Influenza (Flu) Information
(from the FDA)

Flu Vaccine Information

A cold and the flu (also called influenza) are alike in many ways. (Click here for a chart comparing the symptoms.) The flu can sometimes lead to more serious problems, like the lung disease pneumonia.

A stuffy nose, sore throat, and sneezing are usually signs of a cold. Tiredness, fever, headache, and major aches and pains probably mean you have the flu. Coughing can be a sign of either a cold or the flu. But a bad cough usually points to the flu.

Know When to Call Your Doctor

You usually do not have to call your doctor right away if you have signs of a cold or flu. But you should call your doctor in these situations:

• Your symptoms get worse.
• Your symptoms last a long time.
• After feeling a little better, you develop signs of a more serious problem.
• Some of these signs are a sick-to- your-stomach feeling, vomiting, high fever, shaking chills, chest pain, or coughing with thick, yellow-green mucus.

Try to Avoid Getting The Flu

A flu shot can greatly lower your chance of getting the flu. The best time to get the shot is from the middle of October to the middle of November, because most people get the flu in the winter. The shot can't cause the flu. But you may feel sore or weak or have a fever for a couple of days.

Who Should Get a Flu Shot?

Almost all people who want to lower their chance of coming down with the flu can get a flu shot.

Flu shots are most important for:

• people 65 or older
• nursing home patients
• people over 6 months old with health problems, like asthma, or with long- term diseases, like HIV or heart disease
• children or teenagers who must often take aspirin
• people who are often around the elderly or those with health problems
• people who live with someone in a high-risk group
• health care workers and other employees of hospitals, nursing homes, and chronic care and other outpatient facilities who care for patients
• police, fire fighters, and other public safety workers
• people planning to travel to the tropics at any time or to the Southern Hemisphere from April through September who did not receive a flu vaccine the previous year

Flu shots are usually not recommended for children, except for those who have certain medical conditions or live with someone at high risk for flu complications.

But some children should get a flu shot:

• children over 6 months old who are on long-term aspirin therapy and may be at risk for Reye syndrome if they catch the flu
• children who have chronic heart or lung disorders, including asthma
• children who in the past year saw a doctor regularly or were hospitalized for chronic diseases such as diabetes mellitus, kidney disease, severe anemia, or immune deficiency (including HIV/AIDS and immunosuppression caused by drugs)
• children who live with someone in the high-risk group

Who Might Not Be Able to Get a Flu Shot?

Some people should talk to their doctor first.

Talk to your doctor before you get the shot if you:

• have certain allergies, especially to eggs
• have an illness, like pneumonia have a high fever
• are pregnant

Click here for more information on the flu vaccine.

Prescription Medicine Can Prevent Flu

If you are one of those who should not get the flu shot, ask your doctor about prescription medicine to help prevent flu. And if you get the flu, taking this medicine within the first 48 hours can make your illness less serious.

Do Not Take Antibiotics For a Cold or Flu

Antibiotics won't work against cold and flu germs. And, antibiotics should be taken only when really needed.

Help Yourself Feel Better While You Are Sick

Tiredness from the flu may continue for several weeks. To feel better while you are sick:

• Drink plenty of fluids.
• Get plenty of rest.
• Use a humidifier--an electric device that puts water into the air.
• A cough and cold medicine you buy without a prescription may help.

Choose the Right Medicines For Your Symptoms

Make sure the label states that it treats your specific symptoms.

Protect Your Children From "Salicylates" In Cold Medicines

Do not give aspirin or other "salicylates" to children or teenagers with symptoms of a cold or flu. If you aren't sure whether a product has salicylates, ask your doctor or pharmacist.

Young people can get sick or die from a rare condition called Reye syndrome if they take these medicines while they have these symptoms.

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