Instead of the usual seasonal influenza cases in February and March, influenza showed up in the Valley early this year and is infecting more people than normal, according to Dr. Dean Bartholomew at the Platte Valley Medical Clinic (PVMC).
The PVMC began seeing above average numbers patients with flu symptoms as early as November.
“It’s the most I’ve seen in my fourth flu season in the Valley,” Bartholomew said.
Bartholomew said it was rare for two different strains of influenza to be active at the same time.
Influenza B began infecting people in November and then Influenza A appeared just before Christmas.
Flu vaccines carry several different strains of flu and manufacturers have to anticipate and guess six to 12 months before flu season which strains to include, according to Bartholomew.
“It does seem like people getting immunizations are having decreased symptoms if they get the flu,” Bartholomew said.
Wyoming Department of Health representatives are reporting high flu activity across the state, especially in the last two weeks.
“In Wyoming, the level of flu activity we are seeing right now is higher than at any point since the unusually high level we saw in October 2009 during the H1N1 (swine flu) pandemic,” Clay Van Houten, Wyoming Department of Health emerging disease unit chief, said.
Flu vaccines are still available in many locations according to Dr. Tracy Murphy, state epidemiologist with the Wyoming Department of Health.
“We are still recommending vaccination,” Murphy said. “However, it takes up to two weeks for flu vaccines to offer effective protection.”
According to patient care coordinator, Conna McGuire, the PVMC is out of the vaccine, but Sue Bartlett, public health nurse supervisor at the Public Health Office in Saratoga said she is hoping to get a shipment later this week.
To avoid getting or spreading the flu, Bartholomew recommended getting the vaccine if you haven’t and the standard precautions of frequently washing hands, coughing into your sleeve and staying home from work and school when you are ill.
Some anti-viral medications are available for individuals who contract the flu and Bartholomew said the PVMC follows the Centers for Disease Control guidelines on their use.
“We reserve use of them to people who have chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) or asthma or are old or very young,” Bartholomew said. “Recent literature has indicated the anti-virals are not as good as was hoped, but they can decrease symptoms by up to 21 hours.”
Even though the number of flu cases are higher than normal in the Valley, Bartholomew said the PVMC is not seeing unusual numbers of patients with colds.
In addition to the standard precautions for preventing the flu virus, Bartholomew recommends using zinc drops or tablets at the onset of cold symptoms to decrease the severity of symptoms.
Reader Comments(0)