REVIEW ARTICLE Socioeconomic Impact of Seasonal (Epidemic) Influenza and the Role of Over-the-Counter Medicines

The Author(s) 2014. This article is published with open access at Springerlink.com Abstract The substantial economic impact of influenza on society results primarily from lost work time and reduced productivity of patients and caregivers and increased use of medical resources. Additionally, since the 1980s, aging of the US population has meant rising influ-enza-related morbidity and mortality. According to the most current published data on this topic, in 2003 the total economic burden of influenza epidemics in the USA across all age groups was US$87.1 billion. As of February 2013, overall vaccine effectiveness for the 2012/2013 season was estimated to be 56 %. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases has concluded that more effective vaccines and vaccination strategies are needed. Moderat