ANN ARBOR, MI -This holiday season, the one gift that isn’t on anyone’s wish list is a nasty bug called influenza (the flu). However, as reports of the respiratory illness are on the rise in Michigan and across the country, so are your chances of giving or receiving the flu while celebrating the holidays with family and friends.

And since the flu is one gift you can’t send back, experts at the University of Michigan Health System are offering some guidance on holiday respiratory etiquette to help you prevent the spread of germs that cause the flu. And for those unlucky enough to have contract the flu this holiday season, they offer tips on treatment.

UMHS has also partnered with St. Joseph Mercy Health System and Washtenaw County Public Health to help combat the flu locally.

Flu shouldn’t be an issue if you get a shot and use a tissue

The best way to prevent the flu is to get a flu shot every fall, especially if you are in a high risk group – healthy children age 6 to 23 months, adults over 65, adults or children with a chronic illness, expectant mothers in their fourth to nine months of pregnancy, and health care workers who work with high risk groups.

Although the flu vaccine is in short supply, and in many cases being reserved for high risk groups, FluMist, a nasally administered flu vaccine, is still available through many doctor’s offices, health centers and hospitals. In addition, there are three antiviral drugs (amantadine, rimantadine and oseltamivir), prescribed by a physician, that have been approved for prevention of the flu, but are not a substitute for the flu vaccine. Call your health care provider for more information.

You can also prevent the flu by following your mother’s advice: always cover your mouth with a tissue if you sneeze or cough. Since flu is spread from person to person by droplets that are coughed or sneezed into the air, it is very important to cover your coughs and sneezes with a tissue to avoid transmitting germs.

Flu germs spread easily in areas where people in close contact, so covering your sneeze or cough can make a real impact on the health of others. If a tissue is not readily available, use your shirt sleeve to cover your mouth, not your bare hands. Also, when you do use a tissue, be sure to throw it away in a waste basket immediately.

And, don’t forget to wash your hands after coughing or sneezing! During a season
when holiday greetings are often shared with a handshake, the flu bug can easily be transmitted from the unclean hands of someone with the flu. Soap and water, or an alcohol-based hand sanitizer gel work best to clean hands.

Do I have the flu or is it just a bad cold?

Colds and the flu are both highly contagious this time of year and, in their initial stages, it can difficult distinguishing between a bad cold and a mild case of the flu. However, the flu, unlike a cold, can have life-threatening complications, making it very important to be able to tell the difference between the two. Here’s how to tell a cold from the flu:

A cold:

• An infection of the head and chest caused by a virus. Typically lasts from three to seven days
• Fever is very rare in adults and older children, but can be as high as 102 degrees in infants and small children. It is also very rare to have a headache.
• Mild muscle aches
• Mild tiredness and weakness
• Usually comes with a runny nose, sneezing or a sore throat
• A mild hacking cough

The flu:

• A viral infection of the nose, throat, trachea, and bronchi that can last up to twelve days
• A fever about 101 degrees to 104 degrees that may last from three to four days
• A sudden and often severe onset of a headache
• Mild and possibly severe muscle aches
• Tiredness and weakness, often extreme, that may last two or more weeks
• Sudden and often severe exhaustion
• Possibly a runny nose, sneezing and a sore throat
• Coughing that may become severe

I’ve got the flu, now what do I do?

If you suspect that you or your child have the flu, stay home to prevent spreading the illness to others, even if it means missing out on holiday festivities! Kids and adults who get the flu, but are not in a high-risk group, should get plenty of rest, drink a lot of liquids and avoid using alcohol and tobacco. Additionally, over-the-counter medications are available to relieve the symptoms of the flu, but antibiotics won’t help fight a virus.

But if your child or teenager has flu-like symptoms or a fever, do not give them aspirin without speaking to the child’s health care provider first.

In most cases, if you or your child develop flu but are not in a high-risk group, you may only need to consult with your health care provider over the phone. However, if you or your child has severe symptoms, such as difficulty breathing, you should contact your health care provider immediately to set up an appointment or visit an emergency department (be sure to ask for a mask in the ED if you have had a severe cough for several days). Those in a high-risk group such people with diabetes, asthma, chronic bronchitis or other chronic illnesses, the elderly, or those with an auto-immune deficiency, should also contact their health care provider as soon as symptoms start to avoid complications.

Antiviral drugs are also available, and are recommended for those at a higher risk of developing serious complications from the flu, such as pneumonia, or those are in close contact with a high risk person.

Four antiviral drugs – amantadine (Symmetrel®), rimantadine (Flumadine®), zanamirvir (Relenza®) and oseltamivir (Tamiflu®)– have been approved by prescription for treating the flu and can reduce the duration of the flu by about one day. However, these drugs are only effective if taken within 48 hours of the onset of symptoms. According to the CDC, these drugs are effective against flu viruses, but are not effective against any other viruses or bacteria, and do have side effects.

Contact: Krista Hopson

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