WEBVTT 00:02.599 --> 00:04.480 No , no , the 00:07.809 --> 00:09.920 hi everybody . Welcome back to Friday 00:09.920 --> 00:12.087 Facts . I'm Doctor Alice Bars in Chief 00:12.087 --> 00:14.253 of Infectious Diseases . At , hi , and 00:14.253 --> 00:16.365 I'm Doctor Elizabeth Marks . I'm also 00:16.365 --> 00:18.587 an infectious disease physician here at 00:18.587 --> 00:20.587 Brook Medical Center . And today we 00:20.587 --> 00:22.309 wanted to talk to you about um 00:22.309 --> 00:24.365 respiratory illnesses , specifically 00:24.365 --> 00:26.329 influenza and COVID . Um kind of 00:26.340 --> 00:28.507 bringing it back to how we started all 00:28.507 --> 00:30.673 of this Friday Fact series . Yeah . So 00:30.673 --> 00:32.951 it's back to school . Right . Actually , 00:32.951 --> 00:35.062 my kids have had back to school night 00:35.062 --> 00:37.173 this week and certainly with the back 00:37.173 --> 00:39.007 to school activities we have , I 00:39.007 --> 00:40.840 certainly in my household and my 00:40.840 --> 00:42.618 friend's household have noticed 00:42.618 --> 00:44.729 increasing um respiratory symptoms in 00:44.729 --> 00:47.830 our kids . So the runny noses and the , 00:47.840 --> 00:50.479 the coughs and sore throats are back . 00:50.490 --> 00:53.380 Yep . My son last week uh was too ill 00:53.389 --> 00:55.889 to go to school on his birthday . Um , 00:55.900 --> 00:58.799 so we kept him home and uh he had only 00:58.810 --> 01:00.921 been back to school , I think for 2.5 01:00.921 --> 01:03.088 weeks or something like that time , we 01:03.088 --> 01:04.866 tested him for COVID and he was 01:04.866 --> 01:07.032 negative . Um So that was useful . But 01:07.032 --> 01:09.254 um we managed him at home until he felt 01:09.254 --> 01:11.610 better . Um He still kind of has that 01:11.620 --> 01:13.842 lingering cough , you know how kids get 01:13.842 --> 01:16.580 and feeling , kind of sorry for himself 01:16.610 --> 01:19.209 with how annoying it has been . Yeah . 01:19.220 --> 01:21.276 So it is for an opportunity to think 01:21.276 --> 01:23.609 about . What can we do . Right . I mean , 01:23.609 --> 01:26.019 certainly it's back to how can we , um , 01:26.029 --> 01:28.140 keep others from getting sick ? How , 01:28.140 --> 01:30.307 how can we keep ourselves from getting 01:30.307 --> 01:32.196 sick ? So , certainly when , um , 01:32.196 --> 01:34.196 you're sick or your kids are sick , 01:34.196 --> 01:36.140 keeping them home is , is great to 01:36.140 --> 01:38.307 prevent other kids from getting sick . 01:38.307 --> 01:40.418 Um , and that applies to us as well . 01:40.418 --> 01:42.696 So , if we're sick we should stay home . 01:42.696 --> 01:44.696 Um , and then to prevent sickness , 01:44.696 --> 01:46.918 certainly that , that hand washing . So 01:46.918 --> 01:48.862 that's something that we're always 01:48.862 --> 01:50.751 gonna talk about . The benefit of 01:50.751 --> 01:52.973 washing our hands . Yeah . So , washing 01:52.973 --> 01:55.251 your hands is the top thing you can do . 01:55.251 --> 01:56.973 Um , it's one of the layers of 01:56.973 --> 01:59.085 protection we have , I think not even 01:59.085 --> 02:01.140 having the transmission is best . It 02:01.140 --> 02:03.196 was a really difficult decision . My 02:03.196 --> 02:06.150 son was not fevering . Um , and I , and 02:06.160 --> 02:08.229 it was really inconvenient for us to 02:08.240 --> 02:10.351 keep him home from school . But , you 02:10.351 --> 02:13.360 know , ultimately it's , um , is better . 02:13.369 --> 02:15.690 They called about him at school that 02:15.699 --> 02:18.539 day , which was unusual . Um , I , I 02:18.550 --> 02:20.772 don't know why because usually , uh , I 02:20.772 --> 02:23.470 just get the automated call and I told 02:23.479 --> 02:25.812 the counselor that , um , he , you know , 02:25.812 --> 02:27.979 he was sick and she says , oh , well , 02:27.979 --> 02:30.839 maybe it was allergies . No . Yeah , 02:30.850 --> 02:33.039 it's not allergies . We know . What 02:33.050 --> 02:35.161 happens when kids go back to school , 02:35.161 --> 02:37.494 they get colds and they pass them along . 