Flu In Kane County: What To Do If You Or Loved One Gets Sick

KANE COUNTY, IL — Between Feb. 2 and Feb. 8, the percentage of emergency room visits due to widespread flu slightly increased across Kane County. According to the Kane County Health Department's Weekly Influenza Surveillance Summary released Friday, a reported 13.2 percent of hospital emergency room visits were for influenza-like illness in Kane County last week, a .1 percent increase from the the last week of January.

However, infants and young children up to 4 years old made up 20.7 percent of visits for flu-like illness to reporting emergency rooms, the health department said, adding that this percentage is down .1 percent from 20.8 percent during the previous week.

County health officials said the influenza absenteeism rate for public schools in Kane County last week was 0.90 percent, however no public school was closed due the increased flu activity.

County health officials added that as of the week ending Feb. 8, there have been 32 flu-related ICU admissions reported to the health department, and to date, two flu outbreaks have been reported in long-term care/assisted living facilities in Kane County

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently shared steps to take if you or a loved one gets the flu:

• When caring for people sick with flu, avoid being face to face with the person and wash your hands with soap and water right away, and often.
• If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand rub.
• If caring for a sick child, place their chin on your shoulder when holding them so they will not cough in your face.
• People experiencing severe symptoms should obtain medical care right away.

The CDC also reports that during most seasons, about 80 percent of children who die are not vaccinated. The agency cited a study that says the vaccine reduces the risk of death among healthy children by 65 percent and among children with a high-risk condition by 50 percent.

More from Patch:

• Kane Co. Health Officials Monitor Deadly Coronavirus
• Big Jump In Flu Cases In Illinois, Nationally
• America's Health Rankings 2019: Where Illinois Ranks

It takes about two weeks for the vaccine to provide protection against the flu. You can find more information about the flu vaccine and its benefits here.

You can use the CDC's flu vaccine finder to locate a pharmacy or clinic near you that provides the vaccine.

According to the CDC, symptoms of the flu include:

• Fever or feeling feverish/chills (although not everyone with flu will have a fever)
• Cough
• Sore throat
• Runny or stuffy nose
• Muscle or body aches
• Headaches
• Fatigue (tiredness)
• Some people may have vomiting and diarrhea, although this is more common in children than adults.

More information and updates from this past week: kanehealth.com