While it may not come as much comfort for those fighting fever, aches, chills, congestion and other common symptoms of influenza, a pair of area doctors agreed that it’s been a fairly average flu season in Northeast Pennsylvania so far.
Lackawanna County had 409 confirmed and reported cases of flu between Sept. 30, and Jan. 2, according to state Department of Health data. Luzerne County had 1,158 confirmed cases in that time. Comparatively, the state health department reported 2,170 confirmed flu cases in Lackawanna County and 4,615 in Luzerne County between Oct. 1, 2017, and Sept. 29, 2018.
“True influenza usually hits early winter and it’s not unusual to see the cases start to spike in early-to-mid December, and that’s what we’ve seen this year,” said Dr. Richard Martin, a family physician at Geisinger Mount Pleasant in Scranton. “I think it’s too early to tell what to expect for the rest of the winter, but the statistics pretty consistently, year-to-year, kind of speak for themselves.”
Getting a flu vaccine is a simple step people can take to reduce their risk of contracting the virus, according to Martin and Dr. Tina George, an Avoca-based family physician with Commonwealth Health.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend everyone over the age of 6 months get the vaccine, with some exceptions. Flu season extends into May and both doctors said it’s not too late to get vaccinated. It’s especially important that young children, the elderly and individuals diagnosed with chronic diseases guard against influenza, Martin and George said.
Flu symptoms can be more severe, and the virus itself can be more deadly, for patients already suffering from heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, kidney disease and other chronic medical conditions.
“If you have any chronic respiratory diseases like COPD or asthma, make sure that you are on a good maintenance regimen with those things, because you are at much higher risk of having a more severe case of the flu should you get it,” George said. “Even people with non-respiratory diseases, like heart disease or kidney disease on dialysis, they have a much higher mortality (risk related to flu).”
To protect at-risk patients and reduce the flu risk for others, Commonwealth Health asks people who are sneezing, coughing, feverish or experiencing a runny nose or other respiratory symptoms, as well as children younger than 12, to refrain from visiting patients at any of its hospitals at this time.
Some of the aforementioned symptoms are common in people with the flu, but they don’t necessarily mean someone has the virus. Sometimes those same symptoms are simply signs of the common cold, Martin said.
“True influenza is usually characterized by very abrupt onset,” he said. “People will get a shaking chill and a spike in temperature to 102, 103 (degrees). They have a pretty severe headache, a dry cough (and) body aches. They may or may not get a sore throat, but the hallmark is really the sudden onset, the fever, the headache and the body aches.”
People who believe they have the flu should seek medical attention, as treatment is most effective within 48 hours of flu symptoms manifesting, George said.
Contact the writer: jhorvath@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9141
To reduce your risk of getting sick with the flu:
n Get a flu vaccine.
n Wash hands with soap thoroughly and regularly.
n Avoid touching mouth, eyes or face.
n Avoid others who are sick if possible.
n Disinfect contaminated surfaces.
People sick with the flu should:
n Seek medical treatment.
n Stay home to avoid spreading the virus.
n Stay hydrated.
n Stand and walk around periodically to help prevent pneumonia.
n Treat fever with over-the-counter antipyretic drugs, such as Tylenol and ibuprofen.