02:37.494 --> 02:39.494 Um , unfortunately , one of my , my 02:39.494 --> 02:41.717 son's friends came down with an illness 02:41.717 --> 02:43.939 very similar to Michael's . Um , and uh 02:43.939 --> 02:45.883 did have fevers and stuff , so not 02:45.883 --> 02:47.939 every kid is gonna have a fever . So 02:47.939 --> 02:50.106 don't use fever as a metric on when to 02:50.106 --> 02:52.272 stay home for you or your child . Um , 02:52.272 --> 02:54.494 if you think it might be allergies , it 02:54.494 --> 02:56.717 also might be um um a respiratory vital 02:56.717 --> 02:59.710 illness in addition to hand washing and 02:59.720 --> 03:01.970 certainly for , for those at highest 03:01.979 --> 03:04.201 risk , you , you know , if you're gonna 03:04.201 --> 03:06.610 be in crowded areas , you also may want 03:06.619 --> 03:09.029 to bring um back your , your mask and 03:09.039 --> 03:11.261 bring out your mask again . But I think 03:11.261 --> 03:13.483 this is a good opportunity to , to talk 03:13.483 --> 03:15.317 about vaccines . We do have some 03:15.317 --> 03:17.428 vaccines available um as we head into 03:17.428 --> 03:19.650 the fall and winter season seasons . So 03:19.650 --> 03:22.054 that's right . So um available uh on 03:22.065 --> 03:24.494 the in the community and not yet at 03:24.505 --> 03:26.449 programming Medical Center is this 03:26.449 --> 03:28.616 year's uh seasonal influenza vaccine . 03:28.616 --> 03:31.494 The seasonal influenza vaccine um is a 03:31.505 --> 03:33.616 recommendation we have for all of our 03:33.616 --> 03:36.054 patients . Um The CDC recommends that 03:36.065 --> 03:38.235 we administer it to patients prior to 03:38.244 --> 03:40.794 October 31st . So prior to Halloween , 03:41.244 --> 03:44.294 uh and I know that it is available uh 03:44.304 --> 03:47.919 with some of our civilian partners uh 03:47.929 --> 03:50.369 right now and that is an option if you 03:50.380 --> 03:52.436 want to get your flu shot . We don't 03:52.436 --> 03:55.919 have a due date or an expected arrival 03:55.929 --> 03:58.096 date of the influenza vaccine at Brook 03:58.096 --> 04:00.262 Army Medical Center . And when we do , 04:00.262 --> 04:02.440 we are going to make sure we provide 04:02.449 --> 04:04.616 those updates to the community through 04:04.616 --> 04:06.880 social media and other notifications . 04:07.162 --> 04:09.703 Yes , absolutely . And another exciting 04:09.712 --> 04:11.879 vaccine that we have available for the 04:11.879 --> 04:14.113 first time this year is the RSV vaccine 04:14.123 --> 04:16.345 for adult patients who are 60 years and 04:16.345 --> 04:18.863 older and especially those who are , 04:18.872 --> 04:21.453 who have additional health concerns . 04:21.463 --> 04:24.243 Their asthma . They have uh obstructive 04:24.252 --> 04:26.342 pulmonary disease . They have , they 04:26.352 --> 04:28.185 have an impaired immune system , 04:28.185 --> 04:30.265 chronic kidney disease , diabetes , 04:30.276 --> 04:32.387 heart disease . So basically a lot of 04:32.387 --> 04:34.436 things that most of um our older 04:34.446 --> 04:37.226 patients do um suffer from . Um they 04:37.235 --> 04:40.585 now have a , a vaccine that's one dose . 04:40.596 --> 04:42.596 Um There are two vaccines that have 04:42.596 --> 04:45.135 been approved for RSP um which is often 04:45.145 --> 04:47.075 thought of a of an infection that 04:47.085 --> 04:50.779 affects kids and Children . Um but we 04:50.790 --> 04:54.149 have seen a fair amount of pneumonia or 04:54.160 --> 04:56.799 lower respiratory disease and , and 04:56.809 --> 04:59.031 older adults . I'm really excited about 04:59.031 --> 05:01.253 this vaccine . Me too . I think it will 05:01.253 --> 05:03.420 also impact the community numbers . We 05:03.420 --> 05:05.531 see at least that's my hope . Um I've 05:05.531 --> 05:07.531 certainly seen my fair share of RSP 05:07.531 --> 05:09.587 pneumonia . Uh and the prevention is 05:09.587 --> 05:11.698 way better than the treatment for all 05:11.698 --> 05:13.809 of these viral illnesses . Um The RSV 05:13.809 --> 05:15.642 vaccine is available at civilian 05:15.642 --> 05:17.587 pharmacies . My parents are not be 05:17.587 --> 05:19.809 beneficiaries but they were able to get 05:19.809 --> 05:22.087 theirs at a civilian pharmacy recently . 