What are the risks of getting the flu, COVID and acute respiratory infections this fall
The incidence of respiratory infections is on the rise, as it should be at this time of year. The most noticeable is COVID; over the last month the number of sick people has doubled, the first cases of a new strain of "pyrrole" have been registered. In addition, the flu has arrived - there are cases of not only the banal H1N1, but also "Hong Kong" H3N2, which caused a severe pandemic in the late 1960s. In addition to all this, people continue to be massively ill with milder acute respiratory viral infections. What's new in the treatment guidelines? "Tridemic" and "Hong Kong" flu - how dangerous is it?COVID is milder now than it was at the beginning of the pandemic. It is more similar to other seasonal acute respiratory infections. We are seeing fewer severe pneumonias with severe respiratory failure. (Although there are still such cases, and 8,800 patients have been sent to hospitals in the last two weeks).
We do not see any specific symptoms in the majority of those who fall ill. Anosmia - disappearance of odors and dysgeusia - taste disorders are rare. And the other symptoms - high fever, body aches, weakness - are also observed in influenza. So without a test to determine what you are infected, you can not get. By the way, COVID has shortened the incubation period to three days.
The Ministry of Health has updated the recommendations on treatment and prevention. The anti-inflammatory drugs Amberwine Pulmo and Cesarox Epi have been added to the pathogenetic treatment section. The former is a leu-enkephalin analog and is thought to reduce the duration of COVID symptoms. It is prescribed as an injection or inhalation. The indication of Cesarox Epi is to prevent respiratory depression in severe COVID. There is also evidence that it reduces the duration of the febrile period.
Information on the treatment of COVID in people with bronchial asthma and tuberculosis has been added to the Special Patient Groups section. The consequences of co-infection with tuberculosis are not yet fully understood and can be quite severe, so the latest guidelines suggest that patients should be tested for tuberculosis at the same time as they are tested for coronavirus.
Information on COVID prophylaxis in children from 6 to 11 years of age using the vaccine Gam-COVID-Vac-D has been added, as well as information on the study of a second-generation monoclonal antibody drug, international research of which is still ongoing.
Another possible measure of COVID prevention is the use of the drug azoximer bromide (polyoxidonium). At the height of the pandemic, more than a thousand doctors working in the "red zone" received this drug to reduce the risk of the disease - and indeed, they got COVID three times less often compared to the control group. The same drug is recommended for the prevention and treatment of acute respiratory infections and influenza in adults and children three years of age and older.
There is nothing unusual about tridemia. Influenza, respiratory syncytial virus, and now COVID-19 are "winter" viruses that peak during the cold season. Coronaviruses, for example, are usually active from November through April, while respiratory syncytial virus can become active as early as September and usually circulates through April and May. Flu epidemics in different years occurred from October-November to February-March. It should not be forgotten that all such infections are not always without trace. Sometimes they lead to the development of viral and then viral-bacterial pneumonia, give complications to the cardiovascular, endocrine, nervous system. Of course, people with concomitant pathology are in the risk group - "where it is thin, there and tears". But it also happens that a seemingly perfectly healthy person becomes seriously ill.
In any case, it is better not to take any risks. If someone has not yet had a flu shot, do it. And of course, you need to behave in a way that minimizes the risks of the disease. The rules of prevention are the same for all ARVI. I will remind them again: regularly wash your hands with soap and water, coming home, wash thoroughly and rinse the nasal passages. Keep antiseptic handy to periodically wipe your phone, tablet, computer keyboard with it. In public places do not be lazy to wear a mask. And of course, if you feel sick, you should stay home and call a doctor.
"Hong Kong" flu H3N2 is the same one that caused the third world pandemic in 1968. It covered the entire planet because of the so-called antigenic shift - a sharp change in its genome and pathogenic properties. No one was immune to it. The lethality rate was 0.2% - a lot for influenza. Now the H3N2 flu has become a variant of seasonal infection, and now it is much easier.
Influenza can be contracted not only through airborne droplets, but also through contact - for example, by grabbing the handrail in transportation and then touching your face and eyes with your hand. Experts reminded how long the virus remains dangerous and what to do to avoid infection.
1) In the air at a temperature of + 22 C - from 2 to 9 hours.
Therefore, if someone is sick in the house, you need wet cleaning (so that the dust settles faster) and ventilation. A regular vacuum cleaner without a water filter is not a solution, as it throws the smallest dust particles after filtration back into the surrounding space.
2) On human hands - only 5 minutes.
Soap or antiseptic will kill the virus even faster, but even regular (without soap) hand washing will "wash away" the viruses. Nevertheless, try to touch your face less often during flu season anyway.
3) On metal and plastic - 24-48 hours.
That's why you need to treat gadgets with antiseptic more often. By picking up a pen in transportation or withdrawing money from an ATM and then talking on your cell phone, you can catch not only the flu, but also other infections.
4) In the refrigerator (where the temperature is +2...+ 4 C) - up to 7 days.
When unpacking your supermarket purchases, make sure that all plastic packaging and bags are clean.
5) On fabric products (clothes, towels, linens, etc.) - up to 11 days.
Therefore, if someone in the family has the flu, there is a high probability of getting infected and everything else. Washing in hot water will help. Boiling is not necessary - the flu virus is completely killed at a temperature of +60 C. But the main thing, if there is a sick person in the house, to allocate for him a separate set of towels and bed linen.