Extending flu vaccinations to children may be a cost-effective way to reduce disease burden in the UK’s general population, according to a new study published in the open access journal BMC Medicine.

Carried out by Public Health England and the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, the research revealed that targeting groups such as school-aged children could be a more efficient use of limited resources than targeting groups at the highest risk of disease. This is because children, especially those aged five to 16, play a key role in the spread of flu. Therefore by vaccinating them, not only would they benefit, but it would also reduce the disease burden in the rest of the community, claim the research authors.

The authors note that as flu viruses are constantly evolving, childhood vaccination, while retrospectively the best option, may not be optimal for future seasons if the flu epidemiology changes substantially.