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| Knowledge about Preventing Influenza |
2008-1-8 9:51:00
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| I what is influenza?
Influenza, briefly called flu, is a kind of acute infectious disease of respiratory tract caused by influenza virus (briefly called flu virus). Its clinical manifestation is like fever, headache, and muscle ache, feeling tired, rhinitis, pharynx and cough. Maybe there is something wrong with intestines and stomach and it is hard to differentiate from epidemic SARS. Influenza will cause potential diseases (like heart and lung diseases) to worsen or cause the secondary bacterial pneumonia or the primary influenza virus pneumonia. The old, the sufferer with chronic diseases or the weak are easy to catch serious complications after catching flu and the death rate is quite high.
II How to Prevent Influenza?
There are no especially effective cure measures of flu because it is a kind of viral infectious disease. So, it is important to take preventive measures which mainly include:
(1) Keep good personal and environmental hygiene.
(2) Wash hands regularly. Use soap or hand wash to wash hands in flowing water and don¡¯t dry it by dirty towel. Wash hands immediately after contacting with respiratory tract secretion (like after sneezing).
(3) Use handkerchief or paper towel to cover up mouth and nose while sneezing or coughing in order to prevent flying particles polluting others. Someone who caught flu should wear gauze mask whether in or out in order to protect others from being infected.
(4) Balance diet, exercise properly, rest fully and avoid overtire.
(5) Open windows to ventilate the room regularly every day. Keep air in the room fresh.
(6) You¡¯d better do not go to crowded and foul place in the high-incidence season of flu. If you must, please wear gauze mask.
(7) You can reduce chances of being infected or symptoms of flu by inoculating yourselves with influenza vaccine before the high-incidence season.
III who should receive inoculation with influenza vaccine?
Citizens should receive inoculation with influenza vaccine voluntarily and pay for themselves. However, collective inoculation organized by local health administration according to the rules and regulations or emergency inoculation will be offered to citizens for free. Generally speaking, people who are older than 6 moths and have no inoculation contraindication can inoculate themselves with influenza vaccine voluntarily and at their own expense. The following groups are suggested to receive it£º
1, people older than 60 years;
2, sufferer with chronic diseases and the weak;
3, staff in medical institute, especially missionary in the front line;
4, younger students and child in kindergarten;
5, staff in old people¡¯s home, old people-nursing center and child-care center;
6, workers in service trade, especially drivers and missionary in airway, railway and highway and staff in business and tourism and on;
7, people who is always on business or travel home or abroad.
IV, who can not inoculate with influenza vaccine?
A woman who is pregnant over 3 months should use influenza vaccine carefully. The following groups are forbidden to inoculate:
1 someone who is allergic to eggs or other composition of the vaccine;
2 sufferers with Guillain Barre Syndrome;
3 a woman who is pregnant less than 3 months;
4 sufferers with acute fever disease;
5 someone in the attack period of chronic diseases;
6 the one who is seriously allergic;
7 children under 12 years that cannot use Influenza Vaccine £¨Whole Virion£©;
8, someone the doctor considers not fit to inoculate.
V how many types of influenza vaccine and how to choose?
Presently there are three kinds of influenza vaccine in our country: £ºInfluenza Vaccine £¨Whole Virion£©, Splitted Influenza Virus Vaccine and Subunit Vaccine. Products made in China and imported are sold. Each vaccine contains three inactivate viruses, H1NI, H3N2 and B, or antigenic ingredients. There are slight differences in immunogenicity and side effects among the three vaccines.
But please remember that for children, the side effect of Influenza Vaccine £¨Whole Virion£©is heavy, so children under 12 years cannot inoculate with it.
VI, when do people inoculate with influenza vaccine? How about the effect?
1, in order to make the most use of vaccine, you¡¯d better receive inoculation in 1 to 2 months before the high-incidence season of influenza. The suggested time of inoculation in our country is from Septembers to Novembers. You need receive inoculation with influenza vaccine every year because strains in vaccine will change based on epidemic strains.
2, inoculation with influenza will protect people from influenza A & B to a certain degree but cannot prevent Avian Influenza.
VII which side effects will be caused by inoculation with influenza vaccine?
There is no infect in the ingredients of Influenza Vaccine £¨Whole Virion£©, Splitted Influenza Virus Vaccine and Subunit Vaccine, but coincident respiratory tract disease that has nothing with inoculation will happen after it.
Partial reactions: the injected place will ache and be red and swollen.
General reactions: someone will have fever and feel sick. Suit the remedy to the case and it can¡¯t affect the inoculation. The one who is highly allergic to egg white will have acute and extra allergic reactions.
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