How to check if it’s swine flu or a seasonal allergy?

Symptoms of swine flu includes:

1. Runny or stuffy nose
2. Fatigue
3. Sore throat
4. Cough
5. High fever with chills
6. Chest congestion
7. Extreme tiredness
8. Headache
9. Diarrhoea and vomiting ( especially in kids)

If the above symptoms persist for more than 3-4 days and do not respond to symptomatic treatment one must raise the suspicion about swine flu when there is an epidemic.

Where as symptoms of allergies include:

1. Cough
2. Itchy throat
3. Runny or stuffy nose
4. Headache
5. Sneezing
6. Hives (red and itchy bumps on skin)
7. Itchy and dry eyes

If the above symptoms persist for more than 3-4 days and do not respond to symptomatic treatment one must raise the suspicion about swine flu when there is an epidemic.

Symptoms only associated with swine flu: 

1. Allergies do not cause fever and without fever, you do not have the swine flu.
2. Another symptom in swine flu is body aches. This is also very unusual with seasonal allergies.
3. Deteriorating respiratory complaints and difficulty and shortness of breath should raise alarm to suspect swine flu.

A runny nose and congested sinuses, even if combined with coughing, are not signs of swine flu. If these are your symptoms, you likely have either allergies or possibly a sinus infection.

People at higher risk of serious complications from seasonal flu include:

1. People aged 65 years and above.
2. Children younger than 5 years old, however in an epidemic age factor is irrelevant.
3. Pregnant women.
4. People of any age with chronic medical conditions (such as asthma, diabetes or heart diseases).
5. People who are immunosuppressed (e.g. taking immunosuppressive medications or infected with HIV).