Influenza (also known as "the flu") is a contagious respiratory disease caused by the flu virus and is most often transmitted by droplets. When an infected person talks, sneezes or coughs, droplets that contain the virus are produced.
These droplets can travel up to 6 feet, landing on the mucous membranes of nearby people. These drops can also land on surfaces or objects, and can be collected in the hands of another person, who then touches the eyes, nose or mouth. Once it contacts the mucosal virus, it infects the nose, throat and lungs.
In 1-4 days after exposure to the virus, you may experience one or more of the following signs and symptoms: fever or feeling of fever, chills, sore throat, cough, runny nose or swollen, muscle or tangible pain, Head, and feel very tired.
These symptoms can last as long as 10-14 days and can be so severe that a person may be bed-related (or attached to a couch) for much of that time. It is estimated that 50-80% of people can become infected with the virus but have no symptoms; So they transmit the disease to others without realizing it.
Anyone can get the flu, even those who are very healthy. Serious health problems and complications can occur in association with the flu. In the US, an average of 226,000 people are hospitalized and 36,000 die each year due to complications related to the flu and the flu.
Some people and age groups are at increased risk of developing more serious complications of the flu, including younger children, those 65, pregnant women, and people with certain chronic medical conditions.
These chronic medical conditions include asthma, COPD / emphysema, chronic heart disease, diabetes, a weakened immune system due to illness or medications, such as someone receiving chemotherapy or someone with chronic steroids and people with extreme obesity. Complications may include sinus and ear infections, pneumonia, myocarditis (inflammation of the heart), encephalitis (inflammation of the brain), rhabdomyolysis (muscle inflammation), and failure and multiple organ sepsis.
It can sometimes be difficult to distinguish influenza from other viral or bacterial diseases based on symptoms. If your health care provider wants to know for sure if you have the flu, he or she can do a specific test called the test for the rapid diagnosis of the flu. This requires a swab to be inserted deep into the nasal cavity and results are usually ready within 30 minutes.
In some cases, the result of the rapid test may be negative, but your symptoms indicate otherwise, so your health care provider may still decide that treatment with antiviral drugs. Sometimes, when there is a flu outbreak in a community, health care providers use their clinical judgment and treatment of infected individuals without being tested for the flu.
Some prescription drugs known as "antivirals" are a treatment option for influenza. There are three antiviral drugs approved by the FDA for the flu: Tamiflu, Relenza and Rapivab. These antivirals are not available on the counter; You must have a prescription from your health care provider to get it.
These medications can help reduce the severity and duration of flu symptoms, and although they work best when started within 2 days of the illness, they can still help if started later. These antiviral drugs can help prevent some of the serious complications in people at high risk.
Flu tends to be more common during the colder months of the year, and while the flu in the United States usually occurs between September and May, the peak month is February. The most important way to prevent the flu is to get a flu shot every year. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that anyone 6 months of age receive an annual flu vaccine.
The benefits of the flu vaccine are many, and include that it can help prevent the flu; The severity and duration of the disease can be reduced if you become ill; The risk of influenza-related complications and hospitalizations can be reduced; This helps to protect women during and after pregnancy with some antibodies transmitted to the baby.
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