WEST PALM BEACH, FL, United States (UPI) -- While the world focuses on scares of poss

[Snowy Owl]

Deadly flu gets public ho-hum
http://news.monstersandcritics.com/health/features/article_1268846.php/Deadly_flu_gets_public_ho-hum​

WEST PALM BEACH, FL, United States (UPI)

While the world focuses on scares of possible pandemic bird flu, the annual seasonal influenza continues to take a worrisome toll on the very young, the elderly and the frail.

But, unless the illness is caused by a bird or rages into a pandemic, influenza is greeted with a shrug.

'There is so much talk of bird flu and fear of the pandemic, but every year we are subject to the serious threat of an outbreak of influenza which can result in severe illness and loss of life,' said John Oxford, professor of virology at St. Bartholomew`s and the Royal London Hospital in the United Kingdom.

Worldwide, seasonal influenza affects 500 million people and claims half a million lives each year, Oxford told United Press International. Regardless of the type of influenza strain that is most dominant each year, influenza`s annual impact on society and the economy accounts for one in 10 of all absences from the workplace and costs $12 billion in lost productivity annually in the United States alone, he said.

A survey released Thursday at a Brussels fair aimed at increasing awareness of influenza illustrates the problem. Researchers interviewed 132 doctors in the United States and Europe on why they tended to limit prescribing medications for treatment of influenza.

-- About 23 percent of the physicians said their perception was that influenza was a self-limiting disease.

-- About 33 percent of doctors suggested that over-the-counter symptomatic remedies were sufficient to control the disease.

-- About 46 percent of doctors said their patients simply do not seek help in time to benefit from medical treatment for influenza.

'People can be complacent about seasonal influenza, but there is much that can be done,' said Ab Osterhaus, professor of virology at Erasmus Medical Centre in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

'Current tools, such as vaccines and anti-virals, are still under-used despite being both medically and economically justified. It`s important for people to take seasonal influenza seriously and to take precautions to prevent and treat it whilst minimizing its spread.'

H5N1 influenza, the much talked about 'bird flu,' is one particular strain of the influenza virus and is only transmitted to humans through close contact with infected birds. As of Feb. 16, 273 people have been infected with the virus, and 167 have died.

Experts believe the next influenza pandemic is inevitable and possibly imminent, and preparations are under way to try and minimize its impact.
Influenza, commonly called 'flu,' is an acute respiratory illness that affects the upper and/or lower parts of the respiratory tract and is caused by an influenza virus. Flu is highly contagious and spreads rapidly by coughs and sneezes from people who are already carrying the virus. Patients become ill between 18 and 72 hours after being infected. The most common symptoms of uncomplicated influenza are an abrupt onset of fever, shivering, headache, muscle ache and a dry cough.

'It`s crucial that people take seasonal influenza more seriously than they currently do,' Oxford told UPI. 'Just because it raises its ugly head each year does not mean we should overlook it -- quite the contrary. We should learn year by year and build up our resources and experience to get rid of it once and for all or at least beat it into swift retreat.

'Doctors and the public alike tend to sit back and let flu run its course, but preventing it and treating it can make a huge difference to minimizing its impact and ultimately curbing its spread.'

He said that the elderly and the very young, and those with chronic medical conditions or weakened immune systems, are most at risk.

'Seasonal influenza spreads simply because people get the flu and then pass it on to others,' Oxford said.

'We all should act responsibly to prevent ourselves and our families getting the flu and, if we do get it, to avoid contributing to its spread by passing it on to others, including those most at risk.'

Copyright 2007 by United Press International ​