Early recognition of flu A symptoms will help parents handle and take their children to the hospital for timely examination, avoiding dangerous complications.
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| Early recognition of flu A symptoms will help parents handle and take their children to the hospital for timely examination, avoiding dangerous complications. (Source: Dan Tri) |
According to the National Children's Hospital ( Hanoi ), the number of influenza A cases has been increasing recently, especially in young children, many of whom have developed severe respiratory failure and required mechanical ventilation.
Dr. Nguyen Van Lam, Director of the Center for Tropical Diseases, National Children's Hospital, said that influenza A is an acute respiratory infection caused by seasonal influenza viruses. Common strains of influenza A virus are A(H1N1), A(H3N2)...
The disease is transmitted directly from sick people to healthy people through droplets when talking, coughing, sneezing, etc.
Symptoms of influenza A are difficult to distinguish from other respiratory diseases. Diagnosis and treatment must follow the instructions of the medical facility. Early recognition of symptoms of influenza A will help parents handle and take their children to the hospital for timely examination, avoiding dangerous complications.
According to Dr. Lam, some common symptoms of the disease include:
- Sore throat and cough.
- Sneezing, runny or stuffy nose.
- Fever and chills.
- Headache and body aches.
- Feeling tired.
- May be accompanied by abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhea...
Especially in children under 5 years old, children with chronic diseases, and obesity, if infected with influenza A virus, it is very easy to cause complications such as ear infections, bronchitis, pneumonia, and even encephalitis and death.
Usually the disease is mild, children recover after 5-7 days. However, for children under 5 years old, children with chronic diseases of the heart, lungs, kidneys, metabolic diseases, anemia or immunodeficiency..., influenza A can progress severely, causing dangerous complications.
Such as respiratory failure, pneumonia, otitis media, encephalitis, myocarditis, secondary infections, worsening the child's existing medical conditions, increasing the risk of death.
Warning signs that your child needs emergency hospitalization:
- Children have a continuous high fever of 39 degrees or higher, do not respond to antipyretics or have convulsions.
- Difficulty breathing, rapid breathing or irregular breathing.
- Severe chest pain or muscle pain.
- Purple lips and extremities, cold hands and feet.
- Children are lethargic, tired, have difficulty eating...
However, Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Tien Dung, former Head of the Department of Pediatrics, Bach Mai Hospital (Hanoi), also noted: "Parents should not be too worried, buying Tamiflu to take themselves. We should not consider fever as serious.
Severe influenza A or malignant influenza are cases with complications of pneumonia (difficulty breathing, oxygen breathing...), brain complications (convulsions, coma, confusion, lethargy...), however this rate is very low".
Not all cases of influenza require treatment with specific antiviral drugs such as Tamiflu. In cases with a high risk of severe progression, doctors will consider using specific antiviral drugs to reduce the risk of progression to severe.
Most cases of influenza can be cured on their own. Treatment is mainly symptomatic, helping to reduce the discomfort during the acute phase of the patient's infection. In addition, monitoring and detecting severe signs and the risk of severe progression so that the patient can be hospitalized for timely examination.
To prevent the disease, experts recommend that people pay attention to personal hygiene, cover their mouths when sneezing; wash their hands regularly with soap and clean water; clean their nose and throat daily with salt water; keep their bodies warm; eat nutritious foods and drink enough water; and limit contact with sick people or people suspected of having the disease.
Besides, vaccination is still the most effective preventive measure, helping to create a "shield" to protect children from influenza A virus as well as many other diseases, especially during the changing seasons and erratic weather.
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