EAST NORRITON, MONTGOMERY COUNTY (WLVT-TV) -In 2020, coronavirus is taking center stage when it comes to health concerns. But as we move into the fall and winter months, talk about influenza is arising.
Dr. Robert Czincila of Einstein Medical Center Montgomery says, “Most importantly, if you have the ability to get a flu vaccination, first and foremost, make sure you see your primary care physician or your local clinic or your provider that's going to be able to provide that to you so that you can get your vaccine early enough that your immunity is built up so that you have protection from the flu this season."
Czincila, chief of the Department of Emergency Medicine, says Einstein Montgomery has yet to see a flu case this season, and that there are a lot of similarities between the common cold, influenza and COVID-19.
“The thing that stands out the most with patients who present with COVID-19 is that they tend to lose their sense of smell and their taste more prevalently than those patients with a common cold who might have a little bit of a distaste for things or their taste buds aren't as sensitive,” he said.
A high fever is another sign of COVID-19, but can also indicate flu. So, Dr. Czincila says that's where contact tracing comes into play.
“And we try to talk to our patients about whether or not they've had, obviously, exposure to someone who's had the disease or puts them at risk for, you know, coming in contact with someone who has it as well."
He's hoping the lack of flu cases coming into the hospital is a good sign for the season, but reminds everyone to stay vigilant.
“The other thing that we worry about is whether or not people are doing things if they're supposed to do during any flu season, and that's taking care of themselves and protecting themselves so that they're not spreading it to loved ones, friends and family; making sure that they're washing their hands; making sure that they're doing social distancing before it was very popular; making sure that they are staying away from those that have immunocompromised statuses, whether they be cancer patients or people with chronic diseases like COPD, emphysema, so on and so forth.”
A few things to keep in mind as we head into the flu season, which in turn is the holiday season during a pandemic.
“We have to be reminded of how limiting the size of groups that we’re with help to lessen cases and to prevent transmission of the illness," Czincila said.