67 Flu deaths in NC...

It's really bad this year. Our hospital/health system has seen 1,000 cases since Jan 1; WakeMed, in the 900s.

The flu kills people every year (last year in NC it was 218), but this year otherwise healthy people have died and been hospitalized in the ICU. It's no bueno.
 
I've had it since Saturday. But I'm working third shift so I already feel like a dog turd so I haven't seen much difference. Tamiflu must be a miracle drug.
 
Sounds like they missed the mark with the flu shot too. And apparently the downward slide is flu, pneumonia, sepsis, organ shutdown.
 
My wife tested negative for the flu 5 days before me and they told her it was just a virus. To be careful because there had been secondary infections popping up afterwards. Sure enough she was diagnosed with bronchitis 6 days later. I'm hoping I don't get the after effects.
 
My family has been dealing with it. My mother in law had it last week, I came down sick last Tuesday, my son Thursday. I am mending, back to work and such, but still feel only about 60-70%. My son is also getting better, but at 5 and with asthma problems he has struggled a bit more.

I had it REAL bad about two years ago...the "lay in bed and think you were dying" bad. This time it wasn't quite a severe for me. Slight chills, mild fever, weakness, headache.
 
chiefjason said:
Sounds like they missed the mark with the flu shot too. And apparently the downward slide is flu, pneumonia, sepsis, organ shutdown.
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They always miss the mark. The best efficacy I have seen in the literature is about 30%. Some years it is about 18%. But it is hard to make a vaccine for a virus that you cannot contain. So they engineer existing viruses to make the vaccine based on best guess of what the next season flu looks like. It mutates so quickly.
 
Last year in my family practice clinic in Winston, our flu season really didn't get ramped up until February. Incidently we'd only had one flu test positive prior to today and then we had two tests today positive.
What I have seen is a very nasty respiratory component to the other sickness that has been rampant in our Clinic. Persistent cough dry, over 3 or 4 weeks. Very resistant to any sort of antibiotic

Another issue we have seen is a GI bug with diarrhea. lasts maybe a day or two, with extreme headache and lethargy.
 
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but, but, but....zika

The media has been warning me for a year about Zika, how is it possible that the flu is killing people ?
 
Sneakymedic said:
Last year in my family practice clinic in Winston, our flu season really didn't get ramped up until February. Incidently we'd only had one flu test positive prior to today and then we had two tests today positive.
What I have seen is a very nasty respiratory component to the other sickness that has been rampant in our Clinic. Persistent cough dry, over 3 or 4 weeks. Very resistant to any sort of antibiotic

Another issue we have seen is a GI bug with diarrhea. lasts maybe a day or two, with extreme headache and lethargy.
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That sums mine up in but not in the same order. I started with a tickle in my throat then later that same day had diarrhea about 4 times then felt like I was going to vomit for about 5 hours and had some body aches while I worked all night. Went to bed and woke up with the same dry tickle in my chest and small persistent cough through the next day and went to the dr tested positive on for type A and slept for about 24 hours. But I've never felt really bad.
 
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I'm just getting over something. Woke up Sunday morning with a "funny feeling" in my throat and chest. By the end of the day, I had a low grade fever. Between then and last night, my fever rose to as high as 102.6 and back to normal. No congestion, but a small cough off and on throughout the day. I had was sluggish and had lower back pain. I didn't see a doctor, so I don't know what exactly kept me out of work this week.

There are only two people in my office. Me and an engineer. He was diagnosed with flu A last week.
 
All you guys stay away from me!!! In the past, every time I had flu it progressed to pneumonia. I am highly suseptible to pulmonary infection and at my age, that can be quite dangerous.

Seriously folks, get the shot and practice good hygeine through the next several weeks. This is no joke.
 
Nearly everyone I know is sick with a GI bug or the flu, so it's definitely making it's rounds here. My son came home sick from school last week and missed two days this week. He's all better now and we were lucky enough to contain it.

Since he's started school, it's one bug/cold after another. It goes from him, to his sister, to my wife. Luckily, I only get sick maybe once a year.
 
Miss Lily said:
All you guys stay away from me!!! In the past, every time I had flu it progressed to pneumonia. I am highly suseptible to pulmonary infection and at my age, that can be quite dangerous.

Seriously folks, get the shot and practice good hygeine through the next several weeks. This is no joke.
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Words of wisdom here. The shot varies in effectiveness from year to year but it is better than nothing. Good hygiene is key. Also if you are sick DO NOT GO TO WORK or PUBLIC PLACES if you can. More flu virus is passed in schools and the workplace from people toughing it out.
 
Chuckman said:
They always miss the mark. The best efficacy I have seen in the literature is about 30%. Some years it is about 18%. But it is hard to make a vaccine for a virus that you cannot contain. So they engineer existing viruses to make the vaccine based on best guess of what the next season flu looks like. It mutates so quickly.
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My understanding is that the vaccine virus can mutate during the making of the vaccine too. Flu virus is a nasty critter.
 
bigfelipe said:
How old were these 67 people..?
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They only track flu deaths of kids IIRC. But ages are kind of all over the place this year, and otherwise healthy people dieing. It's seeming like it's more than just old and young that have to worry this year.

