Therefore, our research -- if validated by prospective randomised clinical trials -- has the potential to reduce the worldwide burden of disease.”

The study disclosed that people who hadn’t taken the flu jab were 20 per cent more likely to be admitted to the ICU.

Such individuals also have a 58 per cent higher chance of visiting the emergency department or have a stroke. They would also deal with around 45 per cent additional possibility to develop sepsis.

However, the researchers also affirmed that the risk of deaths in such cases didn’t reduce as such. Yet, they maintained that their findings do not portray the influenza vaccine as a replacement for the Covid-19 jab and encouraged people to get the latter as soon as possible.