UAE: Medics advise children to get flu jabs before winter

Doctors recommend that children aged six months and up get the influenza vaccine as inoculation programs against the seasonal virus prepare. Flu season mostly begins in September, when schools reopen, and more people visit the UAE for winter vacation. The 2022-23 vaccine is a combination quadrivalent vaccine — effective against four flu viruses — slightly different from previous years due to the constantly evolving strain of influenza circulating in communities. According to medical professionals, September is the ideal time to get young people and the vulnerable vaccinated to offer winter protection. “The recommendation is for any child over six months to be vaccinated against influenza,” said Dr. Jamuna Raghuraman, a pediatrician at Medeor Hospital, Dubai. Al Ain pediatrician Dr. Pankaj Nandlal Tardeja said annual flu shots are crucial for preventing problems when other viruses are circulating, such as severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus. “It is advisable for those who did not take the influenza vaccine shot during winter last year to get it now. “We are already seeing children complaining of a fever, cold, cough, and body ache at our hospitals after the reopening of schools this September. The government plans to roll out a flu campaign by the end of the month. Vaccinations for vulnerable groups, such as the young and elderly, immunocompromised, and pregnant women, will probably be free or subsidized in government and private clinics. In Dubai, private hospitals usually charge Dh100 to vaccinate healthy people, and a charge of Dh50 is levied in Abu Dhabi. BKM/ Expat Media
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