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Cold and Flu
Questions and answers about the "Common Cold"; symptoms in the upper respiratory tract like sneezing, scratchy throat, and runny nose, but adults don't typically have fevers. Colds are usually caused by the rhinovirus (up to 40% of colds), or Coronaviruses (about 20%), but there are more than 200 viruses that can cause the common cold. Also questions about the seasonal flu, also called "regular flu", caused mostly by Type A and Type B Influenza viruses. Flu starts with similar symptoms as a cold only it hits faster and harder and usually includes fever in adults. Although the "stomach flu" is a common term, it is not a real diagnosis. The proper medical term for stomach flu is gastroenteritis (an intestinal disease, sometimes viral but also bacterial), it is often mistaken for influenza because the flu can sometimes include vomiting and diarrhea.
4,331 Questions
How long after surgery should you wait to get a flu shot?
That could vary according to why the cortisone shot was prescribed. Ask the prescribing health care professional if there is any contraindication in your specific circumstances that would necessitate your waiting before vaccination.
What illness do you have if you have a cough and sore throat?
its most probably viral fever.......fever with muscle pain also suggests malaria.....but can be ruled out as u have respiratory symptoms...but still can be a differential .....need more history for that diagnosis....ur location, travel history n more..........get some rest.....good sleep n heavy protein food...take VIT C 1000mg/day till u r cured....if symptom worsens or persists go see a GP ASAP....recovery period est: 10 days....u dun need an antibiotic so dun waste your money
There was speculation that it may have started at an American owned pig farm in Mexico, a Smithfield Foods facility. However, the following article states that Mexico's Agriculture Department has proven it was not the original location:
Press Release from the National Pork Producers Council:
"Washington, May 14, 2009 -
Mexico's agriculture department today said the influenza strain that now has infected almost 4,300 people in 33 countries did not originate from hogs at a Smithfield Foods operation that had been singled out by some, including critics of modern pork production, as the source of the A-H1N1 flu virus.
Test results released today by the Mexican Ministry of Agriculture, Ranching, Rural Development, Fisheries and Food (SAGARPA) confirmed that the novel A-H1N1 virus was not in pigs at the Granjas Carroll de México farm in Veracruz. The pigs also tested negative for other viruses. "
The generic virus itself is not new-swine flu caused a brief panic in 1976 when it appeared in a U.S. army base and sickened many of the soldiers stationed there. Ironically the biggest fallout from that incident of swine flu came from the vaccine that President Gerald Ford urged citizens to get: only one person died from the actual flu while twenty-five died and five-hundred took sick from the vaccine. To further complicate our understanding of where this virus came from, researchers are now saying that "swine" flu isn't even the correct description of what this current one is, since this virus is made up from a mix of porcine, avian and human flu strains. Swine flu, in it's purely "piggy" form, is actually found in pigs worldwide, literally in every country. The World Animal Health organization is recommending the virus be renamed to "North-American influenza" to reflect its presumed origins. It is being called "Influenza A, Novel H1N1 (formerly Swine Flu)" by CDC and WHO and most of the world nations' ministries of health now.
For this particular incarnation of swine flu to transfer to humans would have taken a fairly complicated series of events. A pig with swine flu would have had to come into contact with a human with "human" flu and then the two viruses would have had to hybridize in the pig. Eventually a new strain of flu would be created that could be caught by humans, and would perhaps be carried back to humans via flies.
For a more scientific or medical explanation to answer the question, see the related answer below about the cause of the 2009 "Swine Flu" H1N1 Virus.
Can you die from eating too many cough drops?
There are a lot of unknown variables in the question to give a really good answer. If you are talking about over the counter regular cough drops that are not medicated, then if you are otherwise healthy (e.g., not a diabetic), a whole box would be no more deadly than eating a lot of candy. You probably would get a sore tongue from the hard candy.
If, however, they are medicated cough drops, then you would need to follow the label directions on how many you should use in a given time period.
Antibiotics, also known as antibacterials, are types of medications that destroy or slow down the growth of bacteria.
The Greek word anti means "against", and the Greek word bios means "life" (bacteria are life forms).
Antibiotics are used to treat infections caused by bacteria. Bacteria are microscopic organisms, some of which may cause illness.
Can you take Tamiflu and acetaminophen?
Yes, you can take acetaminophen and fluoxetine (Prozac) together without any adverse side effects. Keep in mind that you should take no more than 1000mg of acetaminophen in a 4-6 hour period and no more than 4g in 24 hours.
Can you give an 8 yr old cough medicine with Zyrtec?
