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According to Health Canada, influenza and pneumonia are ranked among the top ten leading causes of death in the country. It is estimated that influenza causes approximately 12,200 hospitalizations and 3,500 deaths nation-wide each year.
This year Canada is seeing an early start of the influenza season. Hospitals across Canada are now overwhelmed by the triple threat of respiratory viruses (COVID-19, RSV, and influenza).
Getting vaccinated is still the best way to help prevent influenza infection. Wearing masks in indoor settings can also help mitigate the spread of viral infections.
The Ask a Librarian team is committed to curating evidence-based resources on emerging health topics. Here are some librarian-selected resources from a variety of tools offered with CMA memberships or freely available online.
Jump to:
- Clinical summaries
- Guidelines and other information
- Book chapters
- Evidence reviews
- Articles
- Patient information
- Social media, news and other sources
- Searching for influenza information
Clinical summaries
ClinicalKey – Clinical Overview: Influenza (login required - CMA members only – search “influenza” and the clinical overview is the first result)
CPS – Therapeutic choices: Influenza (login required - CMA members only – search “influenza” and the therapeutics summary is the first result)
DynaMed - Influenza in Adults and Influenza in Children (login required – CMA members only – search “influenza”)
Essential Evidence Plus – Influenza: Essential Evidence (login required – CMA members only – search “influenza”)
Family Practice Notebook – Influenza
Merck Manual Professional Edition – Influenza
Guidelines and other information
National
Canadian Clinical Practice Guidelines on Influenza – CPG Infobase
Health Canada - FluWatch surveillance
Infection Prevention and Control Canada (IPAC Canada) - Influenza Resources
Public Health Agency of Canada - PHAC Webinar: Seasonal Influenza Immunization 2022-2023
International
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) - Prevention and Control of Seasonal Influenza with Vaccines: Recommendations of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices — United States, 2022–23 Influenza Season. A summary is also available.
Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) - Clinical Practice Guidelines by the Infectious Diseases Society of America: 2018 Update on Diagnosis, Treatment, Chemoprophylaxis, and Institutional Outbreak Management of Seasonal Influenza
American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology (AAAAI) - Administration of influenza vaccines to egg allergic recipients: A practice parameter update 2017
World Health Organization – Influenza
Book Chapters
ClinicalKey (login required - CMA members only - includes 1,000+ textbooks, 600 full-text journals, images, videos and customizable patient handouts across 30+ medical specialties)
- Influenza by Michael G. Ison and Frederick G. Hayden Goldman-Cecil Medicine, Chapter 340, 2156-2162.e3
- Influenza Viruses by Fiona P. Havers and Angela J.P. Campbell Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics, Chapter 285, 1727-1732.e1
- Influenza Viruses, Including Avian Influenza and Swine Influenza by John J. Treanor Mandell, Douglas, and Bennett's Principles and Practice of Infectious Diseases, 165, 2143-2168.e8
Open access:
Influenza – StatPearls - NCBI Bookshelf (nih.gov) By Sameh W. Boktor; John W. Hafner. 2022 June 21. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2022 Jan–. PMID: 29083802
Evidence reviews
CADTH Health Technology Review - Concurrent or Sequential Administration of Drugs for COVID-19 and Influenza: Rapid Review
CADTH Reference List - Influenza Vaccination and Risk of Subsequent Non-Influenza Respiratory Viruses: Safety
Articles and article collections:
Does repeated influenza vaccination attenuate effectiveness? A systematic review and meta-analysis
Elenor Jones-Gray, Elizabeth J Robinson, Adam J Kucharski, Annette Fox, Sheena G Sullivan
Lancet Respir Med . 2022 Sep 21;S2213-2600(22)00266-1. doi: 10.1016/S2213-2600(22)00266-1. Online ahead of print
PMID: 36152673
Misdiagnoses in the Context of Suspected Pandemic Influenza or Coronavirus Disease 2019: A Systematic Review.
