Experts explain the rare flu complication that can impact the brain

• Doctors in the US are warning of a rise in Acute Necrotising Encephalopathy (ANE), a rare and serious brain complication linked to the flu, among otherwise healthy children.
• ANE can cause brain damage and swelling, with 41 cases identified in children over the past two flu seasons, resulting in 11 deaths and significant disability for many survivors.
• This flu season has been the deadliest for children in over two decades, with 266 paediatric flu deaths reported, the highest since 2004 outside of a pandemic.
• Children under the age of five are most vulnerable to severe illness or death from ANE.
• Medical professionals are strongly advocating for flu vaccination, highlighting that 90 per cent of paediatric flu deaths this season were in unvaccinated children, underscoring its protective benefits.

IN FULL

This rare flu complication is on the rise in otherwise healthy children