Influenza

Hospital data from a CDC network that monitors influenza revealed that adults hospitalized for COVID-19 in the early months of the pandemic were 20x more likely to die compared to hospitalized influenza patients. Read More

New insights on influenza genome packaging could guide strategies for interfering with the virus's life cycle and ability to cause infection. Read More

Vanderbilt University Medical Center is recruiting volunteers to participate in a national study of an investigational vaccine against the H7N9 influenza virus, also known as “bird flu.” Read More

An influenza diagnosis for people 65 and older is serious. Up to 85 percent of influenza-related deaths occur in older adults, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Prevention reports. Read More

From Vanderbilt Magazine: James Crowe, director of the Vanderbilt Vaccine Center, hopes to create a universal flu vaccine--permanently eliminating the problem of ineffective or under-effective annual flu shots. Read More

Infectious disease experts are warning that flu can lead to an increased risk of heart attack, stroke and disability in elderly patients for months after they have recovered from their illness. Read More

Neighborhood determinants – represented by census tract data – contribute to the risk of influenza hospitalization and could be used to guide interventions such as vaccinations to high-risk areas. Read More

Researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center are leading an international effort to develop a universal influenza vaccine that would protect everyone against all strains of the flu anywhere in the world. Read More

Susan Landfield, LPN, left, Alesia Young, LPN, and Jessica Hupp, LPN, were among the 13,938 people who received flu vaccinations at Wednesday’s Flulapalooza event. Read More

A comfort, not a hazard. When you are home sick, snuggling up with your dog or cat may feel like just what the doctor ordered. And a Vanderbilt infectious disease doctor, while stopping short of actually prescribing in-home “pet therapy” for colds or… Read More

When a serious disease strikes—from Ebola in Africa to MRSA at a local high school—you’re quite likely to hear a calm, clear explanation on the news from Dr. William Schaffner. A Vanderbilt professor of preventive medicine, he is one of the most-often-quoted infectious disease experts in the English-speaking world, with regular appearances on every major news outlet. Read More

As of Dec. 1, employee compliance with the influenza vaccination policy at Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) has reached 99.9 percent, up from 80 percent on Dec.1, 2014 Read More

Susan Hodgin, MSN, R.N., left, administers a flu shot at Wednesday’s Flulapalooza. According to officials, 14,498 staff, faculty and students were vaccinated at this year’s event, a Vanderbilt record. Read More

More than half of hospitalizations due to influenza pneumonia could be prevented by influenza vaccination, according to a study led by investigators at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, published this week in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Read More

Vanderbilt University and Medical Center (VUMC) faculty, staff, students and volunteers will once again have the opportunity to be part of a mass flu vaccination event that four years ago more than doubled the current world record for the total number of vaccinations given in an eight-hour period. Read More

Vanderbilt researchers have received a five-year, $9 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to design more effective flu vaccines and novel antibody therapies. Read More

Vanderbilt investigators have discovered how human antibodies induced during testing of an experimental “bird flu” vaccine kill the virus. Read More

Members of Vanderbilt University Medical Center’s Medical Board recently approved updates to the VUMC Immunization Policy for Faculty and Staff. Read More

Vanderbilt University researchers have received a five-year, $9 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to design more effective flu vaccines and novel antibody therapies. Read More

A study appearing in the January edition of Pediatrics, led by researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, looks at how Nashville children ages 6 months through 5 years fared over 11 consecutive flu seasons concluding in 2010-11. Read More