Along with the other health risks associated with being obese,
being more likely to die from the flu can now be added to that
list.
According to an analysis of a public health surveillance database,
patients who were infected with the 2009 pandemic influenza A
(H1N1) and suffered from extreme obesity -- having a BMI of 40 or
more -- had a much higher chance of dying than patients with normal
BMI’s.
Researchers analyzed data from 500 adult California residents
hospitalized with H1N1 in the first four months of 2009 to test the
hypothesis of obesity as a risk factor for increased fatality.
They found half of Californians over the age of 20 hospitalized
with 2009 H1N1 were obese.
They also found extreme obesity was associated with a nearly
three-fold increased odds of death from H1N1.
During this period, H1N1 accounted for 50 percent of influenza-like illnesses. Patients under 20 years of age and pregnant patients were excluded from the study.
Because of these findings, health care officials urge people with a BMI of 30 or more to get the flu shot every year.
"They should also see their health provider early if symptoms of influenza develop, so that they can get diagnosed and treated as quickly as possible. This is especially important if the influenza virus is known to be circulating in the community and causing illness," said study author Janice K. Louie, MD, MPH, of the California Department of Public Health.
What is still unknown is why obesity increases the risk of dying from the flu. Is it the weight itself or any accompanying health problems associated with the extra pounds?
Louie stressed that more research is needed to understand why extremely obese people are more likely to die from the 2009 H1N1 influenza infection.
The study is to be published in the February 1, 2011, issue of Clinical Infectious Diseases.
