US children's hospital research bolsters case for flu vaccines

Going into another flu season, a new study reports that hospitalizing children for influenza may cost up to three or four times the previously-accepted estimates. Pediatric researchers from the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia say their finding strengthens the economic justification for broadly vaccinating children against flu. The study appears in the November issue of Pediatrics.

"We found the cost of influenza-related hospitalizations in children was about $13,000 each - compared to most prior studies that estimated the cost at $3,000-$4,000," said study leader Ron Keren, a pediatrician at the hospital. "This suggests that annual influenza vaccinations for children, especially for those with certain high-risk conditions, may be more cost-effective than previously thought," he added.

The researchers analyzed billing data for 727 patients up to age 21 who were admitted to the hospital with laboratory-confirmed influenza over four consecutive flu seasons, from 2000 to 2004. The study team statistically adjusted the direct medical costs to account for geographic variations in these.