2017-12-20 17:30:00
The same scenario repeats itself every time seasonal flu epidemic : peak attendance at doctors, several thousand visits to the emergency room for influenza-like illness and hospitalizations following respiratory complications. But how can the flu, an illness many consider mild, kill a person?
Is the flu serious? What are the main complications?
Among the main symptoms of the flu, high fever – sometimes exceeding 39°C – which appears suddenly, accompanied by a dry cough, headaches, muscle and joint pain, and general fatigue, indicates the National Institute of Health and Medical Research (Inserm) (source 1).
But it is not just the presence of the flu virus that is serious and can lead to death: it is a complex interaction between infection and the immune system.
How does the body react to the virus? How long does the flu last without complications?
The virus grippal enters the body through the eyes, nose or mouth, and begins to reproduce. The ever-increasing viral load triggers a strong immune response. White blood cells, antibodies and inflammatory molecules try to eliminate the threat. T cells attack and destroy the tissues that harbor the virus, including the respiratory tract and lungs, where it tends to take hold. In most healthy adults, this reaction works: the illness and symptoms disappear after a few days or weeks.
How do you know if the flu is getting worse? When to worry?
But in some people, the immune system’s reaction is too strongdestroying so much tissue in the lungs that they can no longer supply enough oxygen to the blood, leading to hypoxia and death.
How do you know if the flu turns into pneumonia?
In other cases, it is a secondary infection which will take advantage of the weakened immune system to spread. There bacterial pneumonia is one of the fatal complications linked to the flu, but it can also include sinus or ear infections, inflammation of the heart, brain or muscles, Reye syndrome, or Guillain syndrome -Rod. Some of these infections can affect different parts of the body, leading to septic shock and thus damaging several vital organs.
Who are the people at risk of complications or even death?
Health authorities are clear on the subject: seasonal flu is normally bearable for most patients. Each flu symptom has a different duration. In most healthy people the healing is usually done within a week. A fatigue is frequently felt for the next two or three weeks and a dry cough may persist for two weeks.
The type of strain of the initial viral infection will influence the course of the disease and the body’s reaction. But other factors come into play, in particular the age and health of the patient.
THE people at risk of developing a severe form of the flu (and therefore strongly encouraged to be vaccinated each year) are:
- People aged over 65;
- Pregnant women ;
- Infants;
- Obese people with a body mass index or BMI equal to or greater than 40;
- Immunocompromised people;
- People with chronic pathologies (diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, respiratory diseases, heart failure, etc.).
What is the mortality rate from influenza in France and around the world?
Worldwide, annual influenza epidemics are responsible for approximately 5 million cases of serious illness, and 290,000 to 650,000 deaths per year, according to the World Health Organization (WHO) (source 2). If the epidemic occurs during the winter in temperate countries – we also speak of seasonal flu -, in tropical regions epidemic outbreaks are more irregular and flu can appear throughout the year.
Most influenza virus-associated deaths in developed countries occur among people aged 65 or older. In developing countries, the effects of the flu are less well known. Research estimates indicate that 99% of deaths of children under 5 years of age from influenza virus-associated lower respiratory tract infections occur in developing countries.
How many deaths do seasonal flu epidemics cause in France per year?
“Every flu epidemic is different. They generally occur between December and March and represent, on average, each year, 1 million consultations in community medicine, more than 20,000 hospitalizations and around 9,000 deaths,” indicates Santé Publique France (source 3).
“Adults aged 65 or over and those under 2 are more affected by forms of influenza requiring hospitalization (including in intensive care), and those aged 65 and over are very clearly over-represented among deaths attributable to influenza. So, the most severe forms of influenza mainly concern the extreme ages of life », specifies Public Health France.
Treatment, vaccine… How to prevent complications linked to the flu?
The best way to prevent this disease and limit the many potentially fatal complications is vaccination for people at risk.
In fragile people, an antiviral medication, Oseltamivir (Tamiflu), reduces the duration and severity of illness when taken at the onset of symptoms. This medicine is sometimes given in preventive treatmentin the event of a flu epidemic in nursing homes for example.
« The prophylactic treatment with antiviral drugs is only intended for people deemed to be at risk of complications and who have come into close contact with a person with the flu. This treatment can be given from the age of one year (or less than one year in the event of an epidemic), and to people at risk living in communities (elderly people),” specifies the Insurance website. illness (source 5).
Furthermore, close contact with a case of influenza must be less than 48 hours old and meet the following criteria:
- Sharing the sick person’s living space;
- Or contact with her face-to-face, within one meter, during a cough, sneeze or discussion.
Consult in case of unusual symptoms
In all cases, it is imperative to consult in case of unusual symptoms for flu (shortness of breath at rest or difficulty breathing, productive cough with colored sputum), in the absence of improvement within 72 hours and in case of sudden worsening of his state of health.
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