Iowa Hit Hard by Flu

Nov. 17--OTTUMWA -- The flu is hitting the state harder than nearly any other, and complications have already killed two Iowans.

The Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH) announced two influenza-related deaths Monday. The two middle-aged men were from central Iowa.

"With influenza, you know you are sick; you'll feel like you were hit by a freight train," said said Lynelle Diers, director of the Wapello County Public Health Department.

A message sent out Monday by the state Health Department read, "The flu comes on suddenly and may cause severe illness or even death in people such as the very young or very old, or those who have underlying health conditions. Both the current influenza deaths in Iowa occurred in individuals with underlying health conditions."

But that doesn't mean you're restricted to a hospital bed. A lot of the population has challenges that can worsen the flu: "Immune-compromised individuals [and] individuals who have other illnesses: asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, cancer treatments, diabetes."

The best way to get rid of the flu, she said, is to never get it. The number-one recommendation for nearly everyone, she said, is the influenza vaccine.

"But," she said, "people need to realize it's another two weeks before the antigens really work and you're protected. It's not too late [to get vaccinated]."

If you do get sick and spot symptoms in the first 48 hours, anti-viral meds can decrease the severity or duration of the flu. Otherwise, Diers said, even a healthy adult is going to be too sick to go to work for 10 days.

We all, Diers said, need to protect one another.

"Cover your cough [or sneeze], because that's how it's spread -- and it is very contagious," she said. "Use your inner arm, so you don't spread germs or get them on your hands. Influenza stays alive on surfaces for many hours."

Not everyone who has the flu -- and up to one in 10 Iowans could have it this year -- will wash their hands. So it's important to disinfect places a sick person touched around the home and the office. That includes the well-known culprits, like doorknobs and telephones. But there are places that can use disinfecting that aren't so obvious: the handle on the microwave, the TV remote, the computer keyboard.

"And stay home from work if you're sick," Diers said.

But what does sick from influenza look like?

"Influenza means respiratory; we're not talking about vomiting and diarrhea: aches, pains, fevers, headache, cough," said Diers.

Complication of pneumonia with flu may cause 1,000 deaths per year in Iowa, says the Iowa Health Department.

A notice on its Web page states, "The most current surveillance [as of Monday] shows three states in the nation have the highest estimated influenza activity -- Iowa, Oregon and Rhode Island."

"It doesn't get reported on. [Word] doesn't get out," Diers said. "People should know. Unfortunately, we're unable to predict who is going to be very ill or die."

Doctors are not required to notify IDPH each time a patient tests positive for influenza.

IDPH Medical Director Dr. Patricia Quinlisk, said, "These deaths are an unfortunate reminder the flu virus is circulating in Iowa and does have the potential to cause severe illness and death."

To contact reporter Mark Newman, email mnewman@ottumwacourier.com or follow his Twitter page @couriermark.

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