Influenza kills up to 25 000 people a year in England and Wales, report says

A new analysis of the burden of influenza in England and Wales has been published by a team from the Health Protection Agency's centre for infections.

The authors say that flu causes between 10 500 and 25 000 deaths a year in England and Wales and is responsible for about 800 000 visits to GPs a year, a seventh of all visits for respiratory disease (Journal of Infection 2006 Nov 9, doi: 10.1016/j.jinf.2006.09.017).

“Although there are significant uncertainties, …