By Lori Ehde
Physicians and staff at Luverne Medical Center are dealing with what they're calling an outbreak of Influenza A.
Since last week, they're seeing several new cases each day and the numbers are increasing.
According to Dr. Diane Kennedy, symptoms are characterized by a sudden onset of a high fever, body aches and coughing.
"They can just about tell me the exact time they got sick, because it comes on so fast," Kennedy said.
What makes the illness so debilitating, she said, is that symptoms typically linger for five to seven days.
School staff in Luverne are seeing increasing absenteeism due to Influenza A.
According to School Nurse Deb Vander Kooi, the district has an average daily absenteeism of 20 to 24 out of its roughly 1,300 students.
On Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday this week, 62 to 64 students in K-12 were out sick with Influenza A.
As of Tuesday afternoon, Hills-Beaver Creek schools, had not seen flu-related absenteeism.
Kennedy said an anti-viral medication is sometimes prescribed for flu patients. "It can blunt the severity of the illness in appropriate patients if initiated within 48 hours of the onset of symptoms," she said.
She hesitated to call the medication a treatment because it has notable side affects, but at times she also prescribes it for family members of those sick with Influenza A.
As with most contagious illnesses, the most effective treatment is prevention. Kennedy urged sick people to stay home and parents of sick children to keep their children home from school and day care centers.
The good news, she said, is that people who were immunized for Influenza A are fending off the illness. The ones diagnosed so far are those who did not get the shot.
"It appears the vaccine has been effective," Kennedy said.