Well after the COVID pandemic, NZ’s respiratory virus landscape remains unsettled. if you’re over 65, COVID and flu vaccines remain a priority.
Articles on Respiratory viruses
Displaying 1 - 20 of 29 articles
A particularly infectious subvariant of influenza is keeping emergency room numbers high and causing especially severe illness in children.
If you have COVID or the flu, you’ll want to stay home and recover. But what about if your symptoms are mild? Here’s what to consider.
Catching the flu or COVID can trigger a heart attack or stroke in vulnerable people. Here’s what we can all do to lower our risk.
The current triple epidemic of respiratory viruses is affecting all age groups, prompting comparisons with the pre-COVID-19 era.
Cases of the flu and COVID are set to rise over winter, with many people looking to get vaccinated against both viruses.
To combat the decline in immunity as we age, specific boosters are available for people aged over 65. Here’s how they work, and why they are needed.
As people flock back to offices and pack public transport, we’re seeing more cases of the flu than in recent years. The flu shot isn’t perfect but it cuts your chance of being hospitalised.
Similar to the patterns seen with COVID-19, flu and RSV, HMPV is making a comeback after years of being repressed by people wearing masks and social distancing.
Here’s why it’s taken so long to develop a vaccine for respiratory syncytial virus and what we can expect next.
Evidence-based tools for dialectical behaviour therapy can help us manage family stressors during the virulent respiratory virus season.
‘Tis the season… for coughs, colds and COVID, it seems. So what should you do if you find yourself with symptoms on Christmas Day?
When it comes to reducing the spread of COVID, ventilation is often an afterthought. But cleaner air needs to be front and centre of our COVID mitigation strategy. Here’s why.
As visits to emergency departments surge — and in some cases overwhelm hospitals — here are answers to frequently asked questions about Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).
In 2020, with adult ICUs at risk of being overwhelmed, we wore masks and accepted restrictions. Now pediatric intensive care is at risk. Will leaders follow the evidence and tell us to mask up?
Respiratory viruses are hitting young children and infants particularly hard this fall and winter season, and experts don’t yet know exactly why.
Flu and COVID-19 are expected to make headway during the current respiratory virus season. The best way to stay healthy is vaccination in conjunction with personal protective measures.
While a strong immune response is essential to fight against viral infection, an immune system that continues to stay active long after the virus has been cleared can lead to lung damage.
Chickenpox has largely disappeared from the public’s memory thanks to a highly effective vaccine. But the virus’s clever life cycle allows it to reappear in later adulthood in the form of shingles.
As international borders open, restrictions ease and we mingle with others, we can expect more germs to circulate.
Top contributors
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Honorary Fellow Nossal Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases Physician, The University of Melbourne
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David King is a Friend of The Conversation.
Senior Lecturer in General Practice, The University of Queensland
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Medical Epidemiologist at the National Institute of Communicable Diseases and Lecturer at the School of Public Health, University of the Witwatersrand
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Lecturer in Virology, Queen's University Belfast
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Associate Professor, Pediatric Infectious Diseases, University of Saskatchewan
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Senior Lecturer; MD, Victoria University
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Postdoctoral Research Fellow, RMIT University
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Professor, Infectious Diseases and Microbiology, The University of Queensland
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Professor of Medicine, Epidemiologist, Physician, McMaster University
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Associate Professor of Epidemiology, Texas A&M University
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Scientia Professor, Faculty of Medicine and Health, UNSW
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Section Head, Pediatric Emergency Medicine and Associate Professor, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Manitoba
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Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology, University of Manitoba
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General Practitioner, PhD Candidate, Bond University
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Professor (Human Geography), University of Zululand