Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 4, 2026
A Luciferase-fluorescent Reporter Influenza Virus for Live Imaging and Quantification of Viral Infection
Published on: August 14, 2019
Risk of Severe Influenza Among Adults With Chronic Medical Conditions
Tiffany A Walker1, Ben Waite1, Mark G Thompson2
1WHO National Influenza Centre, Institute of Environmental Science and Research, Porirua, New Zealand.
Background:
Severe influenza illness is presumed more common in adults with chronic medical conditions (CMCs), but evidence is sparse and often combined into broad CMC categories.
Methods:
Residents (aged 18-80 years) of Central and South Auckland hospitalized for World Health Organization-defined severe acute respiratory illness (SARI) (2012-2015) underwent influenza virus polymerase chain reaction testing. The CMC statuses for Auckland residents were modeled using hospitalization International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision codes, pharmaceutical claims, and laboratory results. Population-level influenza rates in adults with congestive heart failure (CHF), coronary artery disease (CAD), cerebrovascular accidents (CVA), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma, diabetes mellitus (DM), and end-stage renal disease (ESRD) were calculated by Poisson regression stratified by age and adjusted for ethnicity.
Results:
Among 891 276 adults, 2435 influenza-associated SARI hospitalizations occurred. Rates were significantly higher in those with CMCs compared with those without the respective CMC, except for older adults with DM or those aged <65 years with CVA. The largest effects occurred with CHF (incidence rate ratio [IRR] range, 4.84-13.4 across age strata), ESRD (IRR range, 3.30-9.02), CAD (IRR range, 2.77-10.7), and COPD (IRR range, 5.89-8.78) and tapered with age.
Conclusions:
Our findings support the increased risk of severe, laboratory-confirmed influenza disease among adults with specific CMCs compared with those without these conditions.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
01:26Factors Affecting the Risk of Infection
The integrity and count of the white blood cells help the body resist pathogens and fight infection. When impaired, it reduces the body's resistance to pathogens. The acidic pH levels of the gastrointestinal, genitourinary tracts, and skin...
01:30Pneumonia I: Introduction
Risk Factors
Various factors influence the likelihood of developing pneumonia. Age plays a crucial role, with infants, children under two, and individuals over 65 at increased risk due to their...
01:30Pneumonia V: Nursing management and Prevention
The nurse must practice strict medical asepsis and adhere to infection control guidelines to minimize healthcare-associated infections.
Enhance airway patency
Position the patient correctly to facilitate drainage of the affected lung segments. Manual or mechanical percussion and vibration can also be employed....
01:51Vaccinations
01:24Asthma-III: Symptoms and Complications
Classification of Asthma
01:25Transmission-based Precautions II: Airborne and Protective Environment
Airborne precautions:
Use airborne precautions when treating patients known or suspected to have diseases that spread through the air—for example, tuberculosis or measles. These organisms are present in smaller droplets expelled by an infected person and...