Northwest Iowa — One of the first couple of flu-related deaths of the 2019-2020 flu season was someone from northwest Iowa.
The Iowa Department of Public Health doesn’t specify what they consider “northwest Iowa,” and they don’t identify the person, except to say she was an elderly northwest Iowa woman over the age of 81. Another person — an older woman between 61 and 80 years of age from central Iowa also died recently from flu-related causes. Both women had underlying conditions or contributing factors, according to the health department.
They tell us that flu activity in Iowa has increased to local spread this week, indicating that the virus is present in Iowa communities. IDPH Medical Director Dr. Caitlin Pedati says these deaths are an unfortunate reminder that flu can be a serious illness. She says that the flu virus does have the potential to cause severe illness and death, especially in the very young, very old, or those who have underlying health conditions. She says, “This is a great time to get the flu vaccine to prevent yourself and your loved ones from becoming sick before flu activity increases further.”
The Centers for Disease Control recommends that essentially everyone over 6 months of age should receive the flu vaccine. It takes up to two weeks after vaccination for the body to achieve full benefit against the flu virus.
The health department says the flu is a respiratory illness caused by viruses. Symptoms may include fever, headache, tiredness, cough, sore throat, nasal congestion, and body aches. Illness typically lasts two to seven days and often puts healthy people in bed for days.
To learn more about influenza in Iowa, visit http://idph.iowa.gov/influenza. The health department suggests that you contact your health care provider or local health department to find out where the vaccine is available in your community or use the Flu Vaccine Finder at https://vaccinefinder.org.