Dogs can have either Zyrtec or Robitussin DM (or CF). These medications are for two different purposes, they can't be used interchangeably. Zyrtec is an allergy medication, and Robitussin is a cough suppressant.
Your vet can advise you of the proper medication and dose for your dog, based on it's weight and the condition your dog has.
Why taking an antibiotic is not effective in the common cold?
viruses are not killed by antibiotics. -apex
What could cause the glands in your neck to swell and be so painful when swallowing?
This can often be caused by something as simple as bullet wounds, puncture wounds by arrows or spears, being struck by comets or tiny astroids, and a byproduct of Ding Fever, Malaria, and muscle pain accompanied by Small Pox. If it continues, a physician's visit is advised.
Can you get sick when you go outside in the cold after sweating?
No, you can not catch a cold/flu by going outside after a warm bath. You can only catch these if you have been exposed to the virus that spreads them. So catching a cold means you caught a virus which doesnt happen after you took a warm bath!!
Can you get sick by going outside with wet hair?
Only if you get hypothermia (a specific medical condition that results from extreme temperatures lowering the core body temperatures ~ which is not an easy thing to do since our bodies have an amazing temperature control system especially when it comes to core body temperatures).
The common cold is caused by a virus. It is caught and spread by the transfer of virus particles. What can make you more prone to illness, is extreme tiring or weakening of your body's immune system (usually caused by medications such as transplant patients, people on chemotherapy, those with auto-immune disease, or other problems such as HIV/AIDS) which makes it harder, if not impossible, to fight infection.
Humans do lose heat rapidly through their head, which is a process that would accelerate with wet hair - usually when you get chilled to the point of shivering, the process the body uses first to help warm itself, you will be uncomfortable, but that itself is a cure, not a cause of lowered temperatures. If you get to the point of shivering and then having the shivering stop (which happens when you are at or near hypothermia), you may have a lowering of your core body temperature which may affect your immune system and therefore you could be more likely to catch a cold. This is a rare event. So, having wet hair and being in cold air wont make you sick unless you get to the point of hypothermia.
How do you get rid of sore throat while pregnant?
Generally the same medications can be taken regardless of pregnancy.
Instead of using DNA to infect its' host, it uses RNA.
One example of a class/family of RNA virus are retrovirus.
The RNA is injected into the host cell and the viral RNA undergoes reverse transcription with the help of the enzyme reverse transcriptase. Reverse transciption is the opposite of the transcription process that occurs in protein synthesis. In this process, the RNA is transformed into DNA that enters into the DNA of the host cell. HIV or Human Immunodeficiency Virus is an example of an retrovirus.
If you have the first signs of it, you already have the flu, and prevention is too late. You can deal with the symptoms at that point, but you can only prevent what you do not already have. Echinacea is one common method of dealing with the symptoms. There are also good over the counter remedies for the symptoms of the flu.
Nobody, yet. There is no known cure for influenze (the 'flu). There are vaccinations which can help to prevent one from getting the 'flu, but these are not cures. They work by giving the person a small dose of the virus thought most likely to strike an area, and this gets the person's immune system to make antibodies against that particular virus. If that particular virus is the one which strikes, then the person may not get the 'flu - not "will not", just "may not". If a different strain of the virus is what strikes then the vaccinated person may have no immunity.
Can you go to the dentist if you have a cold?
No, you go to the dentist for stuff to do with teeth.
I believe what you are trying to imply it if it is rude to go with a cold. You should be fine as long as you can breath out of your nose when they are working in your mouth.
It is proposed that multiple sclerosis may be transmitted chiefly by sexual contact. Arguments favoring this include: migration studies that suggest a transmissible agent in adolescence; clusters of multiple sclerosis which have occurred in low prevalence areas following entry of young males; the similarity of multiple sclerosis to tropical spastic paraplegia, a known sexually transmitted infection with resemblance to primary progressive multiple sclerosis; an increased rate in drug misusers; a similar age of onset and sex pattern to that found in sexually transmitted disease; increased incidence of multiple sclerosis in those using oral contraceptives; low multiple sclerosis rates in societies with a strict moral code; longitudinal shifts in sex prevalence that show an increase in women after the sexual revolution of the 1960s; and important exceptions to the worldwide distribution corresponding to countries with permissive attitudes to sex. Family, conjugal pair, twin, and adoption studies are compatible with an infectious cause of multiple sclerosis if this is sexually transmitted. It is not proposed that sexual transmission is the only cause but that inherited factors create a susceptibility to a sexually transmitted neurotropic agent. It is hoped this hypothesis might encourage a new direction of neurological research.
Is there an advantage to getting a flu shot in the buttocks?
