Evaluation and Management of Seasonal Influenza in the Emergency Department (original) (raw)

2012, Emergency Medicine Clinics of North America

Influenza is an acute infectious respiratory disease of viral cause that occurs annually in outbreaks, epidemics, and occasionally pandemics of varying severity and attack rates depending on the influenza virus subtype involved. Although most seasonal flu cases do not produce long-term sequelae, influenza continues to cause substantial morbidity and mortality despite multiple landmark discoveries in infectious diseases during the previous century. 1,2 In the past 2 decades, influenza mortality has even risen, in large part because of an aging population. 3 Worldwide, flu epidemics account for an estimated 3 to 5 million cases leading to approximately 245,000 to 500,000 deaths annually. 4 The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates there are about 36,000 influenza-related deaths each year in the United States, and between 1972 and 1992, influenza accounted for an estimated 426,000 deaths. 1,5 In Canada, the Laboratory Center for Disease Control estimates that 70,000 to 75,000 influenza-associated hospitalizations and 6000 to 7000 deaths occur from influenza each year. 6 In Europe, between 40,000 and 220,000 deaths are estimated to be caused by influenza in a moderate flu season and during a severe epidemic respectively. 7 Influenza also imposes a huge financial burden on health care systems and society overall. Data from the United States reveal that influenza accounts for more than The authors have nothing to disclose.