Influenza Treatments and Medications

In this article:

• Overview

• Diagnosis

• Treatments

• Medications

• Side effects

• Home remedies

• FAQs

• Resources

In this article

• Overview
• Diagnosis
• Treatments
• Medications
• Side effects
• Home remedies
• FAQs
• Resources

Flu. It’s that yearly ritual of coughing, sniffling, and calling in sick. We all know the drill. Take a bunch of over-the-counter medicines, hunker down in bed, and wait for the bug to run out of steam. For some people, though, it’s not that easy. Influenza can sometimes advance to a serious and even life-threatening condition. It pays, then, to go into every flu season knowing what flu is, what to expect, and what to do.

Influenza is a common viral infection that attacks over a billion people annually. The flu virus infects the nose, throat, air passages, and lungs. Influenza comes in many different types, called strains, and can infect both animals and humans. The virus is constantly changing, so the immunity developed is usually obsolete for the next round of seasonal flu.

Influenza has four different major strains, but only three infect humans: influenza A, B, C. Healthcare professionals worry about the A and B strains which are responsible for most illnesses caused by flu. Every year, these two flu strains send about half a million people to the hospital (in the U.S.) and between 12,000 to 60,000 people to their graves. Influenza C, on the other hand, is rarely encountered and causes only mild infections.

On occasion, influenza strains that infect animals cross over into people, including avian (bird) flu and swine flu. These strains can be very dangerous and can cause severe illness.

Influenza is highly contagious and can easily spread from person-to-person in water droplets or aerosols expelled by sneezing, coughing, or talking. The virus can also be acquired by touching contaminated surfaces, objects, or bodily secretions and then touching the nose or mouth.

For some, flu infections resolve without treatment after three to seven days from the initial symptoms, but people can be contagious for up to a week later.

Other people, however, are at risk for more severe infections that can cause serious complications. These include seniors, young children, immune-compromised people, pregnant women, and people with asthma, lung disease, heart disease, or chronic medical conditions.

Pneumonia is the most common complication and the overwhelming reason flu patients end up in the hospital. Other serious flu complications include inflammation of the brain (encephalitis), inflammation of the heart (myocarditis), and Reye’s syndrome, a severe inflammatory condition that can strike children with a viral infection. In some patients the infection triggers a very strong inflammatory response, known as sepsis, which can result in death.

During flu season, most flu cases are diagnosed based on the symptoms, which include

Patients with these more severe symptoms should seek emergency medical care:

For patients at a higher risk for complications or those with severe symptoms, healthcare providers can perform a rapid test to confirm the flu diagnosis. Depending on which rapid test is utilized, there may be false negative results. This is especially true of rapid tests which detect antigen, so the results of this test specifically should always be interpreted in the context of other information available to the healthcare professional such as circulating seasonal influenza, time of onset of symptoms, quality of specimen obtained, and time from specimen collection to processing. Antiviral medication should be started ASAP to be effective, and these tests, though not perfect, can be performed on-site and deliver results in 30 minutes. These rapid tests are generally recommended for use in patients in the community.

For patients requiring hospitalization, it is recommended to definitively diagnose influenza with a PCR, or polymerase chain reaction, test. These tests identify scraps of the influenza virus, and are usually specific enough to discriminate between influenza A and B viruses, sometimes even further into the various subtypes of influenza A. The likelihood of a result being a false negative is very low, and PCR tests can usually yield results in a couple of hours.

Chest X-rays or a CT scan may be required if the infection has advanced to pneumonia.

For most, flu winds down in a few days without treatment. Antiviral medications may be recommended as they’ve demonstrated the ability to shorten the duration of viral shedding by an infected person, which can help control potential spread and shorten the duration of symptoms. In some cases, however, complications may require hospitalization in addition to antiviral treatment.

Antiviral medications, however, are most effective when given within two days of the onset of symptoms. There is extensive guidance that supports 2 of these medications—oseltamivir and zanamivir— beprescribed to high-risk patients to prevent infection preemptively or after a known exposure.

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, so healthcare professionals all agree that people should be vaccinated before the start of flu season, as able. This will also help prevent spread and exposure to vulnerable patients who cannot receive vaccination, such as infants less than six months of age. Once the infection hits, however, there is no “best” medication for the flu. Rest and drinking fluids usually do the trick. Antiviral medications only help when the infection becomes a serious threat.

Flu vaccines are very safe. Most people, though, will experience some minor side effects. Injection site reactions, such as pain or redness, are the most common. However, many people just feel bad after the shot. Headache, low fever, nausea, muscle aches—these are fairly common. No-one, however, actually catches flu from the vaccine.

Over-the-counter symptom relief products are also very safe, when taken as recommended. Some healthcare providers don’t recommend combination drugs, instead advising taking medications targeted to the symptoms experienced. This helps prevent taking unneeded medications, following appropriate dosing schedules, and avoiding side effects. All over-the-counter medications should be used as directed. More is never better. Also, over-the-counter flu medications should not be given to a child under 12 unless under the advice of a physician.

Antiviral drugs do not usually cause serious side effects. The most common side effects involve digestive system problems such as nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Patients who take zanamivir may also experience cough, swollen sinuses, runny nose, or sore throat likely attributed to its inhaled route of administration. The most serious side effects are skin reactions and psychiatric problems, such as delusions, especially in children and older patients. These, however, are very rare and the benefit of treatment for the flu outweighs the very low risk of these side effects.

Because most flu cases are treated at home, there are more flu home remedies than can be counted. None of them actually affects the virus, but many home remedies effectively relieve symptoms. Dietary supplements and alternative medicines can’t hurt, but claims made for zinc, vitamin C, echinacea, black tea, and apple cider vinegar have not been demonstrated to shorten flu infections. Instead, keep to the basics, and the body will do the rest.