Flu (Influenza) and H1N1
Disease Information
Research & Innovation
Doctors in Children’s Division of Infectious Diseases have been studying the importance of hand hygiene in preventing the spread of both respiratory and stomach viruses. Good hygiene practices have to include education on handwashing and alcohol-based hand sanitizers.
| Children’s Hospital Boston leads study about H1N1 |
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Usually influenzas are only fatal for people with weaker immune systems, such as infants and the elderly. During the 2009 H1N1 outbreak, several healthy children died from the disease. The study lead by Boston Children's Hospital concluded that Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) was a contributing factor. Moreover, this suggests that co-infections can be fatal in even healthy children. Read more about theinfluenza study. |
| Flu rates decline among two-to-four year olds |
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| Anne Gatewood Hoen and John Brownstein of Children’s Hospital Boston found that flu rates dropped 34 percent among two-to four year olds following vaccination policies in the United States, suggesting the policy was successful in reducing flu cases. Read more about this research in the Children’s newsroom. |
| Antibody may protect against multiple flu types |
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| Stephen C. Harrison, PhD, chief of the Division of Molecular Medicine at Children’s Hospital Boston discovered an antibody, called CH65, which may provide protection against multiple variations of the influenza virus. Learn more about the CH65 antibody in the Children’s newsroom. |
| Flu and asthma |
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| Dale Umetsu, MD, PhD, of Children’s Division of Immunology led research suggesting that targeting a compound called IL-33 may break the link between flu and asthma. IL-33 is produced while somebody has a flu, and activates natural helper cells which can induce asthma. This research may lead a path to therapy that will target the IL-33 so when patients catch the flu, it won’t trigger asthma. Learn more about this research in the Children’s newsroom. |
