Influenza is a viral disease transmitted by airborne droplets that affects the respiratory system, which is part of the SARS group, causing severe complications such as pneumonia, loss of hearing, vision, death.
Every year, in addition to the known ones, new viruses with altered RNA appear that cause influenza. Influenza types A, B, C. Every year there are bursts of epidemics.
It is generally accepted that the virus of group C is the least dangerous, since it does not cause epidemics, being limited only to respiratory diseases without coughing and fever.
Group A virus includes the following strains: H1N1, H1N2, H3N2. The previously unknown most dangerous strain of A/H1N1 influenza, or swine flu, without timely, adequate treatment can be fatal.
The constant change or mutation of the virus allows it to easily evade the immunity of the carrier (human, birds, artiodactyls). While a previously infected carrier is susceptible to influenza throughout life, that is, the host body produces antibodies against the virus that causedthis flu. Types of influenza that attacked a person or animal will not be perceived by the immune system in the future and will infect the body again, and until the antibodies are produced, the disease will proceed in full swing.
Most people have innate immunity, but vaccination can also be used.
Each year, more than 25 percent of the world's population gets sick with seasonal influenza, with the number of deaths associated with this disease ranging from 3,500 to 50,000 (an average of 38,900 per year).
Seasonal flu hits people every year from early September to late May, while there is unstable wet weather.
Symptoms of seasonal flu
Often, a person cannot always immediately distinguish seasonal flu from a cold, as the symptoms are quite similar: sputum production, thick discharge, nasal congestion, headache, weakness, heaviness in muscles and joints, fever. Although the majority of the disease resolves within seven days without any medical attention, it is still very dangerous to treat the disease on your own, without the participation of specialists, in some cases it is fraught with complications.
Complications from the flu can manifest itself in:
- bacterial pneumonia;
- sinusitis, deafness, infectious diseases of the inner ear;
- dehydration;
- inflammation of the heart muscle.
There is a certain group of people for whom any flu virus can be very dangerous:
- older men over the age ofsixty-two;
- women aged sixty-seven and over;
- infants and preschoolers.
Treatment of seasonal flu is recommended with drugs such as Theraflu, Codelac, Panadol, Doctor Mom.
Prevention measures that are most effective against a viral disease: wearing an antiviral dressing, timely vaccination, using an antiseptic to disinfect hands, taking vitamins, and eating fruits and vegetables.
Avian flu in humans
Signs of H5N1 influenza are similar to the initial symptoms of the seasonal virus: fever, cough, heaviness in the muscles. At the same time, developed complications in the form of pneumonia or breathing problems end in death in 70-85% of cases. The severity of the disease depends on the immunity of the patient or vaccination and on how dangerous this strain of influenza is for a single organism.
The largest number of infected H5N1 was recorded in Mexico, Taiwan, Japan, Canada. Currently, there are no cases recorded by medicine when a person was a carrier of the H5N1 virus, but avian influenza continues to be a disease that can be fatal.
Prevention of a dangerous disease
There is no reliable data on the transmission of the avian influenza virus from person to person, however, there are cases when infection occurred through direct contact with an infected bird or through surfaces contaminated with feathered fecespeddlers.
Infection from meat or eggs is impossible, as heat treatment kills the virus.
To protect yourself from the virus, you must:
- You can only eat eggs and meat after thorough heat treatment for thirty minutes at 60-65 degrees;
- Wash hands with soap for at least twenty seconds, use hand sanitizer in situations where full washing is not possible.
- Cook poultry meat on a separate cutting board and in a separate bowl.
- Exclude raw eggs and eggs with half-raw (liquid) yolk from your diet.
- Avoid contact with an infected person if contact was unavoidable, take temperature for three days at least twice a day, and monitor for symptoms for a week.
- During the pandemic and when communicating with the sick, it is recommended to wear a mask, changing it every three hours.
- Eat fruits and vegetables rich in vitamin C.
Remember! Annual seasonal flu vaccination does not provide immunity to bird flu.
Effective drugs for the treatment of the H5N1 virus
When early symptoms of avian influenza are detected, patients are given broad-spectrum inhibitors such as neuraminidase.
Usually drugs are used for drug treatment: "Osiltamivir", "Zanimivir", "Relinza". If the temperature rises to 38 degrees, it is recommended to use antipyretics, for example, paracetamol. With complicationillness and suspicion of pneumonia, antibiotics are prescribed.
In some cases, the use of "Antigippin", "Analgin", "Aspirin" can lead to serious consequences, for example, deafness.
