What is the difference between swine flu and regular flu

The infection takes hold when the person touches their mouth or the mucous membrane of their nose or eyes with their hand. Diligently washing hands will therefore reduce the risk of contact transmission. Infection is possible when a person inhales the droplets emitted by anyone nearby who coughs or sneezes without wearing a mask. Thus, one basic way to avoid the flu is to stay away from crowds of people at times and in places where the flu is going around. Please diligently wash your hands before preparing food or engaging in other activities.

When washing your hands, wash thoroughly for at least 15 seconds using soap, being sure to wash your wrists and between your fingers as well. After washing, dry your hands thoroughly by wiping them on a clean towel.

Those wishing to be examined should wear a mask in order not to pass the infection on to others. Those who are pregnant or who have existing medical conditions are thought to be at high risk of serious illness, so these people should seek early detection, and rapid cure. If we shake hands with an infected person who has just wiped their nose and then we rather quickly rub our nose or eyes with our own hand, then we could get the flu. So, good hand washing does play a role in diminishing the spread of the disease.

Other than hand washing and covering my mouth if I sneeze or cough, what can I do to take care of myself and others? If you are ill, stay home. Control your sneezes and coughs. If you cough into your hand, remember the virus could be live on your hand at least for a few minutes, so wash your hands before touching anyone else. If you get symptoms suggesting the flu, call your doctor, who can call in a prescription for medication to treat the flu. You do not want to spread the disease to others.

The object is to break down the protective membranes of germs, dislodge them from your hands and let them go down the drain. Plain soap in the right hands is strong stuff.

If you must cough or sneeze, cover your mouth with a tissue, or the inside of your elbow not your hand as you may then contaminate surfaces when you touch them. Throw the tissue away in a waste basket. Do not leave discarded tissues on your desk or other surfaces.

Micro-organisms live a life span from a few seconds to days on inanimate surfaces such as desks, table tops, faucets…tissues. If your tissues are scattered on your coffee table, they then are in contact with community surfaces. Both the tissues and the surface it sits on can spread germs to the person who touches the coffee table.

If you begin to feel ill: feverish, achy, have a dry, painful cough, sore throat, go home from school or work and call your health care provider for further instructions.

If you feel sick with flu-like symptoms and you care for the very young or the very elderly or the chronically ill, inform your health care provider when you call their office. Swine flu, or H1N1, moved from pigs to people in and caused a pandemic. It is now a relatively common type of flu, and most people have some…. A recent national study shows that pregnant women can - and should - get the H1N1 flu vaccine, as the results from the large study reveal it is safe.

Up-to-date news on the A H1N1 Swine flu virus Centers of excellence, health authorities, international health organizations, hospitals, and eminent doctors throughout the world send us their latest findings regarding swine flu every day. Proper hand hygiene:.

Other related articles What Is Swine Flu? Maps Of H1N1 Outbreaks. Swine flu viruses do not usually infect humans, but rare human infections have occurred.

For more information about swine influenza infections in humans, see Variant Influenza Viruses in Humans. Swine flu viruses can cause high levels of illness in pig herds, but cause few deaths in pigs.

Swine influenza viruses can circulate among swine throughout the year, but most outbreaks occur during the late fall and winter months similar to outbreaks in humans. Like influenza viruses in humans and other animals, swine flu viruses change constantly. Pigs can be infected by avian influenza and human influenza viruses as well as swine influenza viruses.

When influenza viruses from different species infect pigs, the viruses can reassort i. Over the years, different variations of swine flu viruses have emerged. Swine flu viruses are thought to be spread among pigs mostly through close contact and possibly from contaminated objects moving between infected and uninfected pigs.

Infected swine herds, including those vaccinated against swine flu, may have sporadic disease, or may show only mild or no symptoms of infection. Start Here. Prevention and Risk Factors. Related Issues. Statistics and Research. Clinical Trials. Article: The private versus public contribution to the biomedical literature during the H1N1 Flu Swine Flu -- see more articles. Find an Expert.