Fighting the H1N1 Flu
Influenza—the flu—is a health concern every autumn, but it’s a special worry this season, as infectious-disease specialists prepare for the return of the much-discussed H1N1 (“swine flu”) virus first seen earlier this year.
Influenza—the flu—is a health concern every autumn, but it’s a special worry this season, as infectious-disease specialists prepare for the return of the much-discussed H1N1 (“swine flu”) virus first seen earlier this year.
“It caused significant illness in the Southern Hemisphere’s winter [our summer], and was circulating here in New Jersey in the spring and early summer as well,” says Margaret C. Fisher, M.D., chair of the Department of Pediatrics and medical director of The Children’s Hospital at Monmouth Medical Center. “It’s very likely that H1N1 will be back, but when is anybody’s guess.”
So far, the new virus has acted much like the typical seasonal flu, says Dr. Fisher, who is a pediatric infectious disease specialist. But that’s not too reassuring, because, as she points out, the flu claims 36,000 American lives and causes hundreds of thousands of hospitalizations each year.
“Most of the symptoms of H1N1 and seasonal flu are similar,” agrees R. Sivaprasad, M.D., Monmouth’s chief of infectious disease. They include fever, cough, headaches, body aches, chills and sore throat. “But H1N1 also causes more vomiting and diarrhea than seasonal flu,” he says. Still, H1N1 is, so far, no more lethal than its annual cousin. It’s the unknowns—and the potential numbers—that make the new global pandemic scary.
“Perhaps 50 percent of the population could be infected by H1N1 alone,” Dr. Sivaprasad says.
No wonder there has been a major push for prevention heading into the flu season. And the best way to prevent flu, both doctors agree, is with vaccination. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have issued specific guidelines for both H1N1 and seasonal flu vaccination. The seasonal flu vaccine is designed to provide immunity for the three to five strains of flu that are expected to affect us this winter. H1N1, as an entirely different strain, needs a different vaccine. The CDC have developed a priority list for who should receive the vaccine, based on who seems to be most likely to get sick from the virus and who can more safely wait until more doses are manufactured and distributed.
The first groups that should be vaccinated are:
• Pregnant women. “They are at risk of more severe complications from the disease, and their unborn babies are at risk,” Dr. Fisher says. “The vaccine will also protect the babies after birth.”
• Health care workers and first responders.
These people will be more exposed to the disease and more likely to spread it, so they have been placed at a high priority for vaccination.
• Family members of infants under 6 months old. The H1N1 vaccine has not been approved for infants, so the CDC recommends protecting their families.
• Children and adults from 6 months to 24 years.
• Persons between 25 and 64 who have medical conditions that put them at high risk for complications, such as asthma, heart disease and diabetes.
“One big difference between the two flus is that seasonal flu affects more older individuals, while H1N1 has caused greater disease in those under 25,” says Dr. Sivaprasad.
No one knows for sure why that is, he says, but older adults may have been exposed to earlier flu strains similar to H1N1 and thus may have some immunity to it. Everyone is still encouraged to get the seasonal flu vaccine as well. As of late summer, it was unclear if the different shots could be administered at the same time, so both physicians recommend keeping a close eye on the news and staying in touch with your primary care doctors to learn when, where and how to get the appropriate vaccinations to protect your family’s health this fall.
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