If you have something more than a couple days and are laid up in bed, you need to get to the DR. The sedentary aspect of it lets stuff settle into your lungs. This develops pneumonia, which is bacterial. The bacteria, if left untreated or miss diagnosed, can produce enough of an infection to induce sepsis. When that hits your blood stream it can start to shut down organs. And that process can be just a couple of days. The couple deaths of healthy folks I've seen on the news and read about seemed to follow that track.
 
chiefjason said:
They only track flu deaths of kids IIRC. But ages are kind of all over the place this year, and otherwise healthy people dieing. It's seeming like it's more than just old and young that have to worry this year.

If you have something more than a couple days and are laid up in bed, you need to get to the DR. The sedentary aspect of it lets stuff settle into your lungs. This develops pneumonia, which is bacterial. The bacteria, if left untreated or miss diagnosed, can produce enough of an infection to induce sepsis. When that hits your blood stream it can start to shut down organs. And that process can be just a couple of days. The couple deaths of healthy folks I've seen on the news and read about seemed to follow that track.
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A couple deaths I know of where I work were adults. Not sure the percentage/ratio of kids to adults. The state (and CDC) track all flu deaths. The kids make the headlines because, well, they are kids, and it is very tragic (not being sarcastic or flippant).

Wanna know how most people catch the flu? It isn't being knowingly exposed to someone close to you. You open a door somewhere, or grab a grocery cart, or a gas pump....someone with the flu sneezed or coughed into their hands, and grabbed that 'thing' you are now holding. The flu virus are big, fat droplets and can only travel so far in the open, but can linger for a long time once the buggers land on something.
 
Yeah great! My first year on anti-rejection drugs so I have a compromised immune system!

Guess I’m not leaving the house...

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
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I'm 57. I have never had a flu shot. I don't plan on getting one in the near future. My sister says the government is putting stupid in the flu vaccine. IDK but it would explain a lot of the stupid that is going around. Maybe I'll get the vaccine when I get old but that's a long way off. I think lots of folks go overboard with all the hand sanitizer and stuff. They stay "too clean" and their body never develops immunity to bugs. I had this year's nasty bug at the first of December. Felt like crap for a week and then it was gone. If I had gotten the flu shot I would have felt like crap for 7 days and then it would be gone.
 
SPST said:
I'm 57. I have never had a flu shot. I don't plan on getting one in the near future. My sister says the government is putting stupid in the flu vaccine. IDK but it would explain a lot of the stupid that is going around. Maybe I'll get the vaccine when I get old but that's a long way off. I think lots of folks go overboard with all the hand sanitizer and stuff. They stay "too clean" and their body never develops immunity to bugs. I had this year's nasty bug at the first of December. Felt like crap for a week and then it was gone. If I had gotten the flu shot I would have felt like crap for 7 days and then it would be gone.
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I'm a little younger than you and have never had a flu shot either. Not on principle or anything just from being a busy, healthy guy that didn't want to waste a day at the Drs. Never had the flu either. Or at least not the version I hear about. And it seems like people that get the flue shot get the flu. My 73 year old Mom got sick as heck after getting the flu shot last year. My daughter got sick a couple years ago right after the shot. Couple neighbors had the same reaction last year. So this year it looks like we will all refrain. We are all somewhat young and healthy.

Edit: Full disclosure. I have had the worst cold this week I've had in years. But no fever or stomach bug.
 
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CZfool68 said:
I'm a little younger than you and have never had a flu shot either. Not on principle or anything just from being a busy, healthy guy that didn't want to waste a day at the Drs. Never had the flu either. Or at least not the version I hear about. And it seems like people that get the flue shot get the flu. My 73 year old Mom got sick as heck after getting the flu shot last year. My daughter got sick a couple years ago right after the shot. Couple neighbors had the same reaction last year. So this year it looks like we will all refrain. We are all somewhat young and healthy.

Edit: Full disclosure. I have had the worst cold this week I've had in years. But no fever or stomach bug.
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You cannot get the flu from the shot; it's a dead virus. You CAN with the nasal mist. What happens is that when your body starts making antibodies, the immune system can be lowered 'just enough' to get an infection of opportunity. Happens to about 3%.
 
