All about the flu and to

Early beginning

Last week, I returned from America, where a cold and influenza serve as the main theme for Small Talk this winter, because it is sick or ill -willed, it seems, every second. It is clear that it is impossible to make far -reaching conclusions from the experience of friends and acquaintances, but official statistics indicate the same thing: this year they get sick significantly more than in the past.

American doctors state several unpleasant differences from a regular seasonal outbreak. This year it all started at the end of December, that is, a month and a half earlier than usual. And although the critical mass of the sick has not yet been achieved, which allows you to name the outbreak of an epidemic, the growth rate of its optimism is not inspired at all. Here you can see official American statistics by month.

In Europe, things are no better than in the States: in sixteen European countries, outbreaks of incidence of influenza and colds are widespread, according to the weekly report of the European Center for the Prevention and Control of the Frequence. Here, the full text of the epidemiological report on Europe is in the public domain.

Unfortunately, there is no Russia in this weekly European report. Not because they do not get the flu. We do not particularly show our statistics to anyone: in RuNet there is no objective epidemic data, and different experts say different things. In early January, Nikolai Malyshev, the chief infectious disease specialist of Moscow and the head physician of the infectious diseases hospital No. 1, told reporters that "the situation with the influenza is ordinary, there is a normal rise in respiratory diseases for this time of the year." Prior to this, at the end of December 2012, the chief sanitary doctor Gennady Onishchenko told the press that “in the capital and in several other regions of Russia an epidemic for the incidence of SARS was exceeded. The specific weight of the flu is growing. ”

Svetlana Yatsyshina, head of the reference center for monitoring infections

The respiratory tract of the Central Research Institute of Epidemiology told me that in Russia in the first week of 2013, the non -epidemic level of incidence of SARS and influenza was recorded as a whole. This, however, is the average temperature in the hospital from which it is impossible to understand whether the epidemic threshold is exceeded in individual cities.

Unusual current

This season, an unusual flu flow is often found, as in an interview with Boston's NPR News Station the virologist Robin Kubrev from the Mount-Obern hospital (Massachusetts), many are sick without severe heat and with greased symptoms. The insidiousness of such a virus is that its carrier does not isolate itself at home, but continues to actively live and work and infects everyone around. Another option: a protracted flu, this year many are sick for weeks, which does not look like a flu or a cold at all. Usually ARVI takes a few days, but this season many are recovering after the first days of the acute disease, the temperature, if it was, passes, and the next month the patient cannot get rid of the grueling runny nose, cough and ailment. Doctors only state this phenomenon, but admit that they cannot explain it.

“According to the previous seasons, it is known that the influenza A (H1N1) PDM09 virus in 10–20% causes symptoms of damage to the gastrointestinal tract,” says Svetlana Yatsyshina. “According to our data, 56% of patients with influenza (with a laboratory -confirmed diagnosis) did not have characteristic symptoms.” Other causative agents of SARS (adenoviruses, respiratory syncytial virus, metapneumovirus) can also cause flu-like symptoms.

Vaccinations may not help, but they need to be done

The problem with the influenza is also that the vaccine from him this year, according to Dr. Kubgovov, works worse than usual. The vaccine never guarantees protection, but only reduces the chances of getting sick, but this year, people vaccinated from influenza become more likely to get sick than usual. However, you still need to vaccinate: even if it does not protect completely, it can alleviate the course of the disease.

In order for the vaccination to work for sure, you can come to do it on foot, and better - to run away with a coward. In addition to jokes, sports and fitness enhance the effectiveness of the vaccine - as evidence of this thesis, the authors of Ny Times provide a fair list of scientific experiments and research. In one of them, elderly people 10 months before vaccination began to practice sports walking, and after vaccination the level of antibodies to the virus, they had higher than the participants from the second group, who practiced smooth stretching exercises. However, it is not necessary to start classes for a year: even if you run or ride an cycle of an hour and a half immediately before vaccination and after it, this will greatly improve the result of vaccination (the amount of antibodies in the blood doubles). As well as strength exercises with burden (for example, classes with dumbbells with an emphasis on the hand in which vaccination is made). Researchers say that the elementary increase in blood flow leads to a stronger reaction of the immune system, that is, more powerful protection against the virus.

In addition to the flu

In addition to early influenza in the West, the incidence of novirus and whooping cough is growing . Norovirus is also called a cruise virus or intestinal flu, since its symptoms (heat, severe diarrhea and vomiting) resemble severe poisoning and influenza at the same time. The outbreak of a new variety of norovirus called “Sydney 2012” began in this season in Australia, and now it is spreading in Japan, the States, Canada, England and throughout Europe. In France, for example, norovirus was transferred more than 280 people to 100 thousand people, that is, we are no longer about the outbreak, but about the epidemic. Nothing is reported about the number of diseases in Russia, but there is no reason for this infection bypassed us, since it is transmitted in the same way as an ordinary cold-through objects and unwashed hands (yes, acute respiratory viral infections and flu are transmitted not only by airborne backing).

The only encouraging news is that we seem to be insured from whooping cough. In the USA, 42 thousand cases have already been registered, this is the largest outbreak over the past 60 years. This is probably because in the States use a safer and more weak (bloodless) vaccine. It is known that the immunity, which is formed by a scoundrel vaccine, gradually weakens, and the chances of getting cough increase by 42% per year. That is, adolescents vaccinated in early childhood are not protected. In Russia, the ATS vaccine tested by the time (one -cake) is used. She has potentially more side effects (therefore, she was abandoned in the States), but she gives immunity more stable.