It's officially flu season, causing bumper-to-bumper traffic at hospital emergency rooms around the country.

But in Los Angeles, reports that a large number of people complaining of influenza-like symptoms - fever, cough, sore throat, muscle aches - are swarming local emergency rooms, afraid that they have the bird flu.

The increased ER traffic has been so great that it has interfered with normal hospital operations. Some have been forced to temporarily close their doors to ambulance traffic.

Shutting out ambulances - and sending them to other, less-crowded hospitals instead - is not unheard of during the height of flu season, when throngs of sick people can make the services of any health facility woefully inadequate.

But it's never the preferred way of doing business. And in Los Angeles, health officials are urging those with flu-like symptoms to avoid the ER emergency and instead go to their family doctors.

Los Angeles County health officer Jonathan Fielding, M.D., M.P.H., sent a clear message to those seeking help.

"Emergency departments are very crowded this time of year," Fielding told the public, "and patients without life-threatening emergencies can expect long delays as patients with more severe illnesses or injuries are treated first."

Whether the emergency room onslaught in Los Angeles is being mirrored elsewhere in the country is unclear. However, some health authorities worry this year could be worse than previous years, as bird-flu reports from elsewhere in the world could cause people to panic.

The H5N1 strain of avian influenza, or bird flu, has killed scores of people across Southeast Asia over the last two years, and the disease is currently spreading across Europe.

Tamiflu stockpiling increases

Still, emergency room crowding in other countries doesn't appear to be a problem. Instead, it's the hoarding of Tamiflu, a drug that is reportedly able to reduce the effect of the illness.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has asked European governments to stockpile Tamiflu in anticipation of bird-flu outbreaks. Pharmacists in European countries say the drug is flying off the shelves.

WHO spokesman Michael Ryan, speaking in response to the hoarding, asked Europeans to remain calm and avoid buying Tamiflu unless absolutely necessary.

"WHO at this point does not advise for individuals to stockpile this drug for any purpose. There is no indication at this stage for anyone to be taking this drug other than the very high-risk groups in areas in which the avian disease has become a problem," he said.

Those at high risk include people in the poultry industry and health care services.

What is avian flu?

Avian influenza is an infection caused by avian influenza viruses, which occur naturally in birds. The virus is highly contagious among birds and is deadly among domesticated birds like chickens and turkeys.

Type A influenza viruses, like the H5N1 strain, occasionally occur in humans. Most cases are a result of a person coming into contact with infected poultry. Since January 2004, at least 130 human cases of the H5N1 strain were reported by WHO, and more than half of those people died. It is not known how many people have had less severe cases of the flu and therefore didn't report their illness to authorities.

Avian influenza symptoms in humans resemble those of human influenza - the "flu" that people try to avoid every winter. It may also include eye infections, pneumonia and respiratory problems, and severe complications may be life-threatening.

Experts say U.S. is safe

"With current fears running high with regard to the potential worldwide spread of bird flu, it is important to remember that sustained human-to-human transmission of this strain of influenza has not yet been demonstrated," says Jack Bissett, co-chair of the Infectious Disease Channel for Revolution Health Group's Medical Advisory Board.

Bissett said that Americans have even less reason to fear bird flu.

"This strain has not yet been detected in any bird populations in the U.S. At the present time, people in the U.S. with flu-like symptoms can be confident that it is not bird flu and should seek evaluation by their primary care physicians, rather than rushing to the nearest emergency room."

Scientists are currently conducting clinical trials on vaccines that may protect humans against the avian flu.

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This Article is from MyDNA.com

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