Influenza, commonly known as ‘the flu’, is an illness caused by a group of viruses (the influenza viruses) that infect the respiratory tract. Influenza infection usually has different symptoms and causes a more severe illness than most other common viral respiratory infections and may be a life-threatening infection in certain people; it should not be confused with the common cold!
In most parts of Australia, influenza outbreaks are seasonal, occurring between late autumn and early spring. Seasonal outbreaks occur every year and vary from mild sporadic outbreaks to serious epidemics; it is estimated to cause up to 1,000 deaths and 51,000 hospitalisations in Australia annually.1
Occasionally severe worldwide outbreaks (pandemics) occur involving higher infection rates and more severe disease.
Influenza Symptoms
In adults, the symptoms of influenza can include fever, dry cough, muscle and joint pain, extreme tiredness, headache and sore throat. In children, influenza may present with a cough, high fever and listlessness. Children can also get diarrhoea and vomiting as a result of influenza infection.
How Influenza Spreads
Influenza viruses are mainly spread when infected people cough or sneeze, releasing small virus-containing droplets into the air which can be breathed in and infect the respiratory tract of the people around them. Contaminated respiratory secretions on hands and other surfaces can also transmit the infection by hand to mouth or eye infection.
It has been found that influenza viruses can survive for up to an hour in the air of an enclosed environment2, more than eight hours on hard surfaces such as stainless steel and plastic3, and up to five minutes on hands after transfer from other surfaces.3
One very important factor in the spread of influenza is that early in infection, even before symptoms become evident, an infected person can be shedding influenza viruses and infecting the people around them. Good cough and sneeze etiquette and hand washing can contribute to limiting the spread of influenza and other respiratory virus infections.
It is generally believed that young children are the greatest spreaders of influenza because they generate more viruses in their respiratory tract and are less likely to practice good hygiene.4
Influenza Complications
Complications from influenza can include5:
acute bronchitis
acute otitis media
cardiovascular complications, including myocarditis and pericarditis
croup
encephalitis and/or encephalopathy
haematological abnormalities
pneumonia (primary viral and secondary bacterial pneumonia*)
Reye syndrome
*Secondary bacterial pneumonia is more common than primary viral pneumonia, and is a frequent complication in people with underlying medical conditions, often causing death.6
Severe Disease:
Infections caused by A (H3N2) strains are more likely to lead to severe morbidity and increased mortality than influenza B or seasonal A (H1N1) strains.7
Severe disease may also occur in otherwise healthy children and young adults. Annual attack rates in the general community are typically 5–10%, but may be up to 20% in some years. In households and ‘closed’ populations, attack rates may be 2–3 times higher.8,9 However, because asymptomatic or mild influenza illness is common and symptoms are non-specific, many influenza infections are not detected.
Influenza Prevention
Vaccination against influenza is recommended for all Australians who are 6 months of age or older. Influenza vaccines available in Australia offer a high degree of protection against seasonal illness and the severe consequences of influenza.
Remember to make a booking with your GP or pharmacist about getting your flu shot this year.
Influenza vaccines must be administered annually because:
The viruses change over time.
Protection from the vaccine starts to diminish after several months. That is why in Australia, the best time to get vaccinated is in April or May, so that you have the most protection in the winter months.
Free influenza vaccine is available under the National Immunisation Program (NIP) for people in the following risk groups:
Older adults (65+)
Children aged between 6 months and less than 5 years old
First Nations peoples aged 6 months and over
Any stage of pregnancy*
People aged 6 months and over with medical conditions that can lead to complications from influenza (such as severe asthma, lung or heart disease, chronic neurological disease, renal and metabolic disease, and impaired immunity)[10]
Health, age, lifestyle, and occupation (HALO) can also put people at high risk of influenza complications. These include:
Obesity
Stroke
Tobacco smoking
Down syndrome
Residents of nursing homes and other long-term facilities
Unhoused people
* Vaccinating against influenza during pregnancy gives a 3 for 1 benefit:
Protects the parent during pregnancy and in the early months of parenthood
Protects the unborn baby by transplacental antibodies
Protects the young infant by antibodies in breast milk
The World Health Organization (WHO) has identified pregnancy as a significant risk factor for influenza complications, stressing the importance of a seasonal influenza vaccination.11
Good hand hygiene, social distancing and use of face masks have all shown to be effective at slowing the spread of cold and flu viruses.
Influenza Treatment
A number of effective antiviral medications for influenza have been developed, which need to be administered early in the course of the infection for the best results. If you are exhibiting flu-like symptoms, speak to your GP about whether influenza antivirals are right for you.
Cold and flu tablets do not treat influenza, but may reduce the discomfort of fever and muscle aches and pains.
Antibiotics only work for bacterial infections, so they won’t work for colds and flu which are caused by viruses.
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Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care. Influenza (flu). In the Australian Immunisation Handbook [Internet]. Canberra (ACT): Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care; 2023 [cited 23 Aug 2024]. Available from https://immunisationhandbook.health.gov.au/contents/vaccine-preventable-diseases/influenza-flu#influenza-in-australia
Knight V. Viruses as agents of airborne contagion [chapter V]. Annals of the New York Academic Sciences 1980;353:147-156
Bean B, Moore BM, Sterner B et al. Survival of influenza virus on environmental surfaces. J Infect Dis July 1982;146(1):47-51
Lee BY, Shah M. Prevention of influenza in healthy children. Expert Rev Anti Infect Ther. 2012 Oct;10(10):1139-52. doi: 10.1586/eri.12.106. PMID: 23199400; PMCID: PMC3763239.
Radigan KA, Wunderink RG. Epidemic viral pneumonia and other emerging pathogens. Clin Chest Med. 2011 Sep;32(3):451-67. doi: 10.1016/j.ccm.2011.05.010. PMID: 21867815; PMCID: PMC7130532.
Kwok KO, Riley S, Perera RA, et al. Relative incidence and individual-level severity of seasonal influenza A H3N2 compared with 2009 pandemic H1N1. BMC Infectious Diseases 2017;17:337.
Neuzil KM, Zhu Y, Griffin MR, et al. Burden of interpandemic influenza in children younger than 5 years: a 25-year prospective study. Journal of Infectious Diseases 2002;185:147-52.
Hurwitz ES, Haber M, Chang A, et al. Effectiveness of influenza vaccination of day care children in reducing influenza-related morbidity among household contacts. JAMA 2000;284:1677-82.