LISTEN: Flu season far from over in Limerick and the Mid-West

What exactly is the flu?

Influenza—or just the flu—is a highly-infectious illness that usually affects the lungs and the upper airways. It can come with a high temperature and general aches and pains. If hit with the flu, you can also lose your appetite, feel sick and you can have a dry cough. It can last for about a week. 

What are the common causes of the flu? 

The flu is caused by an influenza virus, and there are several of them, and the viruses change from year to year. That’s the reason why we continue to get flus. We don’t get the flu and then get immunity. There are different viruses, so even if we have experienced one flu, that’s the only one we have immunity against. We won’t have immunities against any other flus. 

How can you tell if you have the flu or if you just have the cold? 

When you have the cold, you usually have a runny nose. That is not usual with the flu. With the flu, the temperature tends to be higher. You are absolutely exhausted—knocked out. You have to go bed, and you would have a higher tempeature with the flu, with generalised aches and pains, which you don’t tend to get with the cold. With the cold, you have a runny nose and stuffy nose with sneezing. And you would generally not be as unwell as you would be with the flu. 

I have friends who have told me that their loved ones availed of the flu vaccine, yet they caught the flu in the end. Is that possible? 

If you get the flu vaccine, it covers three strains of the flu each year, and that’s all it covers you against. You can get another flu, which is not in the vaccine. Maybe it’s just a cold that they have had. Also, in the first two weeks after you have it, you have no protection whatsoever against the flu. Also, the effectiveness of the flu vaccine is of the order of 40% to 60%. So there will also be a lot of people who have been vaccinated but, nonetheless, can get the flu. But if you have been vaccinated and you are exposed to that flu, even if you get the flu, you shouldn’t be as sick with it. You’re also less likely to pass that onto somebody else. 

There is a trivalent vaccine and a quadravalent vaccine. What is the difference? 

Trivalent means that there are three strains of flu covered in the vaccine. Quadravalent means that there are four strains of flu covered in the vaccine. 

Where can I get the quadravalent vaccine? 

A lot of GPs have purchased them, and that could cost you in the region of €30. 

What strain is circulating this year? 

This year, the strain that is circulating is the H1N1—also known as swine flu—pandemic strain, which we have had since 2009. That is covered by the flu vaccine. 

When people see ‘swine flu’ in headlines, is there a need to be alarmed? 

It’s the same flu that has been circulating for 10 years. A lot of people have got the flu infection over those 10 years. A lot of people have been vaccinated against it. The older people who have had the vaccine, probably a number of times, over the last 10 years are not getting the flu as much. It is the younger people, it’s children, and the working age people. 

If I get the flu, am I likely to get it again in the same season?

If you get a particular flu then you should be immune to that flu, but you can get another flu. Infection with one flu doesn’t give you any protection, whatsoever, against another flu. 

Is there a danger in using antibiotics while I have the flu? 

Antibiotics treat bacterial infections. The flu is a virus. Antibiotics are not going to be effective against the flu. Some people, if they get complications of the flu, like pneumonia, might later on need to get treated with antibiotics. But in the first instance, antibiotics aren’t going to be effective in any way. 

Some people stricken with the flu go to the emergency department. Is that the right to do? 

No. The right thing to do is to make contact with your GP if you need medical attention. You should stay at home, possibly stay in bed for a number of days, take plenty of fluids, take ordinary treatments like paracetemol or nurofen. People in at-risk groups should probably make contact with their GP. The GP may decide to prescribe anti-virals for them. 

Who are the people in at-risk groups? 

People aged over 65. children aged six months and older with long-term health conditions, pregnant women, healthcare workers, nursing home residents, carers, and people with regular contact with pigs, poultry and water fowl. 

Does the Man Flu exist? 

This is completely theoretical, but according to Canadian professor Dr Kyle Sue in the British Medical Journal, in 2017, it does exist. Dr Sue reckons that it’s not that men are exaggerating their symptoms but may have weaker immune systems when it comes to respiratory viruses. Good to know (not if you’re a man). 

The HSE has encouraged the consumption of flat lemonade. Is there a scientific logic behind this? 

It’s a clear fluid, there’s lots of sugar in it and there is water in it. You could possibly get energy from the drink. But hydration is paramount, so even if you don’t feel like eating, you need to stay hydrated. 

Should the workplace be sending employees home if they are showing symptoms?

If somebody has the flu, they are probably not going to be well enough to work. Secondly, there is a risk that they will infect others. In healthcare settings, it’s important that staff don’t attend work if they have the flu because they are risk to staff members and patients. 

What is the HSE’s forecast of this season’s flu strain? 

Each year, there is a peak in the flu. In the last few years, it has peaked around the Christmas period. This year, the peak started in the first week of January. We expect the rate to be high for five or six weeks. 

How many people have had the flu in Ireland so far? 

Since 1,066 cases since late 2018. Of that number, 300 have been hospitalised. 

Have many have died from the flu? 

The latest figure is that there have been 25 deaths nationally. In the Mid-West, there have been four deaths in the 2018/2019 flu season to date.