Influenza

Influenza (the flu) is a contagious respiratory illness caused by influenza viruses. It can cause mild to severe illness, and at times can lead to death. The best way to prevent the flu is by getting a flu vaccination each year. Every year in the United States, on average 5% to 20% of the population gets the flu; more than 200,000 people are hospitalized from flu complications, and; about 36,000 people die from flu-related causes. Some people, such as older people, young children, and people with certain health conditions, are at high risk for serious flu complications.

Types of Influenza

Influenza is caused by three types of RNA viruses called influenza types A, B and C (considered different genera), which all belong to the family Orthomyxoviridae. The disease, colloquially called "flu" in humans, is generally caused by the viruses A and B, which are transmitted by aerosols from infected individuals or via close contact with infected animals.

Influenza Immunization

Influenza Epidemiology

Influenza Prognosis

Influenza Symptoms

Influenza Treatments

Influenza Pandemics

Influenza Research

Influenza Infection in Animals

Latest Influenza News and Research

About 10% patients with severe disease create auto-antibodies that attack the immune system

People infected by the novel coronavirus can have symptoms that range from mild to deadly. Now, two new analyses suggest that some life-threatening cases can be traced to weak spots in patients' immune systems.

25 Sep 2020

Faulty genes and an autoimmune condition linked to severe COVID-19 in young, healthy people

More than 10 percent of young and healthy people who develop severe COVID-19 have misguided antibodies that attack not the virus, but the immune system itself, new research shows. Another 3.5 percent, at least, carry a specific kind of genetic mutation.

25 Sep 2020

New studies report specific mechanisms of impaired type I interferon signaling in COVID-19 patients

Two new studies report specific mechanisms of impaired type I interferon (IFN) signaling in some hospitalized patients suffering from severe cases of COVID-19, suggesting that screens for these defects could help identify patients at the highest risk of life-threatening complications from SARS-CoV-2 infection.

25 Sep 2020

Individuals with severe forms of COVID-19 disease can have compromised type I interferon responses

Individuals with severe forms of COVID-19 disease can present with compromised type I interferon (IFN) responses based on their genetics, according to results published in two papers today in the journal Science.

25 Sep 2020

New study may explain why more men than women die from COVID-19

New findings by scientists at the National Institutes of Health and their collaborators help explain why some people with COVID-19 develop severe disease.

25 Sep 2020

New antibodies protect mice against lethal infections of influenza B virus

Researchers have identified two antibodies that protect mice against lethal infections of influenza B virus, report scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.

24 Sep 2020

Climate anomaly exacerbated WWI mortality and the Spanish flu pandemic

Scientists have spotted a once-in-a-century climate anomaly during World War I that likely increased mortality during the war and the influenza pandemic in the years that followed.

24 Sep 2020

Experimental cancer drug AR-12 inhibits SARS-CoV-2 virus

Nine months into the global pandemic, which has infected more than 32 million people, there is still no approved effective and safe drug or vaccine against the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

24 Sep 2020

AI used to define the cytokine storm implicated in fatal COVID-19

A new study published on the preprint server bioRxiv* in September 2020 reports the use of artificial intelligence (AI) to identify an invariant or universal host immune response found in all viral pandemics so far. The association of this response with severe COVID-19 phenotypes indicates a new understanding of the human immune response in viral pandemics.

24 Sep 2020

Aerosol-based study of COVID-19 risk indoors, and the impact of preventive measures

A recent study describes the estimated risk of COVID-19 transmission via aerosols in many different situations, as well as the expected reduction in risk associated with the use of various preventive measures.

24 Sep 2020

Elegant, efficient way to find recombinant SARS-CoV-2 viruses from >85,000 genomes

The low divergence of near-identical genomes that are sequenced in short periods presents a statistical challenge that is not addressed by methods available currently. In a recent bioRxiv** paper, Ales Varabyou et al. from John Hopkins University present an efficient method designed to detect recombination and reassortment events between clades of viral genomes – a new algorithm called ‘Bolotie’.

23 Sep 2020

New T-cell-based vaccine strategy provides broader protection against seasonal influenza

As Americans begin pulling up their sleeves for an annual flu vaccine, researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have provided new insights into an alternative vaccine approach that provides broader protection against seasonal influenza.

23 Sep 2020

Infants born to women with COVID-19 show few adverse outcomes

Infants born to women with COVID-19 showed few adverse outcomes, according to the first report in the country of infant outcomes through eight weeks of age.

23 Sep 2020

Common genetic variants may influence susceptibility to COVID-19

Researchers in the United States and Japan have conducted a study suggesting that a commonly occurring genetic variant influences susceptibility to infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the agent that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

23 Sep 2020

Research explains why flu is dangerous for pregnant women

A team of researchers at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) University explains why flu can lead to potentially fatal complications during pregnancy, suggesting that the virus does not only stay in the respiratory tract but spreads throughout the body.

22 Sep 2020

Parkinson's disease diagnosed after SARS-CoV-2

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread, new and unusual chronic sequelae of the disease are cropping up in many medical practices. Now, a new case paper published in The Lancet in September 2020 describes a case of new-onset Parkinson's disease following infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

22 Sep 2020

Researchers examine the impact of human movement on disease spread

Due to continual improvements in transportation technology, people travel more extensively than ever before. Although this strengthened connection between faraway countries comes with many benefits, it also poses a serious threat to disease control and prevention.

22 Sep 2020

Respiratory specimens testing positive for SARS-CoV-2 decrease in the U.S., CDC report

In the report, published on Sept. 18, the CDC shows that indicators tracking COVID-19 activity continued to decline or remain stable. Still, two regions say a slight increase in the percentage of specimens testing positive for SARS-CoV-2. Meanwhile, four regions reported a slight increase in the percent of outpatient or emergency department visits for influenza-like illness (ILI).

22 Sep 2020

COVID-19 mitigation efforts significantly decrease influenza activity

The mitigation strategies implemented to curb the spread of COVID-19 appears to reduce the transmission of influenza in the United States, Australia, Chile, and South Africa. These strategies may augment influenza vaccines, especially for high-risk populations during the seasonal influenza transmission.

21 Sep 2020

Flu vaccine does not increase a person's COVID-19 risk, finds study

A new Cleveland Clinic study has found that receiving the influenza vaccine does not increase a person's risk for contracting COVID-19 or worsen associated morbidity or mortality.

21 Sep 2020