How to prevent the high incidence of influenza？ The CDC has a reminder!

All-media reporter Ruan Lu Intern Lu Qun Correspondent Wang Yijun

At present, the weather is getting colder and the temperature difference between day and night is large, which is in the high incidence season of influenza.

Huang Li, deputy director of the Institute of Infectious Disease Prevention and Control of the State Center for Disease Control and Prevention, and Li Fuqiang, an expert on planned immunization, warmly reminded that to prevent seasonal high-incidence respiratory infectious diseases such as influenza, we should make preparations in advance, raise awareness of disease prevention and strengthen health protection.

What is the flu?

Influenza (hereinafter referred to as "influenza") is an acute respiratory infectious disease caused by influenza virus, which is harmful to human health. It can be divided into four types: A, B, C and D. Seasonal influenza viruses include subtype A H3N2, subtype A H1N1 (pdm09), strain B Victoria and strain B Yamagata.

According to Huang Li, the flu mainly manifests as fever, headache, general malaise and other symptoms, and the body temperature can reach 39~40 degrees Celsius. Children’s fever is usually higher than that of adults, and the symptoms may include chills, chills, aching muscles and joints all over the body, fatigue, accompanied by loss of appetite, etc., as well as sore throat, cough, nasal congestion, runny nose, retrosternal discomfort, facial flushing, conjunctival congestion and so on.

Influenza is mainly spread by droplets such as sneezing and coughing. Influenza virus survives in the air for about half an hour. It can be infected by direct or indirect contact with oral cavity, nasal cavity, eyes and other mucous membranes, and it can also be infected by touching articles infected by the virus. In crowded, closed and poorly ventilated places, influenza may also spread in the form of aerosol.

People are generally susceptible to influenza virus, and most of them are self-limited. Some patients will have complications, which can develop to severe illness or even death. The elderly over 65 years old, children under 5 years old, especially children under 2 years old, pregnant women and patients with basic diseases are high-risk groups of influenza and need special attention.

Huang Li reminded that maintaining good personal hygiene habits is an important means to prevent respiratory infectious diseases such as influenza. For example, wash your hands frequently, keep indoor ventilation, try to avoid going to crowded places, have a balanced diet, exercise, and minimize rubbing your eyes, nose and mouth when you are in public places. You should also pay attention to regular work and rest, balanced nutrition, avoid overwork, and maintain your immunity. It is best to wear a mask when you go to a medical institution for medical treatment.

"In addition, the most effective means to prevent influenza is to inject influenza vaccine, especially for key populations. Annual influenza vaccination can significantly reduce the risk of influenza and serious complications." Huang Li said.

It is recommended to vaccinate against influenza in time.

According to Li Fuqiang, according to the Technical Guide for Vaccination of Influenza Vaccine in China (2023-2024) recently issued by the China Center for Disease Control and Prevention, annual vaccination with influenza vaccine is an effective means to prevent influenza, which can effectively reduce the risk of influenza and serious complications among the vaccinators. Suggest ≥ People who are 6 months old and have no vaccination contraindications should be vaccinated against influenza, especially the following key groups are recommended to give priority to vaccination:

1 medical personnel, including clinical rescue personnel, public health personnel, health and quarantine personnel, etc.;

2. Participants and security personnel in large-scale activities;

3. Vulnerable people and employees in old-age care institutions, long-term care institutions, welfare homes and other crowd gathering places;

4. People in key places, such as kindergartens, teachers and students in primary and secondary schools, and detainees and staff in prison institutions;

Family members and caregivers of infants under 5.6 months old and pregnant women;

6. Other people at high risk of influenza, including elderly people aged 60 and above, children aged 6 months to 5 years, and patients with chronic diseases.

Usually, antibodies with protective level can be produced after 2~4 weeks of influenza vaccination, and it is best to complete the vaccination before the peak of influenza epidemic in autumn and winter. In the same influenza epidemic season, people who have completed the whole vaccination according to the vaccination procedures do not need to be vaccinated again.

