As the Peak of Flu Season Hits, Study Shows Importance of Hygiene

With the peak of flu season usually occurring this month, a recent study on the spreading of flu can teach us an important lesson about hygiene.

The study, published by the National Academy of Sciences, looked carefully at the H1N1 flu season in 2009. They studied schoolchildren, classmates and their families as the epidemic was happening. They suspected that many children were spreading the flu to their classmates in school.

Their findings actually disproved that school was an important source of infection. They found instead that the close contact of friends who played together outside of school was a common source of illness. Typically, children who played together outside of school have more close contact with each other. They use little hygiene such as hand washing or covering a cough.

photo © 2010 Anthony Albright | more info (via: Wylio)

It was striking that children did not get sick from just sitting next to a classmate in school who was sick. This went against the prevailing wisdom of closing schools to prevent the spread of flu.

In reviewing households with sick children, most of the time adults in the household did not get sick from their children. They were probably making a special effort to limit exposure to the obviously ill family member. Again, the study results suggest the more likely source of infection was in the community at large where efforts at hygiene were forgotten or non-existent.

photo © 2009 William Brawley | more info (via: Wylio)

We know that the flu virus does not fly through the air attacking a person over the shoulder while they look the other way. If someone coughs or sneezes on you point-blank within a couple feet, mucus droplets are broadcast with the virus; however, the most common denominator is you. We are the last link to acquire the infection. By touching our own hands to our face and mouth, we’re most likely to get the illness. Hands touch so many public places and surfaces that we forget that our own hands are such germ-laden instruments. Washing hands before eating or food preparation remains one of the most important means of protecting yourself from illness.

The researchers noted that the flu virus spreads very rapidly among school age children. The results reinforce that it is not the classroom or seating arrangement that is the problem. It is more likely due to the fundamental lack of hygiene practices in children and adults in the community that facilitate spread of the disease.

We all can learn a lesson from this study, so be sure to wash up.

– Dr. Bruce Kaler

Does It Hurt to Get a Flu Shot?

Our own Dr. B demonstrates how easy – and relatively painless – it is to get a flu shot.  Watch:

Dr. Baxter Talks Flu Shots in Dallas

Our own Dr. Shiu-yeh Baxter of our Carrolton office was featured on KSKY-AM 660 in Dallas yesterday, and she even gave host Jon-David Wells his flu shot for the season. Check out a video of the show here - Part 1 (drag the dial to fast forward to 1:40:16) and Part 2.

Influenza and the Dog Days of Summer: Why You Need to Get Vaccinated

The kids are just starting school, and summer is winding down, although in many places around the country we’re still seeing heat waves. Way too early to think about flu? Not in the medical world, and here’s why.

Early last spring, scientists began planning for the 2010-11 influenza vaccine. They were looking at specific types of influenza that were circulating in the southern hemisphere. The flu seasons are offset by a half year in the northern and southern hemispheres. So often, some variation of the dominant influenza strains in the south will wreak havoc on the north the following winter.

Let me mention what the stakes are in this virus pick. In a normal year, 36,000 people will die in this country of influenza. More than 200,000 will be hospitalized for same. There are hundreds of variations of the two basic flu viruses (A and B). “A”s tend to be the most troubling, as they genetically change more often and more dramatically. If the wrong viruses are picked, things get dicey rather fast.

Having picked the three viruses, the vaccine manufacturing machine then kicks into high gear. With the combined efforts of 2 large vaccine producers and a couple of smaller companies, they design and produce roughly 500 million doses. Just think about designing and manufacturing a custom product with a short shelf life and distributing it worldwide in 5 months. Kind of makes you think differently about flu shots. They represent an immense amount of work and worldwide cooperation.

So what happens when you get a dose of the current flu vaccine? Your immune system starts cranking out antibodies against the specific influenza types contained in this year’s vaccine. It takes your body about 2 weeks to have sufficient levels of immunity to fight off an influenza exposure. Having developed this immunity, you might wonder how long it lasts. No worries. It will take you through this season and into the next year’s. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention says to get your immunization as soon as it’s available. (U.S. HealthWorks currently has the flu vaccine available. Check out where you can find a medical center near you).

All influenza viruses are made of a few genetic building blocks. That means a lot of different viruses have some common genes, so you do end up getting some protection against viruses other than the 3 covered in the vaccine. The more years you get vaccinated, the broader your immunity will be.

Many people wonder if immunity is something you can use up. Except in overwhelming infection, immunity is like exercise – the more you do, the better you are.

The influenza vaccine is one of the greatest success stories of modern medicine. It’s an example of true worldwide cooperation to eradicate this terrible disease. In the recent past, influenza killed millions. Today, this terrible scourge can be avoided with a simple shot or snort.

Dr. B

H1N1 Pandemic is Over

This week, the World Heath Organization (WHO) declared the H1N1 pandemic over.

Wasn’t it just a year ago that people were fighting for H1N1 shots? We didn’t know too much about this influenza virus at the time, except that it killed young people.

I was giving talks about H1N1 telling people that “Swine Flu” parties were a bad idea. A Swine Flu party is when someone gets the flu, he/she invites all of their friends over, everybody shares cocktail glasses and big sloppy kisses, and they all do their best to catch the flu. The point is to get the virus early before it mutates into something worse – which, luckily, H1N1 never did.

Novel strains of influenza have, in the past, been devastating. Even in a normal year, influenza kills 36,000 people in this country, and over a half million in the world. Pandemic strains of influenza have killed tens of millions in the past, a truly terrifying prospect.

We were all introduced to the concept of “pandemic influenza” last winter. Most people equated pandemic with severity, but pandemic only really refers to prevalence. If something is pandemic, it is widespread, not necessarily deadly. The H1N1 virus was pandemic, but fear of the virus was even more pandemic.

Companies had influenza plans – they gave careful thought to how they would operate with 40-60% less staff. How do you run a hospital on half staff, or a police department, or a nuclear generator?

People were hoarding antiviral medications. They did their best to talk their doctor into prescribing them several hundred dollars worth of Tamiflu, “just in case.”

The WHO and various counties’ heath department were magnificent. Through a worldwide effort, they identified the virus, and designed and produced millions of doses of vaccine, all in a few short months.

The H1N1 pandemic was a near miss. We heard the bullet. The influenza virus still contains the potential to change into something nasty, and it is highly contagious. This time we were lucky and had the chance to run a worldwide pandemic emergency drill, making us that much more prepared next time. And if history is any indication, there will most likely be a “next time.”

– Dr. Don Bucklin, National MRO – a.k.a. “Dr. B”