Every year in winters, millions of people suffer from Common cold or Flu. Common cold is a mild, self-limited disease caused by viral infection of the upper respiratory tract mucosa and characterized by nasal discharge and obstruction, sneezing, cough and sore throat, lasting for 3 to 5 days.
Flu (the short name of influenza) is usually a mild disease in healthy children, young people and middle-aged people, Butin order people or in those of any age who have chronic illnesses, flu can be life-threatening. It lowers person’s resistance which may lead to more serious infections, especially pneumonia.
Flu is a viral infection of the nose, throat and lungs. It spreads quickly from one person to another, particularly in crowded places such as buses, subways, theaters, hospitals and schools. When someone infected with the flu coughs or sneezes, droplets containing the virus particles may reach another person, entering the body through the respiratory system, there, the viruses can multiply and cause flu. Disease appears when their number grows too large for the body’s immune system to fight off immediately.
Symptoms: The effects of flu may differ from person to person. Sometimes it will cause no obvious symptoms. Often, the patients feel weak, develop couch, nasal congestion, a headache and fever lasting anywhere from one to six days. Other symptoms include aching muscles.
Complications: Flu is rarely fatal. Older people and people with chronic diseases (such as heart disease, emphysema, asthma, bronchitis, kidney diseases and diabetes) are at the greatest risk of developing secondary infections. The most serious of these is pneumonia, one of the five leading causes of death among people over 65.
Prevention: The elderly (above the age of 65) and people with chronic diseases are prone to develop flu. It is a general recommendation that these people get a flu vaccination in the early fall i.e. before start of winter. Low fever or redness at the injection site may occur with vaccination. As the flu vaccines are made in egg products, people with allergies to eggs may get reactions and $0 it is contraindicated in them. Flu shots are effective for only one year,
Management:
- Take aspirin or Tylenol for aches and pains.
- Drink plenty of fluids.
3, Stay in bed until the fever has been gone for one or two days. The fever may return if the patient becomes too active too soon,
If the fever persists or there is sputum production, a doctor should be called, since this may mean that a more serious infection is present.
Recently, the use of an antiviral drug, amantadine has been recommended for the prevention and treatment of influenza, particularly in high risk individuals.
‘This information provides a general overview on flu and may not apply in each individual case. Consult your physician to determine whether this information can be applied to your personal situation and to obtain additional information.
Article extracted from this publication >> March 26, 1993
