Flu Outbreak Hits Phoenix

FOXNEWS ^ | 12/28/2005 | AP (VIA FOXNEWS)

[Sen Jack S. Fogbound]

Flu Outbreak Hits Phoenix

Wednesday, December 28, 2005

MESA, Ariz. — A flu outbreak is making its way around and hospitals say their emergency waiting rooms are packed.

The emergency room staff at usually sees 100 to 140 patients a day without any wait.

[Mugwump]

"I am 65 years old and I might not survive it next time, that's why I get a flu shot. The secondary infection that comes on after the flu is what a lot of old people do die from."

Yeah, but this one is weird. I'm 55, and I wound up in the ER with what I later found out was a nasty case of hypoxia (not enough oxygen getting anywhere in my system), and spent three nights and nearly four days in the hospital with it. I'm still bringing up gunk, and all my tests indicated virus only... I was told that I was right to go to the ER, even though I'd been to the doc the evening before.

Just a word to the wise; keep vigilant with this one.

[Ditter]

Was it like asthma?

[Palladin]

Can you get Tamiflu over the counter, without a prescription? Is it expensive?

[GatorGirl]

Oh, your mind would boggle with examples of what people go to the ER for.

People sometimes use the hospital for routine care because they are too lazy or "busy" to make an appointment with the doc. Then around 10:00 pm when there's nothing else to watch on TV, they trundle in with symptoms they've had for three days. They are also the ones who tend to complain the loudest because of the wait!!!

Heart attack, fever of 104+ and bones sticking through skin are pretty much my criteria. Severe flu with excessive vomiting may require IV fluids, which would be a good reason to go to the ER.

Of course, our family's lucky. The ER comes to us!!!

[GatorGirl]

Pneumonia can be viral. Take it easy!!!

[Mugwump]

Yeah, very much like asthma. I'm still taking the breathing treatments.

[Mugwump]

Sorry, not when they told me I was going to the ICU -- until my oxygen saturation levels stabilized two-plus hours into the ER visit. My chest x-rays, both of them, showed no evidence of viral pneumonia. I've had the viral once and the bacterial four times.

BTW, they did blood cultures, and viral blood tests, all of which came back negative. Talk to me again after a doctor tells you you have a serious life-threatening condition right now. It gets your attention.

[tertiary01]

Generally, from a cold the symptoms are from the neck up and from the flu are from the neck down.

[Ditter]

Asthma is scary, I had it as a child, not too much as an adult, but tobacco smoke makes me choke up.

[GatorGirl]

That's strange, pneumonia would be the main cause for lack of oxygen in your system.

I've had a life-threatening illness, meningitis, and my eight week old infant had it as well. Believe me, you're not the only one who has had this experience. Sheesh, I was only trying to be helpful!

Well, good luck with the mystery illness. Bird flu, maybe?

[Myrddin]

If you weren't sick before entering the ER, you will be before you leave. Nothing like arriving with a broken bone and leaving infected with a variety of different diseases. Better to stay home unless you have a life threatening emergency. Too bad that's what the ER was intended to cover.

[ladyjane]

because there are 250 illegals ahead of you with colds or the flu.

AND tape worms, tuberculosis, HIV, etc

[Jigsaw John]

Oh, your mind would boggle with examples of what people go to the ER for.

I work out of Los Angeles. Nothing boggles my mind. I know what happens, who goes to ERs and for what purposes.

People sometimes use the hospital for routine care because they are too lazy or "busy" to make an appointment with the doc.

No doubt, but this is certainly not the big problem when it comes to ERs.

Lets not kid ourselves.

[tiki]

Its not time to panic but it is a horrible flu. My grandson was out of school for 2 wks. The 18 mo old child of a friend died. It is definitely tough.

[GatorGirl]

I get your point--c.f. "lazy". ;-)

[Slip18]

I can't imagine being on a plane that long being that ill. Thank goodness the plane was only a third full!

Have just been reading up on e-coli. I think what got me through it was Pedialyte. At least I was getting some electrolytes in my system. Oh, I used a store brand. Probably Gatoraide would have done the same thing.

Thanks for the education!

[Baraonda]

"Sambucol...health food store...buy syrup w/out sugar. VERY IMPORTANT to start before flu has a foot hold. It's a virus killer."

Is this Sambucol a syrup for the flu?

[Slip18]

Oh, this is weird. I had an asthma attack about six or seven weeks ago. I had the respiratory therapy which made me shake so badly, I had to wait about a half an hour to even get out of the room. I was at my doc's office. All she could say was, "You poor, baby."

My doc also gave me antibiotics and this other stuff called "Tussin." It's a prescription. The Tussin took all the fluid out of my body. I had to stop taking it. My joints felt like they had glass in them. Sheesh.

Been a bad couple of months for me.

[Slip18]

You can get the viral pneumonia shot. You'll never get it again. But you can get bacterial pneumonia.

[streetpreacher]

Not to be flippant, but most of us don't really have the flu when we think we do. Most of it is just upper respiratory thingeys. The flu normally kicks the life out of you. I had it one year and collapsed when I tried to walk across the room.

I also have severe airborne allergies so I don't play around with this stuff.