Influenza

Influenza Infectious viral illness Airborne/Droplet 2-3 days Some strains can be spread between animals, bird and humans Hygiene; annual vaccine What is influenza? How is it spread? What is the incubation period for influenza? Can animals catch influenza? How can influenza be prevented?

Symptoms Symptoms appear after the incubation period (2-3 days) Symptoms include sneezing, coughing, headache, fever, chills, tiredness, aches, diarrhoea, sore throat, lack of appetite, runny/blocked nose and difficulty sleeping These symptoms last for 5-8 days

Complications Most complications occur in the elderly, pregnant women and immunosuppressed people Secondary bacterial chest infections and viral pneumonia can also occur These may be fatal in elderly people Rare complications include meningitis, encephalitis, septic shock, tonsillitis, and otitis media

Treatment Need to treat the symptoms if they are causing discomfort Painkillers such as paracetamol can be used to reduce fevers In severe cases, antiviral medications can be taken

Prevention Good hygiene – washing hands regularly; cleaning surfaces; “Catch it, Bin it, Kill it” 2013 campaign (Department of Health, UK) Annual flu vaccine – for elderly, pregnant women, those with medical conditions, healthcare professionals and carers New annual nasal flu vaccine for 2 and 3 year olds Need to be vaccinated every year because flu viruses change quickly

Case study: H1N1 (2009) First detected in Mexico in May 2009 and called “Swine Flu” because the virus was similar to a virus in pigs H1N1 was first reported in the UK in June 2009 H1N1 is highly infectious but has a low fatality rate (0.04% of those infected in the UK) In the UK there were 474 reported deaths of 29,228 confirmed cases of H1N1

Case Study: H5N1 (2011) H5N1 (Bird Flu) is highly pathogenic and has a fatality rate of around 60% It has a low human-to-human infectivity rate and so does not spread easily between people In 2011, 62 human cases were diagnosed and 34 deaths were reported in Bangladesh, Cambodia, Egypt, Indonesia and China

Summary Influenza is a highly contagious viral infection It is spread by coughing and sneezing There are several symptoms associated with influenza, including sneezing and fever Influenza can be prevented by good hygiene and the annual flu jab Different strains of influenza have different infectivity rates and virulence, for example H1N1 and H5N1