Wednesday, January 30, 2013
Here are the answers to some flu misconceptions.
The Henry Ford Health System, headquartered in Detroit, has released this fact sheet on the truths and myths of fighting the flu: The flu vaccination is the best way to protect yourself and your family. However, misconceptions about vaccination persist. Here are seven common myths about vaccination. Flu Myth #1 A Flu Shot Causes the Flu No, a flu shot cannot cause flu illness. The influenza viruses contained in a flu shot are inactivated (killed), which means they cannot cause infection. Flu vaccine manufacturers kill the viruses used in the vaccine during the process of making vaccine, and batches of flu vaccine are tested to make sure they are safe. In randomized, blinded studies, where some people get flu shots and others get salt-water…
Saturday, January 19, 2013
How is the flu outbreak prompting you to change your worship?
- THE NEIGHBORHOOD FILES
- Cindi Lash
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Saturday, January 19
As the ongoing flu epidemic continues around the United States, some church leaders around the country are changing procedures and issuing recommendations for avoiding the contagious ailment while worshipping. At masses this weekend in the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh, however, signs of peace and wine distribution from communal chalices during Communion will follow regular procedures, a diocesan spokesman said Friday. That includes St. Michael's Byzantine Catholic Church, Sacred Heart of Jesus Polish National Catholic Church, St. Patrick Church Roman Catholic Parish and St. Mary's Catholic Church. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops this week said it does not see the need for widespread changes to liturgy to prevent the spread of the…
Thursday, January 10, 2013
Pennsylvania is reporting high influenza activity in Washington County and across the state, according to the state health department and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Washington County certainly isn't immune from the widespead outbreak of influenza reported by the Pennsylvania Health Department. Washington County has had 313 confirmed cases of influenza this flu season already. Nearby, the Allegheny County Health Department reports four local deaths in the last few weeks have been attributed to the influenza Type A virus. All four deaths have been patients 65 years or older, with the oldest victim 98 years old, according to Dr. Jim Lando, acting director of the department's Office of Epidemiology and Biostatistics. "Influenza does take people each year," he said. "That's why we do recommend that people get vaccinated." Lando said that between Oct. 1 and Dec. 31, 2012—the most up-to-date reporting period…
Monday, November 28, 2011
You may be sick and tired of hearing about the flu, but read on so you won’t feel sick and tired from influenza.
- NEWS
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Monday, November 28, 2011
By Mary Parks Lamb, M.D. ‘Tis the season for sniffles, coughs, headaches, fever and yes, influenza. You may be sick and tired of hearing about the flu, but read on so you won’t feel sick and tired from influenza. You need to know important information that just may spare you the wrath of the flu and all its unpleasantries. The culprits behind influenza, commonly called “the flu,” are viruses that infect the respiratory tract. The viruses come in several varieties, the most common of which are types A and B. The flu begins abruptly with malaise and a fever between 102-105 degrees Farenheight. An adult typically has a lower fever than a child, but high fever is present none the less. Fever typically lasts a few days but can last up to five …
