Nghe An rapidly increasing number of children testing positive for influenza A

Patient arrivalexamination and treatment increaseHigh

On the morning of December 21, patient NHQC (35 months old, in Hung Nguyen district) came to Nghe An Obstetrics and Pediatrics Hospital with symptoms of high fever, severe cough, and crying. Doctors performed a quick test and the result was that NHQC had influenza A. He needed to be hospitalized for treatment due to pneumonia and flu infection, leading to respiratory failure.

Similarly, Ms. NPT also took PKN (3 years old, in Vinh city) to the doctor when she discovered that her child had abnormal signs of health. Ms. NPT said: Before the onset of high fever, her daughter vomited continuously. She was dehydrated, very tired, and stopped eating. The family gave her fever reducer but it only worked for a short time before the fever returned.

When testing and knowing the cause of her child's illness was influenza A virus, Ms. NPT determined that the source of her child's illness could be from her preschool classmates, because before that, some children in the class had gotten sick and had to stay home from school.

Recently, the rate of children with influenza A coming to the hospital for examination and treatment has increased. On average, each day at the Examination Department, Nghe An Obstetrics and Pediatrics Hospital detects about 100 cases of influenza, not including the number of children with influenza detected at home thanks to home-bought test kits.

Information from the Department of Tropical Diseases - the unit treating children with influenza A: Starting from December, the number of children admitted to the department for influenza treatment increased rapidly. On average, the department receives 100-130 inpatients per day. Of these, it is very worrying that up to 80% are children infected with influenza A virus. In particular, the department has recorded many cases of co-infection with many types of viruses such as RSV, COVID; complications of pneumonia, bronchitis, otitis media, even meningitis, myocarditis, causing the children's condition to worsen.

Proactively prevent the spread of disease

Specialist Doctor 2 Vo Manh Hung - Head of the Department of Tropical Diseases, Nghe An Obstetrics and Pediatrics Hospital said: Seasonal flu is an acute respiratory infection caused by the influenza virus. The disease occurs every year, usually in the winter - spring. The disease is transmitted directly from sick people to healthy people through small droplets when talking, coughing, sneezing. In Vietnam, the common viruses that cause seasonal flu are influenza A/H3N2, influenza B and A/H1N1.

Seasonal influenza is usually benign but can also have more serious and dangerous complications in people with chronic cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, people with immunodeficiency, the elderly (> 65 years old), children (< 5 years old) and pregnant women. The disease can cause complications such as severe pneumonia, multiple organ failure, worsening of underlying diseases leading to death. Some complications caused by influenza A virus can cause respiratory failure, high fever, convulsions, pneumonia, encephalitis, bronchitis, otitis media, etc.

“The most serious complication of influenza A is respiratory failure with symptoms such as shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, etc. leading to pneumonia, lack of oxygen in the body leading to death. Therefore, it is necessary to be careful to prevent the disease in young children and pay close attention to monitoring during the care of children with the flu to avoid complications. When the patient has severe symptoms, such as wheezing, difficulty breathing, convulsions, etc., it is necessary to take them immediately to a medical facility, especially not to self-treat with antibiotics or antiviral drugs,” Dr. Vo Manh Hung stated.

Faced with the rapid spread of influenza A, doctors recommend: Influenza A often spreads rapidly, especially in adults and children who have not been vaccinated. Faced with the current increase in influenza A patients, to proactively prevent the disease, people need to practice good personal hygiene: Wash hands regularly, wear masks when going out, avoid crowds, cover mouth and nose when coughing or sneezing; when having a fever, stay home for at least 24 hours after it has gone away to avoid infecting others.

The best way to prevent influenza A is to get a flu vaccine every year. Each flu shot can protect against 3-4 different types of influenza viruses. High-risk groups should get a flu vaccine every year before the flu season, first of all the elderly and children from 6 months to 5 years old, especially from 6 months to 2 years old./.