People with cystic fibrosis (CF) are uniquely vulnerable to the flu wave currently ripping through the UK, a clinical researcher from The University of Manchester has warned.
Professor Alex Horsley made the comments following last week’s news that flu cases jumped 55% in a week with an average of 2,660 patients a day being treated in an NHS hospital bed – the highest ever for this time of year.
In the North West, the most recent figures show a 36.6% increase in the number of people hospitalised with flu.
NHS England is also urging eligible populations, including those people with CF, to come forward for flu vaccinations as soon as they can avoid becoming seriously ill.
Patients with CF often have chronic infection and cough, usually controlled with nebuliser medications to help them clear mucus in the lungs and antibiotics to control infection.
However influenza can sometimes have devastating consequences from escalating lung infections and breathlessness, resulting in admission to hospital.
Professor Horsley, a leading expert in cystic fibrosis, is a Professor at The University of Manchester respiratory consultant at Wythenshawe Hospital, part of Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust and Medical Director of the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Manchester Clinical Research Facility at Wythenshawe Hospital.
He said: “CF is an inherited condition, and one of the most common life-limiting genetic conditions in the UK, affecting around 11000 people.
“It primarily affects the lungs, though also has important impacts on the pancreas, causing malnutrition and diabetes, and on the gut and liver.
“For people with CF, the winter wave of flu and flu-like illnesses can be especially challenging and damaging.
“That is why it is so important people take care at this time of year, make sure they have had their flu vaccine, and do their best to avoid being exposed to those with viral symptoms.
“In our cystic fibrosis centre at Wythenshawe Hospital, we run emergency reviews every weekday to see people acutely unwell and start treatment as soon as possible.
“But we’re also researching better ways to help people with CF and are leading a new study to understand and prevent it.”
