>>> FLU SEASON IS UPON US AND ACCORDING TO THE MASSACHUSETTS
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH'S LATEST WEEKLY REPORT, FLU ACTIVITY HAS
INCREASED FROM MODERATE TO HIGH, WITH OFFICIALS ENCOURAGING
PEOPLE TO GET OUT AND GET A FLU SHOT IF THEY HAVEN'T ALREADY.
CAROLEE McGRATH SAT DOWN WITH DR.
ESTEBAN DELPILAR-MORALES, WHO WORKS IN THE INFECTIOUS
DISEASE DEPARTMENT AT BAYSTATE MEDICAL CENTER IN SPRINGFIELD,
TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT THE FLU THIS SEASON AND PNEUMONIA.
>> AND BASICALLY SO FAR THIS SEASON WE HAVEN'T HAD A WHOLE
LOT OF ACTIVITY.
MOST OF THE FLU CASES WE HAVE SEEN SO FAR HAVE BEEN ON THE
OUTPATIENT SIDE.
PEOPLE DON'T FEEL WELL, THEY GO TO PHYSICIAN, GET DIAGNOSED, GET
TREATED AND GO HOME.
WE HAVEN'T HAD A WHOLE LOT OF PATIENTS IN THE HOSPITAL, WE'VE
HAD TWO OR THREE SO FAR.
IT IS PRETTY EARLY IN THE SEASON SO FAR.
WE ARE KEEPING AN EYE ON THINGS.
>> THE SEASON IS LONG?
>> IT START OCTOBER OR NOVEMBER AND DOESN'T END UNTIL MARCH,
APRIL.
WE FOLLOW THE NUMBER OF CASES, YEAH, WE ARE DONE.
SOME SEASONS ARE LONGER THAN OTHERS.
>> NATIONALLY THERE HAS BEEN MORE FLU CASES, CORRECT?
>> NATIONALLY, THERE HAVE BEEN QUITE A FEW CASES IF YOU LOOK AT
THE LATEST DATA FROM THE CDC FROM LAST WEEK.
THEY UPDATE IT WEEKLY.
WE HAVE HAD ABOUT 30,000 PEOPLE TESTED SO FAR.
OF THOSE, ALMOST 7,000 HAVE BEEN TESTED POSITIVE.
SO THAT IS QUITE A LARGE NUMBER FOR THIS EARLY IN THE SEASON.
IT IS SOMEWHAT COMPARABLE TO THE NUMBER OF CASES WE HAD FOR
2017-2018, WHICH WAS A VERY BUSY SEASON.
>> OKAY.
WHEN YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT THE FLU, SOMETIMES IT CAN MIMIC A
DIFFERENT VIRUS.
WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS TYPICALLY PEOPLE WILL HAVE?
>> THE FLU IS SIMILAR TO RESPIRATORY VIRUS.
YOU ARE GOING TO GET A COUGH, YOU ARE GOING TO FEEL UNWELL.
THE DIFFERENCE IS IT USUALLY COMES IN ABRUPTLY, YOU HAVE
FAIRLY HIGH FEVERS AND THERE IS A LOT OF MUSCLE ACHES.
PATIENTS FEEL LIKE A TRUCK RAN THEM OVER, BUT NOT REALLY.
IT TENDS TO BE VERY ABRUPT.
A LOT OF PEOPLE WANT TO ASSOCIATE THE FLU WITH NAUSEA,
VOMITING, DIARRHEA, IN ADULTS IT IS NOT THAT OFTEN.
IN CHILDREN A FOURTH OF THEM GET GASTROINTESTINAL SYMPTOMS.
IF IT CAME ON QUICKLY, THINK OF THE FLU.
SOMETHING SLOWER, ONE OF THE OTHER RESPIRATORY SEASONS WE
HAVE.
>> WHEN YOU GO TO THE DOCTOR, THEY CAN TELL?
>> YOUR DOCTOR WILL ASK QUESTIONS TO DIFFERENTIATE.
SOMETIMES IT CAN BE DIFFICULT.
WE HAVE TESTING FOR IT FOLLOWING CDC RECOMMENDATIONS LOOKING FOR
THE GENETIC MATERIAL OF THE VIRUS.
IF IT IS THERE, WHETHER IT IS ALIVE OR DEAD WE CAN TELL YOU IT
IS THE FLU OR SOMETHING ELSE.
>> HOW DO YOU TREAT IT?
>> THE TREATMENT VARIES.
THERE ARE ONLY ORAL THREE DRUGS WE CAN USE.
USUALLY WE RESERVE IT FOR PATIENTS THAT COME INTO THE
DOCTOR AND HAVE SYMPTOMS FOR LESS THAN THREE DAYS.
THAT IS FOR YOUNG, HEALTHY ADULTS.
THERE ARE A CERTAIN GROUP OF PEOPLE WHO ARE AT HIGHER RISK OF
DEVELOPING COMPLICATIONS, OLDER THAN 65, KIDS YOUNGER
SPECIFICALLY YOUNGER THAN 2.
PEOPLE WHOSE IMMUNE SYSTEM IS NOT WORKING, YOU ARE ON
MEDICATIONS THAT SUPPRESS YOUR IMMUNE SYSTEM, WE WILL GIVE THEM
THE TREATMENT, WE ARE NOT GOING TO WAIT THE THREE DAYS.
IT DEPENDS WHAT GROUP YOU ARE IN.
>> OTHERWISE YOU HAVE TO KIND OF RIDE IT OUT AS FAR AS REST?
>> MOST OF THE TIME YOU BASICALLY HAVE TO TOUGH IT OUT.
YOUR OWN IMMUNE SYSTEM IS A VERY COMPETENT MACHINE AND WILL CLEAR
OUT THE VIRUS.
