Influenza history and symptoms
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Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]; Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Alejandro Lemor, M.D. [2]
Overview
Influenza illness can include several non-specific symptoms, such as fever, muscle aches, headache, lack of energy, dry cough, sore throat, and runny nose. The fever and body aches can last 3-5 days and the cough and lack of energy may last for 2 or more weeks. The symptoms of the flu are more severe than their common-cold equivalents.
History and Symptoms Adapted from CDC[1]
- The typical incubation period for influenza is 1-4 days.
- Adults shed influenza virus from the day before symptoms begin through 5-10 days after illness onset. However, the amount of virus shed, and presumably infectivity, decreases rapidly by 3-5 days after onset in an experimental human infection model.
- Young children also might shed virus several days before illness onset, and children can be infectious for 10 or more days after onset of symptoms.
- Severely immunocompromised persons can shed virus for weeks or months.
- Uncomplicated influenza illness is characterized by the abrupt onset of constitutional and respiratory signs and symptoms, such as fever, myalgia, headache, malaise, nonproductive cough, sore throat, and rhinitis.
- Among children, otitis media, nausea, and vomiting also are commonly reported with influenza illness.
- Uncomplicated influenza illness typically resolves after 3-7 days for the majority of persons, although cough and malaise can persist for >2 weeks.
- However, influenza virus infections can cause primary influenza viral pneumonia; exacerbate underlying medical conditions such as pulmonary or cardiac disease lead to secondary bacterial pneumonia, sinusitis, or otitis media; or contribute to coinfections with other viral or bacterial pathogens.
- Young children with influenza virus infection might have initial symptoms mimicking bacterial sepsis with high fevers, and febrile seizures have been reported in 6%-20% of children hospitalized with influenza virus infection.
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Common Symptoms
- Fever (seen in the majority of patients)
- Cough (seen in the majority of patients)
- Chills
- Dizziness
- Flushed face
- Muscle and body aches
- Sneezing
- Runny nose
- Fatigue
- Headache
- Irritated watering eyes
- Nasal congestion
- Sore throat
Less Common Symptoms
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Diarrhea
- Reddened eyes, skin (especially face), mouth, throat and nose
- Shortness of breath (especially in asthmatic patients)[3]
- Loss of appetite
- Sweating
- Muscle stiffness
- Hemoptysis[3]
References
- ↑ "CDC Clinical Signs and Symptoms of Influenza".
- ↑ Häggström, Mikael (2014). "Medical gallery of Mikael Häggström 2014". Wikiversity Journal of Medicine. 1 (2). doi:10.15347/wjm/2014.008. ISSN 2001-8762.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Gao, Hai-Nv; Lu, Hong-Zhou; Cao, Bin; Du, Bin; Shang, Hong; Gan, Jian-He; Lu, Shui-Hua; Yang, Yi-Da; Fang, Qiang; Shen, Yin-Zhong; Xi, Xiu-Ming; Gu, Qin; Zhou, Xian-Mei; Qu, Hong-Ping; Yan, Zheng; Li, Fang-Ming; Zhao, Wei; Gao, Zhan-Cheng; Wang, Guang-Fa; Ruan, Ling-Xiang; Wang, Wei-Hong; Ye, Jun; Cao, Hui-Fang; Li, Xing-Wang; Zhang, Wen-Hong; Fang, Xu-Chen; He, Jian; Liang, Wei-Feng; Xie, Juan; Zeng, Mei; Wu, Xian-Zheng; Li, Jun; Xia, Qi; Jin, Zhao-Chen; Chen, Qi; Tang, Chao; Zhang, Zhi-Yong; Hou, Bao-Min; Feng, Zhi-Xian; Sheng, Ji-Fang; Zhong, Nan-Shan; Li, Lan-Juan (2013). "Clinical Findings in 111 Cases of Influenza A (H7N9) Virus Infection". New England Journal of Medicine. 368 (24): 2277–2285. doi:10.1056/NEJMoa1305584. ISSN 0028-4793.