It is given by IM (intramuscular) injection in the recommended site of the deltoid muscle (upper arm), ideally using a one to one and a half inch long 22 or 25 gauge needle. The site should be prepped with alcohol. The vaccine may need to be shaken before use if there is any cloudiness or precipitates in the mixture. It should be stored in the refrigerator.
What does the flu shot do to you?
If you actually get the flu, and not just a mild reaction to the vaccine (which can seem similar at first), it will most likely be because you:
- had it already before you got the vaccine and just had not shown symptoms yet; or,
- between the time you took the vaccination and your body developed the full immunity you caught the flu (this can take as long as two weeks in healthy adults*, but with the 2009 H1N1 vaccine it worked as quickly as 8 - 10 days in some people); or,
- you may have caught a strain of flu that was not included in the vaccine, and so the vaccination would not provide immunity to it (however, if infected with a very similar strain, it could make your symptoms milder); or,
- you may have a condition, be on medication that weakens your immune response (like chemotherapy or medicines to prevent transplant rejection or autoimmune diseases), or have an immune system disease like HIV/AIDS that prevents you from achieving immunity from a vaccination. In that event, you will need to continue to use all precautions to prevent infection (hand washing, avoiding crowds, etc.) even if you get the vaccine.
- the vaccinations are not always 100% effective for various reasons, most claim that they are 90% to 98% effective.
* Children under 10 need two vaccinations before fully protected, so the time between their first vaccination and when they have had the second and time for their bodies to react to it, is longer than in adults (just under two months total, typically).
Are most viruses species specific?
Yes, the majority of viruses are very species specific. There are exceptions however, such as rabies. Most viruses will not survive for long beyond their host tissue environment.
What are the pros and cons of getting the flu shot?
Pro:
- Over 36,000 people die from the seasonal flu each year in the US. Flu vaccinations help prevent more deaths.
- When you get vaccinated, you help prevent death in infants, elderly and the ill who can not get their own vaccinations, or who can not produce the needed immune response to have their own immunity. ALL infants under 6 months old could die if you get the flu and give it to them either directly or indirectly. They can not be vaccinated until 6 months old, so your immunity from the flu vaccine is mostly what they rely upon to protect them (by having one less person infected with influenza, rapidly making and spreading more viruses, and spreading influenza to many more people who will do the same, exposing more and more infants and others to potential harm and death).
- You have a significantly decreased chance of getting a flu virus that season and some protection in the future against the same or similar viruses so you will not be one of the 36,000 who die from the flu each year.
- Flu vaccines are made the same way as they have been for decades and the statistical analysis indicates it is far safer than not getting vaccinated. The incidence of problems from receiving vaccinations is extremely low, especially when you consider these are given every year in every nation across the world to millions upon millions of people and have, thus, been proven safe. They are proven well worth any minor risks. See the information below from VAERS (US Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System) in the related links section.
- You can not get the flu from the vaccines.
- There are now alternative administration routes and many people no longer have to be vaccinated with a shot. See the related questions.
Con:
- Some people have stronger immune reactions to the vaccine (intended purpose, this is how immunity is produced) that will cause mild flu symptoms or local tenderness at the site of the injection that last a few days.
- Incorrect information is spread about the safety of the vaccines and people are afraid to get the vaccine which puts all infants under 6 months old at higher risk of death from a case of the flu.
- A very small number of people will have allergic reactions and some die. This is true for all medications on the market, none are without some risk. Even over-the-counter Tylenol and aspirin have as many or more risks and untoward effects when used as do flu vaccines.
- It used to be that anyone allergic to eggs could not be vaccinated due to the manufacturing process which uses eggs and chicken protein as the growth medium for the viruses to use in the vaccines. However, see the related question for new information about that.
- Fear of needles can prevent use of the injectable vaccines, but there are the nasal spray and intradermal formulations that can be used now. See more in related questions.
- Some people fear the traces of mercury and thimerosol in the vaccines, however, studies have not found any association with these, in the minute amounts contained in the vaccines, and significant side effects. The amount of mercury is about the same as a single meal of fish.
What could cause your inner ear to bleed and be in pain?
My ear was itching in the night and I used a Q-tip to itch it. I did not put it in the Q-tip in very far but when I got up I looked down in the trash can and saw blood on the Q-tip so I used another one and I had more dried blood and some fresh is this normal and why is my ear bleeding?
Compare to curd, butter milk is good, provided you are not allergical. It help to digest and as intestine in typhoid are get weak, it is good to take in average qty. Also note that it should be fresh, so the cold trouble can be avoided.