Li Fuqiang introduced that influenza vaccine is a non-immunization program vaccine, and residents can be informed, voluntary and self-funded. At present, influenza vaccines used in China are mainly divided into two categories: inactivated influenza virus vaccine and live attenuated influenza virus vaccine. The influenza vaccines approved for marketing in China include trivalent inactivated vaccine (IIV3), trivalent inactivated vaccine (LAIV3) and tetravalent inactivated vaccine (IIV4), all of which can effectively prevent influenza virus infection. Residents can choose one influenza vaccine by themselves. At present, there are sufficient reserves of influenza vaccine in vaccination clinics all over the state.

Because influenza virus is easy to mutate, it is necessary to get flu vaccine every year. Like many other vaccines, influenza vaccination does not necessarily mean that you will not get the flu, but it can alleviate the symptoms after getting the flu, significantly reduce the risk of developing into a serious illness, and avoid developing into a serious illness and death.

Experts from the State Center for Disease Control and Prevention reminded that residents who care for their health can get the flu vaccine as soon as possible, especially those who have children, pregnant women, the elderly and other key personnel at home, and should take the initiative to vaccinate the whole family as soon as possible to build a family immune barrier to protect themselves and their families from the flu. You can go to the nearest community health service center (community health service station), the vaccination clinic of township hospitals and the health department of the hospital for vaccination. You can also make an online appointment through WeChat WeChat official account of Hubei Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention, and make an appointment in advance for the vaccination clinic and vaccination time, which is more time-saving and convenient.

How do students and parents take precautions?

The flu is coming, how can students and parents prevent it? Huang Li suggested that personal protection is the most important, and ventilation and disinfection should not be forgotten.

Students and parents need to do personal protection, wear masks, wash their hands frequently, pay attention to cough etiquette, try to avoid going to crowded places and avoid close contact with people with respiratory symptoms. If family members have respiratory symptoms, they should rest at home, observe their health, go to work and attend classes without illness, and wear masks when they are in close contact.

Children’s three meals a day need balanced nutrition, appropriately increase high-quality protein such as meat, eggs and milk, and eat more fruits rich in vitamin C. Ensure the length of children’s sleep, and adequate sleep has a positive impact on enhancing physical fitness. Primary school students should sleep 10 hours a day, junior high school students 9 hours and senior high school students 8 hours.

Always ventilate your home and keep the environment clean. Open the window for ventilation 2~3 times a day, with no less than 30 minutes each time. If it is inconvenient to open the window for ventilation, mechanical ventilation can be carried out with the help of an exhaust fan. After patients appear in the family, the surfaces of environmental objects contacted by patients can be disinfected with chlorine-containing disinfectant containing 250 mg/liter of available chlorine, or wiped with disinfectant wipes, and the surfaces of small items can be wiped with 75% alcohol.

Huang Li stressed that in addition, students and parents should be vaccinated as soon as possible. For high-risk groups such as young children who have not been vaccinated with influenza, vaccination as soon as the influenza vaccine is available can play a good preventive and protective role.

How do schools and kindergartens prevent it?

Li Fuqiang suggested that schools and kindergartens should do a good job in health monitoring, strengthen ventilation and disinfection, and build a strong immune defense line during the high-incidence season of influenza.

Schools and kindergartens should strengthen morning and afternoon inspections and full-day observation. Strengthen the registration system of absence due to illness, grasp the reasons of students’ absence, and find and report early. When influenza cases occur, patients should be allowed to rest at home to reduce the spread of the disease.

Schools should take advantage of students’ recess, physical education class, after school and other periods to strengthen classroom ventilation, so as to keep the classroom air circulating and fresh. Every morning, noon and evening, windows should be opened for ventilation, and the ventilation time should not be less than 30 minutes each time. Every day after school, the key places in the classroom should be cleaned and disinfected regularly. Nursery institutions should clean and disinfect students’ toys and other items every day.

Schools should publicize influenza prevention knowledge to teachers and students through radio, LED screens, blackboard newspapers, billboards, leaflets and lectures, do a good job in health education, help teachers and students develop good personal habits such as washing hands frequently, wearing masks and coughing etiquette, and improve their self-prevention ability. In addition, during the epidemic of respiratory infectious diseases such as influenza, schools should try to reduce or avoid large-scale gatherings and other collective activities to reduce the risk of transmission.