In the 24 months ending in March 2002, 169 people suffered adverse events related to the flu vaccine, and seven people died as a result of those complications, according to the health ministry in Japan. The deaths occurred in patients over the age of 60 years, according to the agency. The number of deaths related to the flu vaccine in such a population is small considering that 6.4 million people over the age of 60 years received the flu vaccine during the time period in question.