WE DO PROVIDE TREATMENT FOR PEOPLE AT HIGH RISK OF
COMPLICATIONS.
A HEALTHY ADULT, IF YOU GET THEM EARLY, YOU STILL GIVE THEM
TREATMENT BECAUSE IT REDUCES THE TIME THEY ARE SICK AND SPREADING
THE VIRUS AROUND.
>> OKAY.
AND TALK ABOUT THE CDC, THEIR REPORTS SHOW THAT THOUSANDS OF
PEOPLE DIE ACROSS THE COUNTRY EVERY YEAR FROM FLU-RELATED
ILLNESSES.
WHAT CAUSES THAT.
>> OH, YEAH.
WELL, IF YOU LOOK AT 2017-2018, 900,000 PEOPLE HOSPITALIZED
THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE SEASON.
THAT IS MORE BEDS THAN EVERY SINGLE HOSPITAL IN THE U.S.
80,000 PEOPLE DIED.
THAT IS BASICALLY ENOUGH TO FILL UP A FOOTBALL FIELD.
MOST OF THE TIME YOU HAVE A DEATH RELATED TO THE FLU IT
HAPPENS ONE OF TWO REASONS, THERE IS SO MUCH INFLAMMATION IN
YOUR LUNGS THAT YOUR LUNGS DO NOT DO YOUR JOB.
WHATEVER WE DO IN THE HOSPITAL WITH MEDICATIONS AND MACHINES,
YOUR BODY CAN'T COMPENSATE, THE PATIENT PASSES AWAY.
THE OTHER REASON IS YOUR BODY MIGHT BE ABLE TO HANDLE THE
INFLAMMATION OR GET RID OF THE VIRUS, THE IRRITATION IN THE
LUNG MAKES IT EASIER FOR YOU DO GET BACTERIA, GET SEPTIC AND DIE
FROM BACTERIA.
>> COULD THAT BE PNEUMONIA?
>> IN THOSE SETTINGS THAT IS CLASSIFIED AS BACTERIAL
PNEUMONIA.
A LOT OF PEOPLE DON'T REALIZE IT FLU IS A TYPE OF PNEUMONIA.
>> I DON'T THINK PEOPLE DO REALIZE IT.
WHEN WE TALK ABOUT PNEUMONIA, WHAT HAVE YOU SEEN FOR CASES
THIS YEAR AND MOST VULNERABLE?
>> FOR CASES IT IS A TYPICAL YEAR.
PNEUMONIA IS THE SECOND MOST REASON FOR PEOPLE TO BE
HOSPITALIZED IN THE U.S. IT IS THE MOST COMMON CAUSE OF
DEATHS FROM INFECTIONS FROM PEOPLE WHO DO GO TO THE
HOSPITAL.
WE DO SEE IT EVERY DAY.
CERTAIN GROUPS ARE AT HIGHER RISK, ADULTS OLDER THAN 65,
CHILDREN YOUNGER THAN 5, ARE MORE LIKELY GETTING
COMPLICATIONS WHEN THEY GET PNEUMONIA.
WE WANT TO FOCUS ON THEM BEING OKAY.
ASTHMATICS, PEOPLE WITH COPD, PEOPLE ARE RESPIRATORY PROBLEMS,
IMMUNO SUPPRESSES YOU, HIV, DIABETES.
>> TELL ME ABOUT PREVENTION.
>> A LOT OF BACTERIAL FROM PNEUMONIA ARE NOT TRANSFERABLE
TO PERSON THE TO PERSON.
THE FLU IS.
IF YOU KNOW SOMEONE IS SICK, SOCIAL DISTANCING.
YOU HAVE TO GO TO THE STORE TO BUY GROCERIES AND GO TO WORK,
YOU ARE GOING TO EXPOSE YOURSELF TO PEOPLE.
MAKE SURE YOU ARE WASHING YOUR HANDS.
YOU TOUCH YOUR FACE ANYWHERE BETWEEN 2,000 AND 3,000 TIMES A
DAY.
THAT IS A LOT OF TIMES.
IT IS VERY EASY TO SEE SOMEONE COULD HAVE COUGHED HERE A COUPLE
OF HOURS AGO, TOUCH MY NOSE, TOUCH MY EYE AND I CAN GET
INFECTED.
>> THAT'S IT?
WOW.
>> YOU WANT TO MAKE SURE YOU WASH YOUR HANDS.
WE PREFER ALCOHOL-BASED RUBS.
THE ALCOHOL KILLS THE BACTERIA.
CARRY THE PUREL THING IN YOUR POCKET.
15 SECONDS OF RUBBING YOUR HANDS, GETTING IN YOUR NAILS,
I'M TALKING TO YOU, DOING IT AND PROTECTING MYSELF AND MY FAMILY.
>> AND FLU SHOT AS WELL?
>> THAT IS THE THIRD PART.
FLU SHOTS AND OTHER VACCINATIONS THEY SHOULD BE UPDATED.
CHILDREN, ARE THEY FOLLOWING RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE POWERS
THAT BE, WHEN YOU ARE BORN, YOU START GETTING YOUR PNEUMONIA
VACCINATION, ESPECIALLY FOR PNEUMOCOCCUS.
THE FLU SHOT YOU NEED TO GET EVERY YEAR.
SOME PEOPLE SAY, I ALWAYS GET SICK WHEN I GET THE FLU SHOT.
NOT REALLY.
YOU MIGHT HAVE CAUGHT ANOTHER RESPIRATORY VIRAL INFECTION.
THE FLU SHOT IS MADE NOT FROM THE VIRUS, BUT A PIECE OF THE
VIRUS.
YOU ARE NOT GOING TO GET SICK FROM THAT.