A flu epidemic has officially broken out in the Netherlands, according to the conclusions of the Nivel research institute, the Erasmus MC and the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment. Last week, GPs at Nivel Sentinel stations diagnosed 70 patients with flu-like symptoms per 100,000 population.
Year ago
GPs then took samples from patients with respiratory disorders and also tested them for respiratory viruses. An increasing amount of influenza virus was found in these samples. Furthermore, the number of patients exceeded 56 for the second consecutive week: the limit above which an influenza epidemic is officially recorded.
According to the RIVM, the last time so many cases of flu were recorded was in January last year.
Laura, 21, from Rijpwetering in South Holland, can unfortunately talk about it. Sniffling and coughing, she says into the phone: “I’ve been home sick for a week, but today I went back to work. My presence was very welcome, otherwise it would be chaos. But in reality I’m still lethargic.”
Chills of cold
The assistant has been ill since Christmas. But last Thursday the flu arrived. “I felt very sick to my stomach and on Friday I woke up with chills and a fever. I stayed in bed for days. People said: after three days it will all be over. But unfortunately it wasn’t like that.”
Let’s be clear: the flu virus circulating now is not very different from that of other years. “It adapts a little bit every year,” says Rianne van Gageldonk-Lafeber, an epidemiologist at the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment.
The influenza virus is the cause of the flu. If you come into contact with it, it usually takes 3 to 4 days for flu symptoms to begin.
“The flu begins with an inflammation of the lining of the respiratory tract,” says Van Gageldonk. “It starts acutely, with quite serious symptoms, typical of the flu. Suddenly you get chills, you start sniffling. You can have muscle aches and a fever that can rise up to 39 degrees in a short time. Even ache of throat and cough are complaints that belong.”
Suffocating
Laura suffered mainly from her respiratory tract. “I had no voice left, my breathing was labored, I felt short of breath.” She immediately thought of corona, but after a test it turned out that it wasn’t that.
He sees it all around him. With family, friends and colleagues. “In elementary school you see everyone sniffling.”
According to the epidemiologist, how quickly you recover depends on your overall health. “For many people it takes 3 to 5 days. But sometimes it actually takes longer to recover. It can take three weeks or more before you feel fully fit again.”
Some people are more likely to develop serious illnesses if they get the flu, such as older adults and people with chronic illnesses.
Poor resistance
There are different types of viruses. Type A influenza is currently the most commonly observed. Influenza expert Ted van Essen, president of the Influenza Foundation, says this type of flu is generally more severe in patients than type B. “But it differs greatly from patient to patient. It’s actually impossible to predict individually.”
Elderly people and people with low resistance can become seriously ill and even end up in hospital. “And there are quite a few of them in the Netherlands. People who use drugs, for example for rheumatism or Crohn’s disease, are more sensitive, because the side effect of the drugs is that resistance is reduced.”
The flu affects the respiratory tract and bacteria can enter as a result. Patients can then develop pneumonia or even a heart attack. “Older people generally know this and get vaccinated. But we see that at-risk people under 60 don’t get the flu vaccine. The vaccination rate is only 30%. These people haven’t realized it yet.”
The virus is found in saliva, snot and mucus. That’s why people spread the disease quickly: one sick person infects 2 to 3 people. “This is very significant. It is therefore really advisable for people to remember to wash their hands regularly, to cough and sneeze into their elbow and to keep their distance during this period. This certainly applies to people living with the elderly. contact.”
“I still get the flu shot”
Because a flu wave like that can last 10 weeks. People can also protect themselves by getting the flu shot, Van Essen says. “GPs can still declare it and usually still have some.”
Many people have already received this flu vaccine in the fall. According to the RIVM, it is doing its job. “The viruses currently circulating appear to match the strains included in the vaccine,” said epidemiologist Van Gageldonk-Lafeber.
2024-01-25 14:32:48
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