Influenza vaccination prevented influenza cases and hospitalizations and was associated with a better prognosis in inpatients with influenza. The combined effect of these 2 mechanisms would explain the high effectiveness of the vaccine in preventing severe cases due to influenza.

Frequent handwashing should be recommended to prevent influenza cases requiring hospitalization.

The use of non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs), such as social distancing, lockdowns and the massive use of masks, have not only largely prevented the spread of SARS-CoV-2, but also of other respiratory viruses such as influenza or respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). This decrease has been so high that, in most countries, the influenza and RSV epidemic has not occurred. Far from being a beneficial fact, this can be problematic, since the absence of circulation of certain pathogens can lead to a decrease in herd immunity against them. This can promote the rise of more serious, longer-lasting epidemics that start sooner. To alleviate the collateral effects that may occur due to the decrease in circulation of viruses such as influenza, it is necessary to increase the production of influenza vaccines, carry out mass vaccination campaigns and focus on vaccinating the main drivers of this virus, children.

Residual venous thrombosis is an important risk factor for recurrent thromboembolism and PTS. A greater reduction in thrombus size was associated with lesser clinical events of recurrence and consequently a lesser rate of PTS. However, despite a greater recanalization with enoxaparin, the incidence of PTS was similar between both treatment groups, probably because of the small sample size. Further investigations are needed to clarify the implication of the anticoagulant treatment in the severity of PTS.

Annual influenza vaccination is recommended for healthcare workers, but many do not follow the recommendation. The objective of this study was to investigate the factors associated with seasonal influenza vaccination in the 2011–2012 season. We carried out an anonymous web survey of Spanish primary healthcare workers in 2012. Information on vaccination, and knowledge and attitudes about the influenza vaccine was collected. Workers with medical conditions that contraindicated vaccination and those with high risk conditions were excluded. Multivariate analysis was performed using unconditional logistic regression. We included 1,749 workers. The overall vaccination coverage was 50.7% and was higher in workers aged ≥ 55 years (55.7%), males (57.4%) and paediatricians (63.1%). Factors associated with vaccination were concern about infection at work (aOR 4.93; 95% CI 3.72–6.53), considering that vaccination of heathcare workers is important (aOR 2.62; 95%CI 1.83–3.75) and that vaccination is effective in preventing influenza and its complications (aOR 2.40; 95% CI 1.56–3.67). No association was found between vaccination and knowledge of influenza or the vaccine characteristics. Educational programs should aim to remove the misconceptions and attitudes that limit compliance with recommendations about influenza vaccination in primary healthcare workers rather than only increasing knowledge about influenza and the characteristics of the vaccine.

This study aimed to analyse the existence of an association between social class (categorized by type of occupation) and the occurrence of A(H1N1)pmd09 infection and hospitalization for two seasons (2009-2010 and 2010-2011). This multicentre study compared ambulatory A(H1N1)pmd09 confirmed cases with ambulatory controls to measure risk of infection, and with hospitalized A(H1N1)pmd09 confirmed cases to asses hospitalization risk. Study variables were: age, marital status, tobacco and alcohol use, pregnancy, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, chronic respiratory failure, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, chronic liver disease, body mass index >40, systemic corticosteroid treatment and influenza vaccination status. Occupation was registered literally and coded into manual and non-manual worker occupational social class groups. A conditional logistic regression analysis was performed. There were 720 hospitalized cases, 996 ambulatory cases and 1062 ambulatory controls included in the study. No relationship between occupational social class and A(H1N1)pmd09 infection was found [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) 0·97, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0·74-1·27], but an association (aOR 1·53, 95% CI 1·01-2·31) between occupational class and hospitalization for A(H1N1)pmd09 was observed. Influenza vaccination was a protective factor for A(H1N1)pmd09 infection (aOR 0·41, 95% CI 0·23-0·73) but not for hospitalization. We conclude that manual workers have the highest risk of hospitalization when infected by influenza than other occupations but they do not have a different probability of being infected by influenza.

Vaccination of the elderly is an important factor in limiting the impact of influenza in the community. The aim of this study was to investigate the factors associated with influenza vaccination coverage in hospitalized patients aged ≥65 years hospitalized due to causes unrelated to influenza in Spain. We carried out a cross-sectional study. Bivariate analysis was performed comparing vaccinated and unvaccinated patients, taking in to account sociodemographic variables and medical risk conditions. Multivariate analysis was performed using multilevel regression models. We included 1038 patients: 602 (58%) had received the influenza vaccine in the 2013–14 season. Three or more general practitioner visits (OR = 1.61; 95% CI 1.19–2.18); influenza vaccination in any of the 3 previous seasons (OR = 13.57; 95% CI 9.45–19.48); and 23-valent pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccination (OR = 1.97; 95% CI 1.38–2.80) were associated with receiving the influenza vaccine. Vaccination coverage of hospitalized elderly people is low in Spain and some predisposing characteristics influence vaccination coverage. Healthcare workers should take these characteristics into account and be encouraged to proactively propose influenza vaccination to all patients aged ≥65 years.

BackgroundTo assess the contribution of physician-related factors, especially their influenza vaccine status, in the vaccination coverage of their patients.MethodsA study of vaccination coverage was carried out in Spain in 2011–12. The dependent variable (vaccination coverage in patients aged ≥65 years) was obtained from regional records. Information was gathered on the vaccination of physicians through an anonymous web survey. We compared the vaccination coverage of patients with the vaccination of their physicians using the Student t test. Associations were determined using a multilevel regression model.ResultsThe coverage in patients aged ≥ 65 years was 56.3% and was higher (57.3%) in patients whose physician had been vaccinated than in those whose physician had not (55.2%) (p = 0.008). In the multilevel regression model, vaccination of the physician was associated (p = 0.049) with vaccination of their patients after controlling for the effects of age (p = 0.046), region (p = 0.089), and opinions on the effectiveness of the vaccine (p = 0.013).ConclusionsVaccination of physicians together with their opinions on the effectiveness of the vaccine may be a predictor of vaccination coverage in their patients. Further studies are required to confirm this.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12875-015-0259-0) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.