In the last decade, viruses have presented many surprises to humanity: shortly before the COVID-19 pandemic, in 2016, there was a pandemic of swine flu A (H1N1) in the world, which took the lives of more than two hundred and fifty thousand people. How to identify a dangerous disease and how swine flu differs from other types of flu, we tell in the article.
In the last decade, viruses have presented humanity with many surprises: shortly before the COVID-19 pandemic, in 2016, the world experienced a pandemic of swine flu A(H1N1) , which claimed the lives of more than two hundred and fifty thousand people 1 . In this article, we will tell you how to identify a dangerous disease and how swine flu differs from other types of flu.
Why is swine flu called that?
Influenza pathogens are RNA-containing viruses. They affect not only humans, but also birds, livestock, and wild animals. Influenza viruses are very changeable and mutate easily, so the number of virus subtypes is constantly growing 1 .
Flu viruses are divided into three serotypes – A, B and C, transmitted mainly by airborne droplets. Each serotype has different strains. Special surface proteins help to distinguish one strain from another: hemagglutinin (H) and neuraminidase (N). There are 18 different H proteins and 11 N proteins. It is because of their mutations that the family of flu viruses is constantly replenished with new representatives. Scientists assign a number 3 to each variety of these proteins . Thus, a strain gets a name, for example, swine flu “flu A, H1N1”, or A (H1N1).
We’ve sorted out the letter code, but why is flu called swine? The fact is that A(H1N1) arose from the combination of genetic material particles of human, bird and pig flu viruses 1 . The causative agent of swine flu is the key link in this chain. This is where the name of the disease comes from.
How to distinguish swine flu from regular flu and other viruses
Wariness about swine flu is understandable. In 2009–2010, the H1N1 strain caused the swine flu pandemic, which spread to more than 70 countries 2 . A pandemic is an outbreak of a disease that covers a large area, usually several continents and sometimes the entire globe. But thanks to vaccination and modern treatments, complications are now less common 3 .
How can you tell swine flu from other types of flu? Strictly speaking, there is no such thing as “common flu”. This disease is caused by different strains of the virus, which are constantly mutating. A(H1N1) is one of the varieties and stages of the virus development.
Symptoms
Unfortunately, it is impossible to distinguish A(H1N1) from other types of flu only by external manifestations. They will be very similar 3 :
● sudden onset of chills and fever;
● body aches;
● headache;
● pain when moving the eyeballs;
● dry cough.
Perhaps the only difference between swine flu and other types is the frequent occurrence of diarrhea. But it does not always occur 3 .
But it is quite possible to understand that you are dealing not with a banal ARVI, but with the flu. ARVI is characterized by a slow onset with a gradual increase in body temperature. The flu begins rapidly, with symptoms of intoxication coming to the fore: malaise, weakness, fever. In addition, the flu is usually more severe than ARVI.
In 2022, Nobazit® Forte was included in the clinical guidelines of the Russian Ministry of Health for combating influenza 3 . The active substance of the drug, enisamium iodide, has proven its effectiveness against a wide range of different strains of the influenza virus in studies conducted in the USA (Illinois Institute of Technology) 5 and Russia (Pasteur Research Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology) 6 . The maximum concentration of the active substance in the blood is observed already 2–2.5 hours after taking Nobazit® Forte. Enisamium iodide reduces the symptoms of viral intoxication and helps to reduce the duration of the disease 7 .
The type of pathogen that caused the disease can be determined with complete certainty using PCR diagnostics. But it is only performed in severe cases of infection and in people who are at risk.
Possible complications
A(H1N1) is characterized by complications that are also observed with other types of influenza 3 :
● pneumonia;
● sinusitis;
● otitis;
● neurological disorders;
● pyelonephritis and pyelocystitis.
Briefly about the main thing
➢ In medicine, swine flu is usually designated as A(H1N1). The letter indicates the type of virus, and the number indicates the type of its protein.
➢ Swine flu was named because part of the genome of the swine flu virus was included in the general genome of the strain.
➢ It is difficult to distinguish swine flu from other types of flu based on symptoms alone. One possible symptom is diarrhea, but not all patients experience it.
➢ Flu differs from ARVI by its rapid onset, pronounced symptoms of intoxication and the rare presence of a runny nose and sore throat.
➢ For the treatment of influenza and acute respiratory viral infections, the domestic drug Nobazit® Forte with the active ingredient enisamium iodide is used.
