Influenza is a viral infection that affects mainly the nose, throat, bronchi and, occasionally, lungs. Infection usually lasts for about a week, and is characterized by sudden onset of high fever, aching muscles, headache and severe malaise, non-productive cough, sore throat and rhinitis. The virus is transmitted easily from person to person via droplets and small particles produced when infected people cough or sneeze. Influenza tends to spread rapidly in seasonal epidemics.
Most infected people recover within one to two weeks without requiring medical treatment. However, in the very young, the elderly, and those with other serious medical conditions, infection can lead to severe complications of the underlying condition, pneumonia and death.
About the Influenza Virus
- Weekly Influenza Situation Report
- Influenza Vaccine
- Influenza in the Region
- Influenza: Guidelines and Recommendations
- Influenza and other Respiratory Viruses under Surveillance, 2010-2018
- Mandates and Resolutions, 2010 - Influenza (Pandemic outbreak)
- Questions and Answers: Influenza, Animal Influenza and Pandemic (H1N1) 2009 General Public Information
- Pandemic (H1N1) 2009 - Questions and Answers on Post-Pandemic
Influenza topics
- Avian influenza A (H7N9) virus
- National Influenza Centers
- Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV)
- Publication: Influenza and Other Respiratory Virus Surveillance Systems in the Americas 2014
- Respiratory Disease Surveillance in the Americas SARInet Inaugural Meeting 2014
- Videos: Proper use of PPE, Sample Collection, and Packaging
Influenza and Other Respiratory Virus Surveillance Systems in the Americas
Link to Influenza and Other Respiratory Virus Surveillance Systems in the Americas
Online Courses
- WHO Influenza online courses
- WHO Influenza online courses (In French)
- Intensified national SARI surveillance training
- Laboratory training in the epidemiology of influenza
- Capacitación en prevención de infecciones en los servicios de salud con enfoque en las enfermedades respiratorias (In Spanish)