Ohio University

It is a contagious respiratory illness caused by an influenza virus. The flu normally occurs from late fall until early spring. The symptoms range from mild to severe and in some cases can cause death. The best way to prevent the flu is to get a flu vaccine every year.

The symptoms of flu virus in people include fever, cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, body aches, headache, chills and fatigue. A significant number of people who have been infected with the H1N1 virus also have reported diarrhea and vomiting. While most people who have been sick have recovered without needing medical treatment, hospitalizations and deaths from infection have occurred.

The different symptoms are outlined in the following chart:

	Cold	H1N1 Flu	Seasonal Flu
Fever	Adults, uncommon Children, more likely	present, >100F,(as high as 105F or more)	characteristic, high (102-104F); lasts 3-4 days
Headache	rare	common	common
Sore Throat	common	common	sometimes
Cough, chest discomfort	mild to moderate; hacking cough	common; can become severe	common; can become severe
Runny or stuffy nose	common	present	sometimes
Sneezing	common	present	sometimes
General aches, pains	slight	present	usual; often severe
Fatigue, weakness	quite mild	extreme	can last up to 2-3 weeks
Chills	not present	present	present
Diarrhea/Vomiting	uncommon	present	not present
Extreme exhaustion	never	usual	usual
Adults >65	any age group	uncommon	present
Adults <65	any age group	present	present
Age of highest incidence	any age group	5-24	<5 and >65

Flu viruses are spread mainly from person to person through coughing or sneezing by people with influenza. Sometimes people may become infected by touching something — such as a surface or object — with flu viruses on it and then touching their mouth, eyes or nose.

You may be able to pass on the flu virus to someone else before you know you are sick, as well as while you are sick. People infected with seasonal and H1N1 flu shed the virus and may be able to infect others from one day before getting sick to five to seven days after. This period can be longer in some people, especially children and people with weakened immune systems and in people infected with the H1N1 virus.

• Five to 20 percent of the population get the flu each year
• More than 200,000 people are hospitalized from flu-related complications each year
• Deaths each year range from 3,000 to 49,000 with an average of 23,600 deaths each year

The World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) officially declared an end to the H1N1 pandemic in July 2010. This does not mean that the H1N1 virus has gone away. Based on experience with past pandemics, these agencies expect the H1N1 virus to take on the behavior of a seasonal influenza virus and continue to circulate for some years to come. The 2012–13 seasonal flu vaccine protects against one strain of the H1N1 virus.

 

The symptoms are similar to the seasonal flu, but they may be more severe. Additional symptoms include vomiting and diarrhea. The 2012–13 seasonal flu vaccine protects against a strain of the H1N1 virus.