ST GEORGE and Sutherland Shire residents are right in thinking that an unusually high number of people have a cold or the flu.
NSW Health figures for the week ending May 25 showed that emergency department admissions to critical care units for influenza-like illness and pneumonia increased above the usual range.
Bronchiolitis presentation rates to emergency departments continued to be high, with respiratory syncytial virus the most common respiratory virus identified by GPs and emergency departments.
Most people recover from flu after a few days but it can be fatal in the elderly or in those who have a chronic disease.
St George Division of General Practice executive director Klaus Stelter said an influenza vaccination each year provided the best protection against the illness.
He said vaccines needed to be given each year because flu viruses were always changing.
He said the current vaccine included the newly identified H3 influenza virus.
"It is a little investment for a big gain," Dr Stelter said.
"The flu virus is very clever and it continually mutates into different strains."
Dr Stelter said antibiotics should not be prescribed for viral illnesses like flu, but might be needed if there was a secondary bacterial infection.
"The flu is spread by particles sneezed or coughed into the air," he said.
"Basic things like washing your hands are vital in preventing its spread."
The Ambulance Service of NSW is urging people who have flu — which is highly infectious in the first five days — to reduce its spread by avoiding public transport and staying at home from work or school.
The Influenza Specialist Group said while it was impossible to predict how bad the flu season would be, it was wise to "expect the worst".
Group chairman, Dr Alan Hampson, said there had been an increase in the number of flu-related deaths among healthy Australians in the past few years.
For week ending May 25:
- 974 tests for respiratory viruses were performed by GPs and emergency departments in NSW;
- The proportion of those samples that tested positive for influenza were markedly higher than the average for the same historical period;
- Total emergency department presentations for respiratory, fever and unspecified infections rose and were above the usual range for this time of year, particularly in metropolitan Sydney;
- 51 per cent of patients presenting to emergency departments with influenza-like illnesses were aged 25 to 44.
PROTECT HEALTH
By Trish Koutrodimos
The Ambulance Service of NSW says winter is the busiest time of year for ambulances and hospitals, and urged people to take basic steps to protect their health.
‘‘Influenza is highly infectious in the first five days, so if you have the flu you can help reduce the spread of infection by not travelling on public transport and staying away from work or school,’’ a spokesman said.
Pharmacists in southern Sydney also reported many customers were seeking help dealing with flu symptoms.
Tony Quach, at Soul Pattinson, Menai, said symptoms were more severe than last year.
“It’s a viral infection, not a bacterial infection,” he said. “Antibiotics are only effective against bacterial infections”.
Pharmacist Peter Magdapoulos at Priceline Pharmacy, Hurstville Central, said the best way to treat flu was to treat the symptoms.
He prescribes vitamin C, zinc and olive leaf extract to boost the immune system.
“One thing you can’t get from the pharmacy is rest.’’
