Get caught up, get excited and stifle yourself.
Old Portuguese proverb, recorded in compilations prior to the 20th century.
It is often said that there are only two certainties in life: death and taxes. There are, however, other certainties and, without a doubt, the flu is one of them. It is one of the oldest diseases known to humanity and also one of the deadliest and most undervalued. The first records compatible with influenza date back to Ancient Greece, around 412 BC, described by Hippocrates, one of the founders of medicine and responsible for the Oath that brings together the ethical principles of clinical practice.
The term flu comes from the French fluderived from the verb gripper“to seize, to be seized suddenly”, applied to this disease that seizes a person suddenly and intensely. Fever, cough, muscle pain and weakness set in within a few hours and incapacitate those infected.
In the 15th century, the impact of influenza was associated with the influence (influenza) of the stars. This term resulted in the abbreviation “Flu”, used in the English language, and the name of the virus identified by British researchers in 1933. The identification of the virus led to the development of the first vaccines, initially administered to American troops during the Second World War.
Knowledge of the influenza virus has made it possible to characterize the two types responsible for the disease in humans, types A and B. To date, all pandemics have been caused by type A, which has several subtypes according to the composition of the two main surface proteins, Hemagglutinin (H) and Neuraminidase (N).
The influenza virus is always mutating and changing, so every year the strains in circulation are different from those of the previous year. This variability requires updating the composition of vaccines annually and repeating their administration. Since 2002, there has also been a specific treatment with neuraminidase inhibitors in the European Union, oseltamivir. Despite vaccines and these drugs, a study carried out between 2009 and 2013 by the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) concluded that, among 31 infectious diseases analyzed, influenza was the one that caused the greatest burden of disease in European countries.
Recently, the ECDC issued an alert regarding a new mutation in the H3N2 subtype, associated with greater transmission, earlier circulation in the community and likely lower vaccine effectiveness. The objective of this alert is to reinforce preparedness and increase vaccination rates, especially in people aged 65 and over, who tend to be most impacted by the H3N2 subtype.
Fortunately, these days we can replace the old proverb “come on, get busy and get drunk” with a much more effective version: “get ready, always get vaccinated and, if necessary, you can get treatment now”.