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February 19,
2008
Little Rock — The Arkansas Department of Health (ADH) is reporting that three Arkansans have died so far this year from Influenza. In Arkansas over the last ten years, the numbers of deaths have been as high as thirty-six (36) in 2000, and as low as four (4) in 2001. Seven (7) people died in Arkansas from the flu last year.
The actual numbers of influenza cases are not known as influenza is randomly reported to ADH by healthcare professionals, but flu activity has been on the rise in recent weeks.
“We got off to a late start this year, but our surveillance shows that we have been seeing a sharp increase in activity over the last two weeks,” said Sandra Snow, MD, Medical Director of Communicable Diseases/ Immunizations at ADH. “It’s impossible to predict what the flu season will be like in any given year, but we do know that our season generally lasts until about the end of March.”
“We want folks to know that it is still not too late to get a flu shot,” Snow continued. “It is your best protection against the flu. Our supplies are holding out across the state.”
This year’s flu vaccine is not an exact match with the type of flu that has been reported across the country so far, but experts at the CDC believe that it will still be effective in preventing the flu in some cases, lessening the symptoms, and shortening the duration for those who receive it. Arkansans are encouraged to call their local health unit to see about flu shot availability.
Good health habits and antiviral medications are other measures that can help protect against the flu.
- Avoid close contact.
Avoid close contact with people who are sick. When you are sick, keep your distance from others to protect them from getting sick too.
- Stay home when you are sick.
If possible, stay home from work, school, and errands when you are sick. You will help prevent others from catching your illness.
- Cover your mouth and nose.
Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing or sneezing. It may prevent those around you from getting sick.
- Clean your hands often.
Washing your hands often will help protect you from germs.
- Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth.
Germs are often spread when a person touches something that is contaminated with germs and then touches his or her eyes, nose, or mouth.
- Practice other good health habits.
Get plenty of sleep, be physically active, manage your stress, drink plenty of fluids, and eat nutritious food.
- Be aware of common Flu symptoms.
Influenza usually starts suddenly and may include the following symptoms:
- fever
- headache
- body aches
- cough
- sore throat
- runny or stuffy nose
- Diarrhea or vomiting (more common in children than in adults)
Flu vaccines are safe, effective and cannot cause the flu. Each year, 25 to 50 million people in the U.S. are infected with annual flu. Roughly 36,000 Americans die from complications of the flu; another 200,000 are hospitalized. The flu is serious business—translating into employee absences, lost productivity and bottom-line losses. Healthy workers who have been vaccinated have 43 percent fewer sick days than unvaccinated workers.
Those most at risk for influenza disease complications are: those in nursing homes; individuals over 50 years of age; persons with chronic diseases of the heart, lung, and kidneys, or who have diabetes, asthma, immunosuppression, or severe forms of anemia; women who will be pregnant during flu season; children and teens on long-term aspirin therapy. Children 6-59 months of age, their family members and their out-of-home caregivers should receive the flu vaccine due to the increased probability of severe illness in this age group. Daycare situations make these children especially vulnerable.
Health care workers should also be vaccinated for influenza since they are at risk for passing influenza infection on to high-risk individuals. Remember once you get vaccinated, it takes your body about two weeks to make protective antibodies.
For more information on seasonal influenza, click on http://www.cdc.gov/flu/.
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