eHealth Connection | Cooper University Hospital

The H1N1 influenza (also known as Swine Flu) is still affecting many people, especially children, in our region. The Children’s Regional Hospital at Cooper urges parents to get your child the H1N1 vaccine.  Our physicians hope that this information prepared by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) will help you manage if your child becomes ill with the flu.

Most people with 2009 H1N1 have had mild illness and have not needed medical care and the same is true of seasonal flu. However, the flu can be serious, especially for young children (risk is highest in children younger than 2 years) and children of any age who have certain chronic medical conditions. These conditions include asthma or other lung problems, diabetes, weakened immune systems, kidney disease, heart problems and neurological and neuromuscular disorders. Children with these conditions can have more severe illness from any flu, including from the 2009 H1N1 flu virus.

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Flu activity is now widespread in 46 states. A flu vaccine is the single best way to protect against influenza illness. This season, there are two vaccines – one for the seasonal flu and one to protect against the H1N1 influenza virus (sometimes called “swine flu”).

The H1N1 vaccine is already, or will soon be, available and it will continue to be available throughout the influenza season, into December, January, and beyond. This is because the timing and duration of flu activity can vary.

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U.S. health officials stress the importance of pregnant women getting the 2009 H1N1 flu shot when the vaccine becomes available.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the H1N1 flu has hit pregnant women especially hard. About 700 cases have been confirmed in pregnant women since late April, about 100 pregnant women have required admission to intensive care units, and 28 pregnant women have died from the H1N1 flu, the CDC reported earlier this month.

“Because pregnant women who get influenza have a greater chance for serious complications, it is important they receive both the 2009 H1N1 flu shot and the seasonal flu shot.  Receiving these vaccines is the best way pregnant women can protect themselves – and their newborns – against the flu,” said Rosalie Pepe, M.D., infectious disease specialist at Cooper University Hospital.

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The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) this year is recommending that families get their seasonal flu vaccines as soon as they can.

With the nation’s focus on the development of a vaccine for the H1N1 pandemic flu expected to be available later in October, health officials are concerned that families might choose to wait to get vaccinated against the seasonal flu.

Each year, as many as 60 million Americans get the flu, and the resulting complications cause more than 200,000 hospitalizations annually, according to the CDC.

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With cases now confirmed in New Jersey, many parents are concerned about how the Swine Flu (H1N1) will affect them and especially their children. Constant television reports with people wearing masks and scenes of emergency rooms can be scary scenes for young children to digest. The Children’s Regional Hospital at Cooper is offering advice to parents whose children are aware of the news around them.

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