Your Health: Ignore the common flu at your own peril

[Guest guest]

Your Health: Ignore the common flu at your own peril

27 Aug 2006 Henry

Get a shot. The scientist who identified and warned us about SARS and

avian flu advises not to take the common flu lightly.

THE tropical flu is hardly given a second thought. Yet the man who

identified and warned us of SARS says we need to be vigilant of the

flu virus.

Dr ph Sriyal Malik Peiris, a microbiologist, who was recently in

Kuala Lumpur and Penang to speak on influenza, said: " We need to fear

more than just outbreaks of SARS or avian flu.

" We also need to take care when affected by the common flu. "

Influenza is said to be a major cause of acute respiratory diseases.

Although the symptoms of influenza infection may be relatively mild

and self limiting, complications can lead to hospitalisation or

death, especially in the older population or in those with chronic

health problems.

" Don't ever underestimate influenza in the warmer climate, believing

it is only a problem in cold climates, " warns Peiris.

" Because of this, influenza vaccines are not given a priority. "

Referring to an influenza study done in Hong Kong, Peiris says the

tropical climate there did not mean fewer people were susceptible to

influenza.

Influenza in the tropics, Peiris emphasises, is not a seasonal

occurrence but a constant problem. Which is why we need to give it

more thought.

The results indicated that influenza also resulted in deaths,

especially among patients who were susceptible to cardio-respiratory

diseases.

" Although respiratory diseases accounted for the majority of the

influenza-related deaths, influenza also contributed to deaths

related to ischemic heart disease, " says Peiris.

Because of this Peiris stresses that vaccination is the answer. The

elderly who are a higher risk group for cardio-respiratory diseases

and would benefit from an influenza prevention programme.

" We cannot simply hope that when there is an outbreak it will go

away. Whenever we suspect something that's likely to be threatening,

report it.

" It was because of the prompt reporting of SARS that the World Health

Organisation managed to overcome the problem. "

Warning that outbreaks like SARS and avian flu are not over, Peiris

says we can expect new infections.

" We can't expect to build walls around us anymore when it comes to

outbreaks. You must understand how our lives have changed and how

viruses can be transmitted quickly. We need to deal with outbreaks as

a global village. "

Peiris says that the infection problems we have now are animal

pathogens that jumped to humans when you consider West Nile or mad

cow disease, the avian flu and SARS.

" Because our lifestyles have changed we need to be prepared to

understand how easily we can be infected by changes in the patterns

of our lives. It is crucial we have a good surveillance on this. "

It all started in Hong Kong...

THE last five years have kept him chasing viruses.

Dr ph Sriyal Malik Peiris arrived in Hong Kong in 1995 to set up

a diagnostic virology laboratory at Queen 's Hospital.

But two years later, the soft-spoken doctor, with hints of an

Oxbridge accent, was setting up a surveillance on birds in two bird

parks in Hong Kong after the avian flu outbreak.

Peiris has not rested since.

" It has been a continuous time of high-pressured activity, " says the

Sri Lankan-trained doctor who did his postgraduate studies at Oxford

University.

With news of the SARS and avian flu outbreaks, Peiris was busy

hunting the virus, trying to culture it from the victims of the

infection and then promptly identify it.

He did all this while serving as a consultant microbiologist and

clinical virology at Queen 's.

Peiris, who also teaches at the Department of Microbiology at the

University of Hong Kong, had been the consultant virologist at the

Royal Infirmary at Newcastle upon Tyne in Britain before his

move East.

THE 'COLD' FACTS

• WHAT IS FLU

The flu, which should not be confused with the common cold, is a

serious illness. It is an infection, initially of the respiratory

tract, caused by virus.

Flu is highly contagious and is spread from person to person by

coughing, sneezing and touching surfaces where the flu is present.

A cold doesn't have the same potential as flu to develop into a

debilitating or even a life-threatening illness.

Flu can lead to pneumonia, and hospitalisation in people,

particularly the elderly and those with medical conditions such as

heart and lung problems.

• HOW EFFECTIVE IS THE FLU VACCINE?

No vaccine is 100 per cent effective. However, the flu vaccine has

been shown to provide good level of protection against the infection.

Studies have shown the flu vaccine to be 70 to 90 per cent effective

in preventing illness.

Flu vaccinations protect only against the flu strains in the vaccine

for the current year.

• CAN ONE GET FLU FROM THE SHOT?

No, it is impossible to get flu from the vaccine itself. The vaccine

does not contain live viruses so one cannot get the flu from the

vaccine. However, the vaccine will not protect one against the common

cold and other respiratory viruses that may be mistaken for flu or

even against a new strain of flu that is very different from the

viruses in the vaccine.

• HOW IS THE VACCINE MADE?

The flu vaccine contains three different strains of flu virus which

circulate globally each year.

They are selected by medical experts. The viruses are grown in hens'

eggs, then killed and purified before being made into a vaccine.

• WHY DO WE NEED A VACCINATION EVERY YEAR?

Each year, the circulating flu viruses tend to change, so the vaccine

is updated to include the most current flu virus strains. Also, the

protection that the body makes after being vaccinated declines over

time, so one year after being vaccinated the immunity levels are low

and may not be sufficiently protective.

• WHO SHOULD BE VACCINATED?

Most people can benefit from flu vaccination.

However, it is particularly recommended for the following high-risk

people:

• Those 65 years of age or older

• Adults and children (less than six months ) with heart, lung or

blood circulation diseases (including people with severe asthma)

• Adults and children (less than six months) with chronic illnesses

such as diabetes, kidney disease or those with a blood disorder.

• People living in nursing homes, hostels or other long-term care

facilities.

• People who look after or live with people in any of the above risk

groups.

Flu vaccine is also recommended for people with a weakened immune

system. Flu vaccination should also be considered for emergency

service workers including fire, police and ambulance staff and anyone

wishing to reduce their likelihood of getting the flu

• WHAT ARE THE SIDE EFFECTS?

Flu vaccines are generally well tolerated. Examples of common

reactions that may be experienced are soreness around the injection

area, and mild fever and head or minor body aches.

• WHO SHOULD NOT GET VACCINATED?

• Infants under six months of age,

• Anyone with a serious allergy to eggs or chicken feathers

• Anyone who had a serious allergic reaction to a previous dose of

the flu vaccine

• Anyone ill with a fever must wait until they recover before getting

the flu vaccine.

What about the vaccines?

• Three things flu vaccines can't do:

1. Prevent all coughs, colds and viral infections. However,

preventing influenza will reduce infections in the nose and throat,

which often follow flu.

2. Provide instant immunity. The vaccine takes about two weeks to

start working (People who catch the flu in that fortnight tend to

mistakenly blame the vaccine for causing the flu).

3. Causes influenza. There is no live virus in the vaccine, so it

cannot cause influenza.

• Four things flu vaccines can do:

1. Gives the best chance of not catching the flu. No vaccine is 100

per cent effective. Typically, flu vaccines prevent influenza in 70-

90 per cent of those vaccinated.

2. Stops one passing the flu on to someone at high medical risk. The

vaccine does not guarantee 100 per cent protection for those at high

risk who have been vaccinated. It is also important to minimise their

exposure to flu virus.

3. Provide some protection against related flu strains. New strains

of influenza are constantly appearing. Because each one is a mutation

of an old one, flu vaccines often provide some level of protection

against new strains.

4. Reduce the potential risk of lost earnings, missed social events

and disruption to education and sporting or professional careers.

http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/nst/Sunday/Focus/20060826162839/Art

icle/index_html