What are the characteristics of swine flu and how to prevent it among key populations？
Influenza surveillance shows that the current level of influenza virus activity in China has been enhanced, mainly influenza A. National Health Commission recently organized Wang Guiqiang, director of infectious diseases department of Peking University First Hospital, Tong Zhaohui, vice president of Beijing Chaoyang Hospital, and Wang Quan, director of emergency department of Beijing Children’s Hospital, to answer the hot issues of influenza A prevention and treatment.
What are the characteristics of influenza A? Do you need to take antiviral drugs? Wang Guiqiang introduced that influenza viruses are divided into three types: A, B and C, and influenza A virus is the most prone to mutation. Generally speaking, winter and spring are the high incidence periods of swine flu. Influenza A is an acute respiratory infectious disease caused by influenza A virus infection, which is different from the common cold. The flu symptoms are more severe than the common cold, which will lead to persistent fever, headache, muscle and joint pain, vomiting and diarrhea, general discomfort and other manifestations. The elderly and children are prone to gastrointestinal manifestations. Influenza is a self-limited disease, but there are many antiviral drugs in treatment. Not every patient needs to use antiviral drugs, and it is recommended to use them early in the case of high risk of severe illness and severe symptoms. Early use of antiviral drugs can shorten the course of disease, relieve symptoms and reduce the risk of severe illness.
How to judge whether you have swine flu? Tong Zhaohui said that the fever temperature of influenza is often higher than that of the common cold, which may reach above 39 degrees Celsius. If you find yourself with some symptoms of upper respiratory tract, it is suggested that you can screen for influenza antigen first, and then take medication. The course of the flu is long, usually in 3 to 5 days, and the severity can reach 5 to 7 days, while the symptoms of runny nose and cough of the common cold can be improved soon.
Many patients infected with swine flu feel that the symptoms of swine flu seem obvious, and even feel "worse than the symptoms in COVID-19". In this regard, Tong Zhaohui said that all diseases with fever symptoms will bring great discomfort to people, but from the current point of view, there are not many patients with severe illness caused by this round of influenza A epidemic. According to the statistics of emergency and fever clinics in Chaoyang Hospital, the proportion of patients who need to be hospitalized and seriously ill is still relatively low.
Children are vulnerable groups during influenza epidemic. What situations need parents’ attention? According to Wang Quan, the vast majority of children infected with influenza are mild, with respiratory tract infection as the main manifestation. Taking symptomatic drugs in time, drinking more water and taking more rest are beneficial to children’s recovery. During the influenza epidemic period, if children at home have a fever for more than three days or have an ultra-high temperature above 40 degrees Celsius, and have symptoms such as dyspnea, pallor, vomiting and diarrhea, decreased urine output and unconsciousness, they should seek medical attention at the first time.
Some members of the public are concerned about whether there will be overlapping infection between H1N1 and COVID-19. Tong Zhaohui said that both H1N1 and COVID-19 are respiratory infectious diseases, and there is the possibility of overlapping infection, but there is no need to worry too much. Only when the immune function is low and the Covid-19 in the body is not completely eliminated, there is a certain possibility of co-infection. At the same time, according to the monitoring data of fever clinic, the absolute majority of patients with fever are swine flu, with a high proportion. Wearing a mask, washing hands frequently, ventilation frequently, keeping social distance and vaccination actively are all effective preventive measures for respiratory infectious diseases.
(Reporter Jin Zhenya)