05:22.087 --> 05:24.309 Um Once that became available . Um It's 05:24.309 --> 05:26.531 going through the approval process here 05:26.531 --> 05:29.209 at B MC . Uh And so uh we will also let 05:29.220 --> 05:31.220 you know when that is available and 05:31.220 --> 05:33.442 hopefully we can get it to you guys all 05:33.442 --> 05:35.553 this season . So we've got some great 05:35.553 --> 05:37.331 docs and pharmacists working on 05:37.331 --> 05:39.609 expediting that approval process . Yes . 05:39.609 --> 05:41.589 So we'll definitely um keep you 05:41.600 --> 05:44.035 informed and just for all vaccines , I 05:44.045 --> 05:45.712 think it's really important , 05:45.712 --> 05:47.378 especially these vaccines for 05:47.378 --> 05:49.489 respiratory viruses . Our goal really 05:49.489 --> 05:51.378 isn't to prevent you from getting 05:51.378 --> 05:53.795 infected um with that flu vaccine or 05:53.804 --> 05:56.494 that RSV vaccine or the COVID booster , 05:56.505 --> 05:59.184 it really is to um keep you from having 05:59.195 --> 06:02.075 severe disease . So we want to keep you 06:02.084 --> 06:04.575 out of the hospital . Um and at home 06:04.584 --> 06:06.795 with your family this um fall and 06:06.804 --> 06:08.964 winter . Yeah . So a cold is better 06:08.975 --> 06:10.919 than pneumonia and an asymptomatic 06:10.919 --> 06:12.919 infection is better than a cold for 06:12.919 --> 06:14.975 sure . Um So you mentioned the COVID 06:14.975 --> 06:17.086 booster . Yes . So , you know , we've 06:17.086 --> 06:19.570 had already multiple COVID boosters uh 06:19.579 --> 06:22.010 with multiple variants and now we're in 06:22.019 --> 06:24.390 the process of having the newest one 06:24.399 --> 06:26.809 evaluated and approved . Um So 06:26.820 --> 06:28.987 hopefully , I , I hear that perhaps it 06:28.987 --> 06:32.380 may be available um at large in , in 06:32.390 --> 06:34.910 the next week or so . I don't know when 06:35.040 --> 06:36.873 we will have it here brook every 06:36.873 --> 06:39.096 medical center , but again , as soon as 06:39.096 --> 06:41.207 we get it , uh we will let you know . 06:41.440 --> 06:44.010 Yes . Um So I'll be excited to see how 06:44.019 --> 06:46.630 that shapes up as Well , um people ask 06:46.640 --> 06:48.751 me what they should do to treat these 06:48.751 --> 06:50.473 illnesses . So we do have some 06:50.473 --> 06:52.869 antivirals um and antiviral strategies 06:52.880 --> 06:55.000 for influenza and for COVID . And if 06:55.010 --> 06:57.232 you're diagnosed with either of those , 06:57.232 --> 07:00.410 contact your PC M to see if you would 07:00.420 --> 07:02.642 be eligible or benefit from treatment . 07:02.739 --> 07:04.795 And I can , I just say I have really 07:04.795 --> 07:06.961 been loving talking to my PC M on MH S 07:06.961 --> 07:09.489 Genesis . Uh patient connect , I mean , 07:09.500 --> 07:11.649 they may not like it but um it's been 07:11.660 --> 07:14.079 pretty easy to get um a response 07:14.089 --> 07:18.040 without um um uh being impatient on the 07:18.049 --> 07:20.250 telephone . Same , same . I found it 07:20.260 --> 07:22.427 very helpful . So if you , I think the 07:22.427 --> 07:24.538 biggest challenge is probably logging 07:24.538 --> 07:26.260 on . So once you overcome that 07:26.260 --> 07:28.209 challenge , it's a great method to 07:28.220 --> 07:30.387 review your records and to communicate 07:30.387 --> 07:32.387 with your provider . So please take 07:32.387 --> 07:34.609 