As flu season approaches, the Arkansas Department of Health is encouraging all Arkansans to get this year's flu vaccine.
Dr. Appathurai Balamurugan, more commonly known as "Dr. Bala," is the acting chief medical officer at the Department of Health.
"As we are dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic we don't want to have a double whammy effect of people having both COVID-19 and flu at the same time," Dr. Bala explained.
Flu season typically lasts from October to March in the U.S., but over in the Southern Hemisphere, it's happening right now. Dr. Bala said it's hard to predict what the flu will look like this year, because the strain changes from year-to-year, but there is a sign of hope in Australia.
"They seem to have a lighter flu season, but it is hard to predict if that's the same thing we are going to be having," Bala said.
Last year, Arkansas saw more than 100 flu-related deaths. As of Tuesday, August 11th in the state, 566 people have died of coronavirus.
"We don't know the overall mortality due to COVID-19 because we are still in the pandemic, but so far what we know is, it is much more severe than flu," Dr. Bala said.
Both coronavirus and the flu have a lot of similarities, according to Dr. Bala. They share symptoms like cough, runny nose and shortness of breath, and are transmitted in the same way.
"Both COVID-19 and flu are viral infections, and they are spread through droplets, and through fomites and also through the air," Bala said.
The incubation period for the flu, however, tends to happen within a day of acquiring the infection, while COVID-19 typically takes three to five days before symptoms are visible.
"It is important if people have any of these symptoms, regardless of flu or COVID-19, they need to see their doctor to get tested and treated accordingly," Dr. Bala said.
Although we're still waiting on a vaccine for the coronavirus, Dr. Bala said there will be a vaccine for this year's strain of the flu. Luckily, Dr. Bala said prevention efforts like good hand hygiene, social distancing, and wearing a mask also protect against the flu.
"Prevention is always better than cure," Dr. Bala said, "I think the good news is they don't need to do anything special preparation for flu except for getting flu vaccine."
Dr. Bala said individuals who do not typically get the flu vaccine should seriously reconsider this year.
"You don't want to run out of luck, you may be one-off, but you may also be the one person who gets really sick," Bala said.
Studies have shown that individuals who get the flu vaccine have less symptoms if they contract the infection, and a shorter duration of being sick than those who do not, according to Bala. He also said historical data has shown that the flu vaccine decreases the number of hospitalizations and deaths.
"We encourage all Arkansans to receive their annual flu vaccination this year, more than any time in the past," Dr. Bala said.
Right now, the state is seeing a downward trend in COVID-19 cases. Dr. Bala hopes to see the trend continue, but knows there is no way of knowing what the next few months will bring.
"We need to, as people, be prepared in the event we have another peak of COVID-19 or surge of hospitalization, that we can protect ourselves at least from flu," Dr. Bala said, "So we can have the hospital beds and others needed for COVID-19, where we don't have a vaccine at present."
The flu vaccine is recommended for people 2-years-old and older. The Arkansas Department of Health is expected to announce when this year's vaccine will be available soon.
"We want people to lead a productive, healthy life and one way to do that is get the age-appropriate vaccination, and keeping up with their health and well being," Dr. Bala said.
