We need your help: Terrible Flu arrives earlier than cyclone

[wyq614]

Now I'm going to tell you something that is happening among us. Since 3 days ago, a terrible flu broke out among the Chinese students studying Spanish in the town of Cojimar. Last night, more than 50 of 121 were affected by the flu and 30 of them were isolated because their syndromes were more serious, and the number decreased to 25 by the time I write this thread.

Our syndrome are different. Some have serious headache, some have ache in their throat, and some don't feel well in their stomach. But we do have something in common: We all have fevers. My temperature is 37.3 degrees centigrade last night, but the temperature of some student was as high as 39 degrees last night.

As to me, Yesterday I had headache, but now my headache stops, instead, I have ache around my left eye and the pain makes me drop tears. I don't have more syndrome now. I believe that I'm feeling better gradually.

But why did this disease spread so rapidly? We now have two hipotesis, I'm asking help in order to know our hipotesis are right or no.

- Some students believe that the high frequency of the vaccine that we had last month destroyed our immune system. Last month, the Cubans in the school gave us totally 9 different kinds of vaccines in 30 days. The last 2 vaccines were given simultaneously. Meanwhile, our immune system got no chance to have a rest, because of so many vaccines, and what's more, we often stayed up talking with our families in China due to time difference.

- Some believe, as they said that they consulted someone who studies biology, that theoretically, a virus cannot spread that fast, they believe that we had somehow used infected knife and folk, due to their failure to wash them well, when we have dinners (we have dinners in dining hall and the knife and folks are offered and washed by the Cubans).

Despite that we enjoy free medical care here in Cuba, I'm asking for another help because we doubt the method the Cubans adopt to cure us. For example, for those who were isolated, the Cuban nurses refused to offer medicines to the students whose temperature was lower than 38 degrees centigrade. We wonder if this kind of medical care is correct.

I hope that friends with good medical knowledge would help us answer this questions and give us some suggestions to follow in order to allow us to feel better and get rid of the flu as soon as possible.

wyq614 in Cojimar, Cuba.

[CajunMama]

The flu bug is indiscriminate and doesn't care who or how many he infects. In my house one year my husband and both kids had the flu at the same time but i never got it.

Did y'all get a flu shot with all the vaccines?

I hope you feel better soon.

[Derek Ortt]

giving medictaion for the flu can lead to drug resistant strains of the flu (and other virii/bacteria)

they seem to be holding it back for those who really need it

[wyq614]

The flu bug is indiscriminate and doesn't care who or how many he infects. In my house one year my husband and both kids had the flu at the same time but i never got it.

Did y'all get a flu shot with all the vaccines?

I hope you feel better soon.

Well, we didn't get a flu shot, instead, we got some shot to defend us from some tropical diseases, and there are some shots that even we don't know what they are because we haven't learned so many Spanish medical terms.

[Aslkahuna]

It may seem counterintuitive, but Influenza is very common in the Tropics-in fact most of the rapid mutations of the virus occur in Tropical Asia. Flu spreads very rapidly among people and usually when one goes to a Tropical area the first thing you get is either a very vicious cold or a really nasty case of the flu. Believe me, I know from experience in the Philippines.

Steve

[TexasSam]

Sounds a lot like one of the norwalk viruses...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norovirus

[Ptarmigan]

It may seem counterintuitive, but Influenza is very common in the Tropics-in fact most of the rapid mutations of the virus occur in Tropical Asia. Flu spreads very rapidly among people and usually when one goes to a Tropical area the first thing you get is either a very vicious cold or a really nasty case of the flu. Believe me, I know from experience in the Philippines.

Steve

I know influenza tends to cycle in Asia. Flu happens usually in the winter in America and sometimes in really dry summers.

[Dionne]

I would suggest taking a closer look at your water supply. Are you receiving you water from cistern trucks or from a reservoir? Recent flooding from hurricanes hitting Cuba increases the risk of water borne disease.