Receiving a flu shot was linked with lower rates of hospitalization and death in people with dementia, a study finds. The [report](https://agsjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/jgs.19392) was published Sunday in the _Journal of the American Geriatrics Society._
A team of researchers monitored Danish residents who were over the age of 65 and had dementia from 2002 to 2018. The team evaluated rates of all-cause hospitalization, hospitalization with a respiratory infection, hospitalization with influenza or pneumonia, and all-cause [mortality](https://www.mcknights.com/news/dementia-patients-with-flu-have-higher-mortality-rates/) for people who were vaccinated and unvaccinated. The study included 134,002 people with dementia. Rates of hospitalization from flu were 9% to 10% lower — and the mortality rate from flu was 9% lower — in people who had received flu shots compared to those who were not vaccinated.
During the study period, 12.5% of people aged 65 to 74 were vaccinated; 46.1% between 75 and 84 had received shots and 41.4% of those over 85 received flu vaccinations.
In Denmark, older adults who are aged 65 and up can get free flu shots.
Older adults who have dementia have a high risk of severe infections and may be less likely to receive common adult vaccines. They also are not often part of vaccination programs.
“Evidence regarding the effectiveness of influenza vaccines among people with dementia may increase the awareness of a potentially important healthcare gap,” the authors wrote.
The lower rate of hospitalization and death among vaccinated people with dementia may reflect the protective effect of the vaccine, the team noted. But there are other explanations to consider. The lower outcome rates were more significant before the start of the influenza season and went up during and after the season. That means the findings could be interpreted as being due to people vaccinated before the influenza season having a better overall health status, referred to as the healthy vaccine effect, the authors concluded.