Bray L, Meznikova K, James D, Rislan R, Shah R, Mason P, Staniland T, Lillie P, Barlow G, Easom N.
Open Forum Infect Dis. 2022 Oct 5;9(11):ofac515. doi: 10.1093/ofid/ofac515. eCollection 2022 Nov.
PMID: 36340740
Cost-Effectiveness of Intranasal Live-Attenuated Influenza Vaccine for Children: A Systematic Review.
Chan KS, Wong CH, Choi HC.
Vaccines (Basel). 2022 Sep 4;10(9):1466. doi: 10.3390/vaccines10091466.
PMID: 36146544
The role of respiratory co-infection with influenza or respiratory syncytial virus in the clinical severity of COVID-19 patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
Cong B, Deng S, Wang X, Li Y.
J Glob Health. 2022 Sep 17;12:05040. doi: 10.7189/jogh.12.05040.
PMID: 36112521
Comparative effectiveness of adjuvanted versus high-dose seasonal influenza vaccines for older adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Domnich A, de Waure C.
Int J Infect Dis. 2022 Sep;122:855-863. doi: 10.1016/j.ijid.2022.07.048. Epub 2022 Jul 22.
PMID: 35878803
Physical activity and acute exercise benefit influenza vaccination response: A systematic review with individual participant data meta-analysis.
Bohn-Goldbaum E, Owen KB, Lee VYJ, Booy R, Edwards KM.
PLoS One. 2022 Jun 15;17(6):e0268625. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0268625. eCollection 2022.
PMID: 35704557
Favipiravir Treatment of Uncomplicated Influenza in Adults: Results of Two Phase 3, Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trials.
Hayden FG, Lenk RP, Stonis L, Oldham-Creamer C, Kang LL, Epstein C.
J Infect Dis. 2022 Nov 11;226(10):1790-1799. doi: 10.1093/infdis/jiac135.
PMID: 35639525
Association of Influenza Vaccination With Cardiovascular Risk: A Meta-analysis.
Behrouzi B, Bhatt DL, Cannon CP, Vardeny O, Lee DS, Solomon SD, Udell JA.
JAMA Netw Open. 2022 Apr 1;5(4):e228873. doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2022.8873.
PMID: 35486404
Patient information
The Canadian Lung Association – Influenza
CBC Kids - Everything you need to know about the flu shot
Canadian Paediatric Society – Caring for Kids - Influenza in children
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention – Influenza (Flu)
Familydoctor.org – Flu Myths
HealthLink BC – Influenza (Seasonal Flu)
Immunize Canada – The story of influenza
MedlinePlus – Flu
National Foundation for Infectious Diseases – Flu & Chronic Health Conditions Toolkit
UpToDate – Patient education: Influenza prevention (Beyond the Basics)
Social media, news and other sources
CBC News – Flu season arrives, Public Health Agency of Canada says, November 14, 2022
The Globe and Mail - Return of seasonal flu, RSV and other viruses could spell disaster for older Canadians, experts say, November 11, 2022
Health Canada - Weekly influenza reports
ScienceUpFirst - Flu season is here
Searching for influenza information:
Google search (limit to Canadian websites/.ca domain) - Search for influenza
Google Scholar - Search for influenza
PubMed – US National Library of Medicine – Search for influenza
Need more information on influenza (flu, seasonal flu) or any other clinical topic of interest? Contact the Ask a Librarian team to request a literature search.
This material is for informational purposes only. It is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice and should not be relied on as health or personal advice. The opinions stated by the authors are made in a personal capacity and do not necessarily reflect those of the Canadian Medical Association and its subsidiaries including Joule.
About the author(s)
CMA Joule’s medical librarians are the professionals behind “Ask a Librarian”, a service for all CMA members looking for clinical search expertise. This experienced team of librarians can support you by searching on your behalf, teaching you effective search strategies or training you to use our clinical resources.