The symptoms of regular human flu include fever, cough, sore throat, body aches, headache, chills and fatigue.
If you suspect you have the flu but don’t think you need immediate attention, call your regular doctor or healthcare provider and make an appointment for a visit; otherwise, you may consider some of the emergency signs below to see if you need immediate care.
What To Do If You Get Sick
According to the Oregon office of Public Health, if you get sick with flu-like symptoms, you should stay home, avoid what you would consider normal activity such as shopping, travel or social gatherings, get plenty of rest and drink lots of clear fluids such as water.
It’s also important that you continue to watch for any developing emergency signs that may determine if you need to seek immediate medical attention.
Signs Emergency Care May Be Needed
If you are ill and experience any of the following warning signs, you should seek emergency medical care.
In children, emergency warning signs that need urgent medical attention include:
- Fast breathing or trouble breathing;
- Bluish skin color;
- Not drinking enough fluids;
- Not waking up or not interacting;
- Being so irritable that the child does not want to be held;
- Flu-like symptoms improve but then return with fever and a worse cough;
- Fever with a rash.
In adults, emergency warning signs that need urgent medical attention include:
- Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath;
- Pain or pressure in the chest or abdomen;
- Sudden dizziness;
- Confusion;
- Severe or persistent vomiting.
Stay Hydrated
The flu virus causes the body to lose water through fever and sweating. Signs of dehydration include weakness, fainting, dry mouth, dark concentrated urine, low blood pressure or a fast pulse when standing or sitting down.
To prevent dehydration, it’s very important for a person with the flu to drink lots of fluids, even as much as eight to 12 glasses per day.
Seeking Immediate Care for the Flu
If you have a severe illness or fever or difficulty breathing, or you think that you require immediate medical attention, call 911 or go to your nearest emergency department. If you feel you need to see a doctor regarding your flu symptoms, but don’t have health insurance or a regular doctor, seek a nearby, low-cost clinic.
How Long is a Person Contagious With the Flu Virus?
People infected with seasonal flu shed the virus and may be able to infect other people from one day before getting sick until up to seven days after the initial infection. People who get sick should stay at home for 24 hours after their fever has broke.
Taking Antiviral Drugs to Treat the Flu
Antiviral drugs, such as Tamiflu, are prescription medicines that fight the flu by not allowing the virus to reproduce in the body.
If sick, a person may want to take antiviral drugs within 48 hours of the first flu symptoms to lessen the severity of the sickness. For prescription medications such as antiviral drugs, contact your healthcare provider.
Reference:
Center for Disease Control and Prevention, October 21, 2009.
Oregon office of Public Health, Acute and Communicable Disease Prevention, Frequently Asked Questions, October 21, 2009.
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