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Treatment & Prevention of Influenza

Symptomatic treatment

A number of over-the-counter (OTC) products containing analgesics, antihistamines and decongestants can be used to relieve the symptoms of influenza. [1] However, such products have no effects on viral replication and disease course. Selection of an appropriate OTC medication depends on patient preference. 

Antihistamines are commonly used for relief of nasal symptoms such as sneezing, runny nose and stuffiness. However, there is little evidence to support their effectiveness, and their action on mucus membranes may actually impair the flow of mucus. Nevertheless, some patients do claim benefits in nasal symptoms from antihistamine use, and the sedating effects of first-generation agents may help when symptoms interfere with sleep.

Decongestants produce short-term relief of influenza symptoms, such as nasal congestion and, to a lesser degree, rhinorrhoea. These drugs have alpha-agonist effects, which produce vasoconstriction of the nasal mucosa. Local (topical) administration is associated with rapid development of tachyphylaxis and rebound congestion (rhinitis medicamentosa).

Analgesics such as paracetamol or aspirin are quite effective for the relief of common influenza symptoms such as fever, sore throat, headache, myalgia and arthralgia. Aspirin should never be used to relieve symptoms of influenza in children younger than 16 years due to the risk of Reye’s syndrome. Sore throat may also be relieved by use of throat

  1. Hulisz D. Symptomatic treatment of the common cold and influenza. Pharmacy Times, October 2001. Available here.
  • "I would describe flu as something that makes you feel very, very ill. You get a headache, aching bones, and are generally fed up"
  • "When I get flu symptoms I feel like a train has run over me"
  • "I felt very sick and, during the first week, I had high temperature. Flu was very different to a cold. I went back to work after two and a half weeks. Then I suffered a setback for another week"
  • "I run a guesthouse; flu would be a real pest for me. I couldn’t cook, I shouldn’t cook, and I wouldn’t cook, so I would need to get a lot of extra help in. It would cost me a lot more money. So flu’s a real problem, a right downturn"
  • "I work on my own and when I can’t work, I have to try not to infect my little children, so they avoid getting the flu as well"
  • "I feel a little numb, like I’m in another dimension. Because in general I have sore throat, headache, I feel all clogged-up. Usually a sensation like I’m floating in the air"
  • "Shivers, sweats, makes you ache. Last time I had flu I was off for two weeks"
  • "I think that I would probably be concerned that I would pass flu onto my children, who might not be able to deal with it as well as I would"
  • "Flu makes you feel like you’ve been hit over the head with a baseball bat. You don’t feel like you can get yourself out of bed as all your energy is drawn from you"
  • "I was incapable of working. It just wasn’t possible at all… and my flu dragged on for more than a week"
  • "I have no strength. It annoys me because I can do nothing, it seems like I’m wasting my time"
  • "Flu’s like being hit by a truck because you feel completely gone. There is no energy left in your body. You are suffering from high temperature. You’re sweating a lot and you feel really unwell"
  • "First of all infinite tiredness, then I feel like sleeping and don’t want to eat"
  • "I felt really miserable because my muscles and my bones were aching. Well, I can hardly describe it, I just felt really awful, absolutely miserable"
  • "It’s like there’s something huge treading on your head, like a deafening noise that destroys the eardrums"
  • "The fever was constantly rising – I immediately measured my temperature as soon as I got home. It was 41°C and it kept rising and I was wondering what’s going on. I was really scared! Everything was hurting and it all happened so fast. Flu came out of the blue"
  • "I always feel like my limbs have iron weights tied to them and I’m going to fall over any minute, a really stuffy runny nose and feel antisocial"
  • "I was totally dependent on others! I was incapable of doing anything at all"
  • "The real flu knocks you for six – you just don’t want to move or do anything. It’s not very nice"
  • "Not being able to go to work. Not being able to do the things I have to do at home and the commitments that I have day by day"