advantage of that . Now , if you're not 07:34.609 --> 07:36.331 eligible for an antiviral , so 07:36.331 --> 07:38.498 prevention is better um than treatment 07:38.500 --> 07:40.765 for these viruses and there's not good 07:40.774 --> 07:42.496 treatments for all patients or 07:42.496 --> 07:44.825 situations . Um uh People do ask me all 07:44.834 --> 07:47.001 the time , what should they do to make 07:47.001 --> 07:49.001 themselves feel better ? You know , 07:49.001 --> 07:51.167 should they take um ibuprofen , should 07:51.167 --> 07:53.112 they take acetaminophen ? So those 07:53.112 --> 07:55.278 would be things like Motrin or Tylenol 07:55.278 --> 07:57.501 or um others uh cough drops and vitamin 07:57.501 --> 07:59.445 C and Echinacea and all that . And 07:59.445 --> 08:01.612 really , I like to tell my patients to 08:01.612 --> 08:03.667 target the symptoms that bother them 08:03.667 --> 08:05.890 the most . Um Just so you don't have to 08:05.890 --> 08:07.945 take every single medication you can 08:07.945 --> 08:09.890 relieve the symptoms . That's most 08:09.890 --> 08:12.056 bothersome . So , your daytime symptom 08:12.056 --> 08:11.820 that's most bothersome might be 08:11.829 --> 08:14.051 different than your nighttime symptom . 08:14.051 --> 08:16.218 That's most bothersome . Yeah , that's 08:16.218 --> 08:18.273 great advice . Um , and again , with 08:18.273 --> 08:20.273 any , uh , illness infection , just 08:20.273 --> 08:22.273 make sure you stay hydrated and get 08:22.273 --> 08:25.079 rest . Definitely . So , um , my son I 08:25.089 --> 08:27.100 mentioned he , um , had his recent 08:27.109 --> 08:29.250 illness , his second cough drops down 08:29.260 --> 08:31.427 like their candy . So we probably have 08:31.427 --> 08:34.309 to divert from that strategy um because 08:34.320 --> 08:36.487 it's possible that he just wants to on 08:36.487 --> 08:38.431 cough drop . Oh , yes , yes . What 08:38.431 --> 08:40.431 flavor ? Cough drop ? I got a multi 08:40.431 --> 08:42.542 pack with a citrus flavor . So it has 08:42.542 --> 08:45.530 um three different citruses in it . Um 08:45.539 --> 08:47.595 I got , I opted for the name brand , 08:47.595 --> 08:49.595 which is so unlike me , but he's my 08:49.595 --> 08:51.761 youngest . So I guess I was a softie . 08:52.580 --> 08:54.691 Ok . All right . Well , those are the 08:54.691 --> 08:57.130 updates that we have and so , you know , 08:57.140 --> 08:59.549 just highlights um personal hygiene , 08:59.559 --> 09:01.559 staying home from work or school if 09:01.559 --> 09:03.448 you're sick . Um getting yourself 09:03.448 --> 09:05.849 tested in consideration of , you know , 09:05.859 --> 09:08.026 wearing masks and getting the vaccines 09:08.026 --> 09:10.192 when they're available uh to you or on 09:10.192 --> 09:13.340 the economy are the ways that we um uh 09:13.349 --> 09:15.530 conceptualize flu season and staying 09:15.539 --> 09:17.761 healthy during this respiratory illness 09:17.761 --> 09:19.817 season . And just one more plug . Um 09:19.817 --> 09:22.530 There are uh a tests available in uh 09:22.539 --> 09:24.719 many of the primary care clinics for 09:24.729 --> 09:26.785 home testing . So that's the antigen 09:26.785 --> 09:29.539 test . So , um if um if you feel like 09:29.549 --> 09:31.771 you need some home tests and you've run 09:31.771 --> 09:33.827 out , um , reach out to your primary 09:33.827 --> 09:36.049 care clinic and see , um , if they have 09:36.049 --> 09:38.820 any free to take home . Well , I guess 09:38.830 --> 09:41.150 that's all that we have . Um , I'm 09:41.159 --> 09:43.159 looking forward to the weekend . Of 09:43.159 --> 09:45.159 course , that the great thing about 09:45.159 --> 09:47.326 Friday facts is that we get to see you 09:47.326 --> 09:46.760 towards the end of the week . So 09:46.770 --> 09:48.881 hopefully everyone has a nice weekend 09:48.881 --> 09:51.048 as well . Yes . Have a great weekend . 09:51.048 --> 09:50.630 Bye guys .