Local flu cases on the rise, doctors say

Cases of the flu are on the rise locally and across the rest of the country.

“We went from seeing it sporadically a couple of weeks ago to seeing several cases a day,” said Dr. Matt Young, Texarkana Emergency Center director/ owner.

Young said it’s not unusual to see a spike in cases at this time of year.

“I think it has to do with people getting together for the holidays and it’s that time of year when flu starts being more prevalent,” he said.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention flu activity indicators are higher than what’s usually seen at this time of year. The South has been hardest hit by the flu so far with Louisiana and Oklahoma reporting widespread flu infections, Arkansas has regional activity and Texas is showing local activity according to the CDC’s flu activity map.

The flu can be deadly, especially for people with chronic conditions that affect their immune systems and for the elderly and the very young. It can lead to secondary complications including dehydration and pneumonia which can be serious, even life-threatening.

Prevention is key, and even though there’s evidence that this year’s flu vaccination may not be a good match for circulating flu viruses, it’s still the front-line of defense.

“We still recommend people get the flu vaccination. We just have to

remember the strains in the vaccine are what the CDC anticipates as being this year’s most prevalent strains. They do the best they can but occasionally there are different strains that may mutate or change that are different from the stains they though we’d be exposed to,” Young said.

Good hand hygiene is key to avoiding the flu.

“The flu is usually spread through people’s secretions when they sneeze, wipe their nose or cough and then shake hands,” Young said. “Strict hand-washing and cleaning can help prevent it.

Sneezing and coughing into the bend of the arm and not the hand can help cut down on germs being spread.

People staying home when they are sick or showing symptoms of the flu can also cut down the number of incidences.

“We recommend anyone who has flu-like symptoms excuse themselves from social obligations, school, work or church,” Young said.

Symptoms of the flu include fever, body ache, headache, chills, decreased appetite, runny nose and watery eyes. The misery of the flu can last seven to 10 days.

There are steps people can take that could shorten the duration of their illness.

“If you get the flu the best way to take care of yourself is to see a provider within 24 to 48 hours of symptoms starting. They can start you on antivirals,” Young said. “Treat fever with anti-fever medications like Tylenol or Motrin and make sure to stay hydrated with predominantly water. … It’s OK to continue a regular diet throughout the flu. Your metabolism increases when you’re ill so it’s best to continue normal caloric intake.”