Gail Hacker, MD, Medical Director The Doctor Is In Archives

August 2009

H1N1 Influenza update:

Well, just as we thought might happen, the first wave of this bug was not as bad as expected, but the second round appears to be hitting a little harder.

There have been at least 10 people hospitalized in Eugene with H1N1 influenza (formerly known as Swine Flu) recently, and many have been very sick. We still don’t have a vaccine, but it will be available shortly. Until then, we urge you to take the following precautions:

• If you have a fever (temp higher than 100.5) AND upper respiratory symptoms like cough, sore throat, runny nose, muscle aches or headache, STAY HOME. Do not go to work or classes until you have both been diagnosed and treated accordingly, or you have been symptom free for at least 24 hours.
• If you are pregnant and have these symptoms contact your prenatal provider immediately.
• If you have asthma, other chronic respiratory illnesses, or heart disease, call your health care provider for advice. You may need medicine to treat the flu and to prevent severe complications like pneumonia.
• Wash your hands, cover your sneezes and coughs, eat well, and get plenty of rest.