Informational Resources on the Flu
A.K.A. the Influenza Virus
Influenza, or flu, is a respiratory infection caused by a variety of flu viruses. The most familiar aspect of the flu is the way it can "knock you off your feet" as it sweeps through entire communities.
The flu differs in several ways from the common cold, a respiratory infection also caused by viruses. For example, people with colds rarely get fevers or headaches or suffer from the extreme exhaustion that flu viruses cause.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that 10 to 20 percent of Americans come down with the flu during each flu season, which typically lasts from November to March. Children are two to three times more likely than adults to get sick with the flu, and children frequently spread the virus to others. Although most people recover from the illness, CDC estimates that in the United States more than 100,000 people are hospitalized and about 36,000 people die from the flu and its complications every year.
HOW IS THE FLU TRANSMITTED?
You can get the flu if someone around you who has the flu coughs or sneezes. You can get the flu simply by touching a surface like a telephone or door knob that has been contaminated by a touch from someone who has the flu. The viruses can pass through the air and enter your body through your nose or mouth. If you've touched a contaminated surface, they can pass from your hand to your nose or mouth.
WHAT ARE FLU SYMPTOMS?
If you get infected by the flu virus, you will usually feel symptoms 1 to 4 days later. You can spread the flu to others before your symptoms start and for another 3 to 4 days after your symptoms appear. The symptoms start very quickly and may include
- Headache
- Chills
- Dry cough
- Body aches
- Fever
- Stuffy nose
- Sore throat
Typically, the fever begins to decline on the second or third day of the illness. The flu almost never causes symptoms in the stomach and intestines. The illness that some people often call "stomach flu" is not influenza.
HOW CAN I KEEP FROM GETTING THE FLU?
Flu Vaccine
The main way to keep from getting flu is to get a yearly flu vaccine. You can get the vaccine at your doctor's office or a local clinic, and in many communities at workplaces, supermarkets, and drugstores. You must get the vaccine every year because it changes.
Viruses for producing the vaccine are grown in chicken eggs and then killed with a chemical so that they can no longer cause an infection. The flu vaccine may contain some egg protein, which can cause an allergic reaction. Therefore, if you are allergic to eggs or have ever had a serious allergic reaction to the flu vaccine, CDC recommends that you consult with your doctor before getting vaccinated.
Who should get the flu vaccine?
If you are in any of the following groups or live in a household with someone who is, CDC recommends that you get the flu vaccine.
- You are 50 years of age or older
- You have chronic diseases of your heart, lungs, or kidneys
- You have diabetes
- Your immune system does not function properly
- You have a severe form of anemia
- You will be more than 3 months pregnant during the flu season
- You live in a nursing home or other chronic-care housing facility
The vaccine can be given to children as young as 6 months. Children and teenagers (aged 6 months to 18 years) should get the flu vaccine if they are taking long-term aspirin treatment as they may be at risk of developing Reye's syndrome following a flu infection (see section on complications in children). They should also get the flu vaccine if they live in a household with someone in the above groups.
Health care workers and volunteers should get the flu vaccine if they work with patients in any of the above groups.
ARE THERE FLU COMPLICATIONS THAT AFFECT ONLY CHILDREN?
Reye's syndrome, a condition that affects the nerves, sometimes develops in children and teenagers who are recovering from the flu. Reye's syndrome begins with nausea and vomiting, but the progressive mental changes (such as confusion or delirium) cause the greatest concern.
The syndrome often begins in young people after they take aspirin to get rid of fever or pain. Although very few children develop Reye's syndrome, you should consult a doctor before giving aspirin or products that contain aspirin to children. Acetaminophen does not seem to be associated with Reye's syndrome.
Other complications of the flu that affect children are
- Convulsions caused by fever
- Croup
- Ear infections, such as otitis media
Newborn babies recently out of intensive care units are particularly vulnerable to suffering from flu complications.
ARE THERE DIFFERENT TYPES OF FLU VIRUSES?
The first flu virus was identified in the 1930s. Since then, scientists have classified flu viruses into types A, B, and C.
Type A is the most common and usually causes the most serious epidemics. Type B outbreaks also can cause epidemics, but the disease it produces generally is milder than that caused by type A. Type C viruses, on the other hand, never have been connected with a large epidemic.
FLU PANDEMICS IN THE 20TH CENTURY
If a flu virus emerges that is either new or has not circulated in many years, and if it is able to spread easily from person to person, it could quickly travel around the world and cause serious illness and death for millions of people. This is called a flu pandemic.
The 1918 Spanish flu pandemic is the catastrophe against which all modern pandemics are measured. More than 20 million people were killed worldwide; 500,000 died in the United States alone. This virus was especially quick to kill. So far, the world has not seen a virus that severe again.
In 1957 and 1968, the Asian flu and Hong Kong flu, respectively, invaded the United States. Although hundreds of thousands of people in the United States died, the death toll for each pandemic was not as high as that for the Spanish flu.
In 1976, the United States experienced a swine flu scare. When a new flu virus was first identified at Fort Dix, New Jersey, it was labeled the "killer flu," and health experts were afraid that it would infect people around the world. In fact, swine flu never left the Fort Dix area. Research on the virus later showed that if it had spread, it would probably have been much less deadly than the Spanish flu.
In 1997, another "near miss" pandemic occurred when 18 people in Hong Kong became ill from a new flu virus. Six of the infected people subsequently died. Usually, flu viruses move first from chickens to pigs, and then from pigs to humans. This virus was different because it moved directly from chickens to people. The avian flu never became a pandemic, however, because it didn't easily spread from person to person. In addition, public health authorities ordered the slaughter of all live chickens in Hong Kong.
In 1999, two children in Hong Kong were infected with a flu virus that usually infects birds. They were the first confirmed human infections by this virus, and both children recovered. Although other infections from this virus were reported from China, there have been no cases since April 1999.
- Adapted from an article provided courtesy of the NIAID (The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases)
The information provided on this site is for informational purposes only.
Always consult your doctor for medical advice.
|
Copyright © Tundraco & Tundraco.com 2003-2007 All Rights Reserved
