{"id":9634,"date":"2025-01-10T17:03:15","date_gmt":"2025-01-10T17:03:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/?p=9634"},"modified":"2025-01-10T17:03:15","modified_gmt":"2025-01-10T17:03:15","slug":"staying-safe-from-the-quad-emic-of-the-flu-rsv-covid-19-and-the-norovirus","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/staying-safe-from-the-quad-emic-of-the-flu-rsv-covid-19-and-the-norovirus\/","title":{"rendered":"Staying Safe from the Quad-emic of the flu, RSV, COVID-19, and the Norovirus"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/GettyImages-1124732633.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-9635 alignright\" src=\"https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/GettyImages-1124732633-300x201.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"201\" srcset=\"https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/GettyImages-1124732633-300x201.jpg 300w, https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/GettyImages-1124732633-1024x686.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/GettyImages-1124732633-768x515.jpg 768w, https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/GettyImages-1124732633-1536x1029.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/GettyImages-1124732633-2048x1372.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/GettyImages-1124732633-448x300.jpg 448w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a>Winter is usually a prime season for flu and RSV cases to rise. However, in recent years, COVID-19 and norovirus infections have been added to the list of winter illnesses creating a \u201cquad-emic\u201d. A quad-emic means these four viral illnesses are spreading simultaneously.<\/p>\n<p>It is important to know when you, a loved one, or a child are showing signs and symptoms of any of the four illnesses to seek immediate care. These contagious viruses can cause health complications and hospitalization, especially for those in high-risk populations if they are left untreated. High-risk people include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Children<\/li>\n<li>Elderly people<\/li>\n<li>Pregnant women<\/li>\n<li>Those with preexisting health conditions such as asthma and heart conditions<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Influenza is a highly contagious viral respiratory tract infection that can cause severe illness and life-threatening complications (including pneumonia). Flu cases typically rise in the winter. A flu vaccine reduces the risk of infection, but it is still possible to get the flu if stronger strains form or if you are considered high-risk.<\/p>\n<p>COVID-19 is a respiratory tract infection caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus. It is highly contagious and symptoms vary from person to person. Even if you are vaccinated or have immunity from a past infection, you may still be at risk as new variants form.<\/p>\n<p>Respiratory syncytial virus or RSV, is a common respiratory virus that infects the nose, throat, and lungs. RSV symptoms are similar to COVID-19 and the flu and are very dangerous for infants, young children, and older adults.<\/p>\n<p>Norovirus, also known as the stomach flu causes vomiting and diarrhea and is extremely contagious.<\/p>\n<p>Symptoms of the quad-emic illnesses include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Fever<\/li>\n<li>Coughing<\/li>\n<li>Shortness of breath<\/li>\n<li>Diarrhea<\/li>\n<li>Vomiting<\/li>\n<li>Runny nose<\/li>\n<li>Body aches<\/li>\n<li>Sore throat<\/li>\n<li>Headache<\/li>\n<li>Loss of taste or smell<\/li>\n<li>Fatigue<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Treatment will vary by severity of the symptoms and by diagnosis. Some cases can be treated at home with over-the-counter medications, but others may need prescription medication. Your healthcare provider will advise you on the best treatment plan. If you are considered high-risk, they will monitor your symptoms to ensure they aren\u2019t getting worse.<\/p>\n<p>Ways to help to reduce the risk of infection include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Practicing good hygiene such as washing your hands<\/li>\n<li>Covering your mouth when coughing or sneezing<\/li>\n<li>Staying isolated if you are feeling sick to avoid spreading it to others<\/li>\n<li>Getting vaccinated for the flu and COVID-19<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If you are experiencing any of these quad-emic illness symptoms, visit Flushing Hospital Medical Center\u2019s\u00a0Ambulatory Care Center. To schedule an appointment, please call (718) 670-5486. If there is an emergency, please call 911.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"disclaimer\">All content of this newsletter is intended for general information purposes only and is not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.  Please consult a medical professional before adopting any of the suggestions on this page.   You must never disregard professional medical advice or delay seeking medical treatment based upon any content of this newsletter.<strong>  PROMPTLY CONSULT YOUR PHYSICIAN OR CALL 911 IF YOU BELIEVE YOU HAVE A MEDICAL EMERGENCY.<\/strong> <\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Winter is usually a prime season for flu and RSV cases to rise. However, in recent years, COVID-19 and norovirus infections have been added to the list of winter illnesses creating a \u201cquad-emic\u201d. A quad-emic means these four viral illnesses &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/staying-safe-from-the-quad-emic-of-the-flu-rsv-covid-19-and-the-norovirus\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1962,5,1,510,14,617,3,1161,756,4],"tags":[1978,1696,1286,2348,2152,2347,613],"class_list":["post-9634","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-covid-19","category-general-health","category-health","category-lifestyle","category-mens-health","category-parenting","category-pediatric-care","category-seasonal","category-trending-topic","category-womens-health","tag-covid-19","tag-flu-season","tag-norovirus","tag-quad-emic","tag-rsv","tag-staying-safe-from-the-quad-emic","tag-virus"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9634","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/16"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9634"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9634\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9636,"href":"https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9634\/revisions\/9636"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9634"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9634"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9634"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}