H1N1 or the new flu known as swine flu
The first cases of swine flu infection were recorded in the United Kingdom (England) in 2009, within a few months the virus spread to two hundred countries, across all continents.
As a rule, the symptoms of all viral infections are very similar, and swine flu is no exception. Types of influenza, such as A and C, present with the same symptoms as H1N1, but unlike it, they are not as painful and do not cause complications in the form of pulmonary pneumonia.
H1N1 virus symptoms
Infected patients have a temperature increase of up to 38-40 degrees, pathological migraines, nasal congestion in combination with a runny nose, swelling of the throat, fatigue, dry cough and shortness of breath, heaviness in muscles and joints, signs of poisoning.
The course of the disease depends on the he alth and immune system of the individual, however, according to the data, all cases of H1N1 influenza began treatment in the first seven days of the disease, so the treatment was successful and without complications.
Risk group
If infected with the virus, the risk group includes:
- women in the 1st-3rd trimester of pregnancy;
- older people over the age of sixty;
- infants and children under seven;
- people,suffering from chronic diseases: pneumonia, pyelonephritis, diabetes mellitus, congenital heart disease, cholecystitis, seasonal asthma.
If symptoms of H1N1 are detected, you should consult a doctor, if it is not possible to call an ambulance, you can start treatment with antiviral drugs: Temiflu, Relinza, Zanomivir, to enhance the effect, the loading dose should be taken in the first forty eight o'clock.
Swine flu in children is mainly treated with Temiflu and Relinza, but they should be used with extreme caution, as side effects are likely, such as: heaviness in the abdomen, migraine, signs of acute poisoning.
The new flu can be stopped by timely vaccination, it is especially important to vaccinate people at risk.
You can avoid infection if you do not neglect the following measures:
- use a disposable tissue when coughing and sneezing;
- observe hand and face hygiene;
- ventilate the room, keep household items clean;
- use protective bandage;
- implement timely vaccination.
Swine flu in children is usually epidemic.
The bloodiest flu virus in history
"Spanish flu", or the Spanish flu - a virus that claimed a colossal number of lives in the history of mankind. It is known from history that in 1920-1921 (in 20 months) more than 600 million people were infected, i.e. 30 percent of the world's population. By numberThis epidemic is one of the largest catastrophes in the history of mankind. The virus that causes such dangerous epidemics is A/1H1N1.
Signs of disease:
- Grey-blue complexion.
- Cyanosis.
- Infectious inflammation of the lungs.
- Coughing up blood.
- More severe stages are accompanied by the presence of blood in the lungs, which subsequently leads to death by suffocation.
The disease can be asymptomatic, but in this case the patient dies after a few days.
The Spanish flu got its name from the place where the pandemic was first recorded - Spain.
Stomach flu
Types of influenza, such as rotavirus infection or gastroenteritis, are not actually considered influenza, since the causative agent of the disease is calicivirus, which leads to inflammation of the human gastrointestinal tract. Basically, this disease affects children under the age of seven, and in rare cases adults. At the same time, intestinal flu in adults with a strong immune system can proceed in a latent form, in which case a full recovery occurs within a week.
Usually, the virus enters the body through poor personal hygiene. Stomach flu is popularly known as "dirty hands disease".
Stomach flu symptoms and treatment
A few hours before the onset of nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, cough with phlegm, signs of sore throat, runny nose, which disappear after a few days.
When the first signs appeardiseases, you should consult a doctor who will prescribe medicinal enzymes to improve the functioning of the digestive tract, such as Activated Carbon, Filtrum, Smecta, Polysorb.
Flu Quarantine
Quarantine is a measure to prevent viral diseases. The quarantine period, depending on the severity of the disease and the number of infected people, averages one week.
Most often, influenza quarantine is announced at school or kindergarten, this is due to the fact that the child's immune system has not yet been formed, and the body cannot resist the infection.
Quarantine is announced if more than twenty percent of children are absent from an educational institution.
Before the expected epidemic, it is necessary to vaccinate adults and children (with the permission of parents), ventilate rooms, disinfect work surfaces, and avoid large crowds. It is important to remember that during the quarantine period for influenza or SARS, preventive vaccinations and the Mantoux reaction are prohibited.
Influenza Prevention Measures
Doctors recommend as a preventive measure to strengthen your body and immunity throughout the year with the help of hardening, physical education, proper nutrition and taking vitamins and minerals. The most effective way is to get vaccinated against influenza two to three months before the expected epidemic. In addition, protective masks must be worn in public places and changed every three hours.
