Upper Respiratory Infections on the rise in Lubbock, TX

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Upper respiratory infections on rise in Lubbock http://www.lubbockonline.com/stories/011808/loc_237713241.shtml By Beth | AVALANCHE-JOURNAL Friday, January 18, 2008 Story last updated at 1/18/2008 - 2:13 am Local physicians and emergency room staff have seen their fair share of wheezing and coughing patients this winter. In Amarillo, Hartley Independent School District canceled school earlier this week because many teachers and students were sick with the flu. Lubbock residents, however, are battling flu-like symptoms that in many cases have been diagnosed as upper respiratory infections - or URIs, such as bronchitis or sinusitis. The flu hasn't hit Lubbock too hard yet. "In this part of the country when the gins stop operating, a lot more people come in with these types of ailments," said Dr. R. Long with Lakeridge Primary Health Center of the upper respiratory infections. Juli McCauley, clinical department administrator at Student Health Services at Texas Tech, said several students also have sought treatment for URIs. "When students have come into the clinic

over the last week since classes have started, URI symptoms have been a common complaint," she said. URIs typically cause soreness and a feeling of constriction or burning in the chest, sore throat, chest congestion, sinus fullness, breathlessness, wheezing, a slight fever and chills, according to the Mayo Clinic. Long said many people suffering from a URI sometimes also complain of ear pain, body aches and fatigue. Because URIs and the flu can have similar symptoms, Long said during flu season it is important for people to see a physician. "This time of year, if they have symptoms, I'd say get to your doctor quickly because there's a lot of overlap between that and the flu," he said. Dr. Joe Sasin, medical director for the emergency center at University Medical Center, said people with a fever of more than 102 degrees,

vomiting or severe pain should see a doctor immediately. But for the most part, the best way to treat a URI is to get plenty of rest and drink lots of fluids. Nonprescription cough medicines may make URI symptoms more bearable, according to the Mayo Clinic. Malindsey Bruggeman, a pharmacy technician at Caprock Discount Drug, Inc., said the pharmacy has been selling large amounts of over-the-counter cough medicine, as it does every cold and flu season, to people looking to quell URI symptoms. Sasin and Long agreed the best way to prevent URIs is for people to cover their mouths when they cough and to wash their hands regularly. And it is likely flu will soon hit the South Plains in full force, Sasin said. "It always hits about mid-January," he said. "It's probably been the same for five to six years." To

comment on this story: beth.phillips@... 766-8713 shelly.gonzales@... 766-8747 This story first appeared on our Web site at 4:44 p.m. Thursday.A journey is like marriage. The certain way to be wrong is to think youcontrol it. - Steinbeck

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