Chuckman said:
You cannot get the flu from the shot; it's a dead virus. You CAN with the nasal mist. What happens is that when your body starts making antibodies, the immune system can be lowered 'just enough' to get an infection of opportunity. Happens to about 3%.
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Not sure what my Mom had, but my daughter did have the nasal mist to avoid the shot. Plus I am a science denier since the story changes all the time anyway. :p
 
SPST said:
I'm 57. I have never had a flu shot. I don't plan on getting one in the near future. My sister says the government is putting stupid in the flu vaccine. IDK but it would explain a lot of the stupid that is going around. Maybe I'll get the vaccine when I get old but that's a long way off. I think lots of folks go overboard with all the hand sanitizer and stuff. They stay "too clean" and their body never develops immunity to bugs. I had this year's nasty bug at the first of December. Felt like crap for a week and then it was gone. If I had gotten the flu shot I would have felt like crap for 7 days and then it would be gone.
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You can't develop an immunity to flu. Well, you can...by getting exposed to the flu virus. The whole "too clean" thing is largely a myth. yeah, over-washing/sanitizing will kill of 'good' bugs and leave you more exposed to 'bad' bugs, but increasing washing/sanitizing during periods of outbreaks and clusters decreased risk of transmission.

FWIW, I get the shot because I have to (required). If I didn't have to, I would still likely get it, only because I don't want to carry it to my kids. Me, my immune system is good enough that I'd get over it pretty quick. I will say I hate that employers mandate it; I think that is utterly stupid.
 
Get the flu shot every year, since it is free and only takes a minute since they come to our workplace. Also have not had the flu in the years I have been taking it, but that could just be coincidence. However I work in cube world and once something starts, it usually makes the complete round of the building. You can almost watch it progress down the aisles, from when the first person is out. Nobody here has had the flu yet, but every time someone sneezes or coughs, I pucker up a bit.
 
CZfool68 said:
Not sure what my Mom had, but my daughter did have the nasal mist to avoid the shot. Plus I am a science denier since the story changes all the time anyway. :p
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Yeah, the mist will do it. Live virus...can definitely give you a mild case.

I am a bit of a science denier in some respects, too....I don't get my kids every vaccine out there, so I am a bit of an anti-vaxer for some.
 
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I am to the point where I see a mofo coughing I detour around that airspace. I haven't ever been one to grab up door handles since everything in my office is nearly hands free anyhow. But the coughers get the stink eye.
Stay your arse at home and cough on yourself.

If you can be charged with attempted murder when you spit on an LEO and have a communicable disease, then I should be able to report an assault when a mofo comes coughing into work during flu season.
 
Remshooter said:
Get the flu shot every year, since it is free and only takes a minute since they come to our workplace. Also have not had the flu in the years I have been taking it, but that could just be coincidence. However I work in cube world and once something starts, it usually makes the complete round of the building. You can almost watch it progress down the aisles, from when the first person is out. Nobody here has had the flu yet, but every time someone sneezes or coughs, I pucker up a bit.
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LOL. No thanks, I get plenty of Mercury from the fish in my diet. The flu shot is a joke. It's the medical equivalent of the 'red wolf' program.

https://www.cdc.gov/flu/protect/vaccine/thimerosal.htm

"Thimerosal use in vaccines and other medical products has a record of being very safe. Data from many studies show no evidence of harm caused by the low doses of thimerosal in vaccines."

BAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

They said the same thing about Thalidomide, and Fentanyl at one time as well.
 
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Between 1996 and 2001, I had the flu 5 times that progressed to pneumonia 3 of those times. Of course I had kids in school that brought home everything in those years. That last incident in 2001, doc said "enough!" and told me to take flu and pneumonia shots annually. I have had little more than a couple of mild colds, of very short duration, since.

I'm a believer.
 
Ikarus1 said:
If you can be charged with attempted murder when you spit on an LEO and have a communicable disease, then I should be able to report an assault when a mofo comes coughing into work during flu season.
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There have been cases of people being arrested for having communicable diseases without vaccination or treatment (i.e., Tb), but that's a whole 'nother thread.
 
Chuckman said:
There have been cases of people being arrested for having communicable diseases without vaccination or treatment (i.e., Tb), but that's a whole 'nother thread.
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Well I refrain from giving out the ass whoopings on a sick man. But they will get a few choice words from me.
 
B00ger said:
My family has been dealing with it. My mother in law had it last week, I came down sick last Tuesday, my son Thursday. I am mending, back to work and such, but still feel only about 60-70%. My son is also getting better, but at 5 and with asthma problems he has struggled a bit more.

I had it REAL bad about two years ago...the "lay in bed and think you were dying" bad. This time it wasn't quite a severe for me. Slight chills, mild fever, weakness, headache.
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When you are first feeling better is actually the most infectious. The virus is seeking out new hosts. Be watchful of co-workers.
 
chiefjason said:
My understanding is that the vaccine virus can mutate during the making of the vaccine too. Flu virus is a nasty critter.
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I've read that the vaccine is only 10% effective this year.
I have not gotten the shot in years. I don't get the flu even when my wife and kids all have it. They even get the shot and still get the flu.
 
fishgutzy said:
I've read that the vaccine is only 10% effective this year.
I have not gotten the shot in years. I don't get the flu even when my wife and kids all have it. They even get the shot and still get the flu.
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It was about 10% effective in Australia, which is usually a good indicator of how it'll be here. I have seen local numbers ranging from 18%-25%. I think 25% is way to liberal but I don't have anything to base that on.
 
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