Don't panic

It's just the flu:

by Dhaneshi Yatawara

The flu outbreak in the country affecting mainly children, is nothing to panic about. Medical experts said, people having the flu should wear surgical masks to prevent spreading the flu bug."All flu cases are not necessarily influenza. It can be just a simple flu,"

Dr. Ananda Amarasinghe, Consultant Epidemiologist of the Health Ministry's Epidemiology Unit said, "There is no need to panic about the current flu wave, though many children have already been affected".

"Wearing a mask will not only minimise the spread of the disease but also safeguard the patient's health too," he said.

The present flu outbreak can be prevented from spreading by adopting simple steps. There is no need to close schools and pre-schools due to the outbreak. For any respiratory tract infection, precautionary measures are necessary, said Dr. Amarasinghe, to control infection.

"The infection spreads when a person sneezes or coughs. But the virus cannot travel a long distance, in the air. Only people in close contact with an infected person are likely to be affected. A handkerchief or a tissue must be used to cover the mouth when coughing or sneezing," he said.

Good hygiene

The next step is to constantly wash the hands as they carry the bug, because while sneezing the hands come in close contact with the mouth. "If infected people go to work or attend public places, there is no harm but precaution should be taken," he said.

Although there were cases of Influenza A and B in Sri Lanka, a majority of the reported cases at present are of the simple viral 'flu. "Not a single case of H1N1 'flu has been reported in the first quarter of 2015.

"Each year, there are peak times with various types of flu affecting the people, specially through January, February and March, but this is not a consistent trend either," he said.

For any viral infections, the best remedy is rest.

"There is no specific drug for viral infections, so it is best to take ample liquids, ensure a balanced diet and take proper rest," said Dr. Amarasinghe, adding that sound rest will help speed up the recovery process.

However, a dangerous trend has arisen where Influenza A has reached pandemic proportions, with the disease spreading from one continent to another.

Among the most known pandemics was the 1917 - 1918 Spanish 'flu. The recent most was the 2009 Influenza A H1N1.

Influenza A variants are sometimes named according to the host or carrier species in which the strain is endemic or to which it has adapted.

Several main variants have been named in the world as, Bird flu, Human flu, Swine influenza, Equine influenza and Canine influenza. The current 'flu has not shown any signs of developing into a pandemic.

"With constant testing and research, it has been found that the current outbreak was just a seasonal 'flu," said Dr. Amarasinghe.

Panic situation

The respiratory reference laboratory at the National Influenza Centre of the Medical Research Institute conducts tests on Influenza viruses, using the globally adopted tests such as the rt-PCR test (Realtime polymerase chain reaction test) on persons infected with the flu. Despite medical advice several schools have begun to panic over children continuously getting affected by the 'flu.

Some school authorities have requested parents not to send their children to school if affected by the flu and ensure that they get ample rest.

In the Colombo District, many schools and pre-schools sent the children back home, when they were detected with flu symptoms. Lexicon International School in Kurunegala faced a similar flu outbreak last month, said Senior Deputy Principal, Mala Dharmaratne.

"Many children were absent during March but now things are getting back to normal," she said.

In Colombo, the American pre-school also had a few cases reported, according to Director, Ramona Pulle.

"Since many students of the pre-Kindergarten section fell sick, we took precautionary measures. We even had morning health checks before allowing children into their classrooms," she said.

"Sometimes, parents did not co-operate, when they were informed that their chidlren had runny noses and got into arguments with the staff.

We asked parents not to send children to school if they had a fever or a cold, because it spreads fast among children," she said.