Flu and Prevention

Raining season comes, mean seasonal flu is arrive as well. Flu one of the most leading cause among the disease that we always see in our everyday life.
It really easy to transmit from person to person with just a little single cough.

There too many kind of flu viruses such like H1N1, H5N1... so on and so far. But non of those viruses can cause the disease. If you still remember, H1N1, cause the swine flu when people direct contact to pathogen.

 So, what is seasonal FLU? Seasonal flu mean flu that always can happen when the season arrive. Usually, in Cambodia, the seasonal flue begin from July to February every year.

Cambodia is one of the country that located in Northern Hemisphere, so the flu disease could be different from Southern Hemisphere flu disease. This two hemisphere different from each other about season and viruses that cause the disease as well.

So, what's the different between common-cold and flu?
This question is one of the most common question that every people around the world usually ask to HCPs (Health Care Professional). If we compare this two kind of diseases, we'll see the differences.

Common-cold is just a simple cold or a simple disease that can occur in a simple easy way. It also cause by viruses but the symptom, usually, not so severe. Common-cold can occur every time when our immune system is weak. But all those symptoms can be cure by using simple common-cold medicine or it can be cure by itself, but it remain time to cure it, usually in 7 days.

Flu or Seasonal flu this kind is not just so simple like common-cold does. Flu always cause by viruses, stronger than common-cold viruses. The symptoms are quite the same but it much more severe than common-cold and can lead to the death if we could cure it. There is no specific medicine for all kind of flu or common-cold by the way, but we can prevent them by getting ourself vaccinated.

What are the symptoms?

Headache, fever and dizzies, vomiting, lost of appetite, sore throat and difficult to breath are the most common symptoms of flu or common-cold. There is not specific medicine can cure it. Patients will need to use more medicine, more anti-biotic and some multivitamin to cure themselves. But usually, those symptoms will disappear in at least 7 days.

Can it be prevented?
Flu vaccines can prevent all common viruses that causes the flu and it's specific for each viruses. Usually in Cambodia, the flu vaccine will be available in the market from the late September to late February. People can get themselves vaccinated when they see the needs. WHO has recommend the people should protect themselves by get themselves vaccinated.

So, why don't we let ourselves to get the flu viruses while the preventing vaccine available? Get yourself vaccinated before the flu season comes. Vaccine maybe expensive, but it will be cheap if you compare to the medicines that you use to cure the flu. One time shot, can prevent for one year period only.