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PCCSF’s Dr. Greissman Discusses Meningitis with HealthyWay

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What may seem as a normal cold or flu could instead be the potentially life-threatening infection, meningitis. Because it’s important to act quickly, patients should understand the telltale signs of meningitis and take the appropriate medical action. Dr. Allan Greissman of Pediatric Critical Care of South Florida shared with HealthyWay what symptoms patients should look out for.

Everyone gets sick from time to time. But sometimes, what we think of as a normal cold or flu might actually be far more dangerous. With flu season fast approaching, it’s important to understand and recognize the difference between normal illness and more serious conditions.

If flu-like symptoms come on and escalate quickly, it may mean you or a loved one has actually contracted meningitis. Meningitis is an infection that causes our meninges—the membranes that provide a protective barrier for the brain and spinal cord—to swell.

Meningitis is a serious condition that requires immediate attention from a medical professional. It can be life-threatening if left untreated, so it is important to understand the telltale symptoms. When you can spot symptoms early on, you can quickly seek out medical attention that can mitigate the negative effects of the disease.

Understanding the Types of Meningitis

There are a few different types of meningitis, but bacterial and viral meningitis are the two most common.

Bacterial meningitis is the most severe form of meningitis and can be fatal, especially if treatment is delayed. There are many types of bacteria that can cause meningitis, including Streptococcus pneumoniae, Group B Streptococcus, and Listeria monocytogenes.

Thankfully, the introduction of and increased access to safe and effective vaccines resulted in a steady decrease in bacterial meningitis cases since the 1990s. However, cases that do occur are dangerous and can be fatal if left untreated.

Bacterial meningitis is treated with oral or IV antibiotics, and treatment can last between 10 and 21 days, according to Allan Greissman, MD, of Pediatric Critical Care of South Florida.

The second most commonly experienced meningitis is viral meningitis. Although there is no vaccine for viral meningitis, you can be vaccinated against some of the viruses that could cause meningitis, like measles, mumps, or influenza.

It helps to think of viral meningitis as a potential complication of these other viruses. This means that, although you might catch measles, mumps, or the flu from someone with viral meningitis, that doesn’t necessarily mean you will also develop viral meningitis.

“Viral meningitis will run its course and should not [be], and is not, treated with IV antibiotics,” says Greissman. He notes that one exception is a form of viral meningitis caused by the herpes viruses, which is treated with an antiviral medication.

To read the full story, visit Healthy Way.

PCCSF’s Dr. Greissman Weighs in on the Truth About Tamiflu

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3-20-18

Dr. Allan Greissman of Pediatric Critical Care of South Florida discussed with Motherly Tamiflu’s safety. As the only treatment for the flu, it’s important for parents to be aware of the medication’s potential side effects, especially during this deadly flu season.

This year’s flu season is already the worst North America has endured in a decade—which is, of course, a concern for parents of young children, who are more likely to experience serious complications from the illness.

If you or your children are struck by the flu, your health care provider is likely to write up a prescription for Tamiflu: If taken within 48 hours of symptom appearance, the antiviral drug may lessen the duration and severity of the flu. This application is recommended by both the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for use in infants as young as 2 weeks old.

It is also approved for preventative treatment, meaning it may help other members in the household avoid the flu if a member of the family has already been diagnosed with the illness.

For parents of young children or those at higher risk for flu complications, this makes Tamiflu a particularly good option, says Allan Greissman, MD, a pediatric critical care specialist at Pediatric Critical Care of South Florida.

“Unfortunately this year we are seeing a large number of flu-positive pediatric patients having a very serious strain of the flu. We are also seeing many more deaths from the flu and many kids with other significant problems related to the flu,” Greissman tells Motherly. “So for that reason, getting a flu shot and treatment with Tamiflu should strongly be considered.”

To read the full story, visit Motherly.

PCCSF Treats South Florida Toddler for the Flu

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Pediatric Critical Care of South Florida’s Dr. Allan Greissman shared with Local 10 News the story of Michael, a 3-year-old Ft. Lauderdale boy who recently underwent critical treatment for the flu.

During this deadly flu season, the CDC is reporting 53 child deaths and is warning that we have not seen the worst of it yet. According to Dr. Greissman, the most common reason for a child with the flu to be admitted to PCCSF is high-grade fever or dehydration. Michael, like many patients who are admitted to PCCSF, began to suffer from “end-organ disease” as he fought off the flu.

Michael is a reminder of how dangerous this flu season is and the importance of getting the flu shot.

HOLLYWOOD, Fla. – Michael celebrated his 3rd birthday at Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital, the pediatric unit of Memorial Regional Hospital in Hollywood.

His mom said he first got a rash and complained of joint pain. Then he had a fever. Eventually, tests showed the toddler was infected with an aggressive form of the flu.

“Michael had a lot of what we call ‘end organ disease.’ It affected his neurological status, it affected his heart,” Dr. Allan Greissman said. “It affected his kidneys, it affected his lungs and it affected his liver.”

Greissman, a pediatric critical care specialist at Pediatric Critical Care of South Florida at the hospital, said Michael is recovering, but Dylan Winnick was not so lucky. The 12-year-old from West Palm Beach is among the 53 other children who have died of the flu around the nation. The Centers for Disease Control had bad news again Friday. The flu season has intensified and there are more weeks of suffering ahead.

One of every 14 visits to doctors and clinics were for fever, cough and other symptoms of the flu. That’s the highest level since the swine flu pandemic in 2009. Last week, 42 states reported high patient traffic for the flu, up from 39.

Hospital stays because of the flu also increased.

To read the full story, visit Local 10 News.

Pediatric Critical Care of South Florida Featured on Local 10 2-2-18 from Diana Somarriba on Vimeo.

PCCSF Specialists Discuss the Importance of Flu Vaccinations

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Last year, the incredible team of doctors at Joe Dimaggio’s Pediatric Critical Care of South Florida helped save the life of a teen who nearly died from complications of the H3N2 strain of influenza. As the peak of the 2017 season approaches, experts emphasize the importance of getting the vaccine.

Vanika Idnani lived across the globe in Australia, but the 3-year-old’s death could be a harbinger for the coming flu season in the U.S.

The little girl is the most recent victim of a virulent strain of flu well-known to doctors everywhere.

And that strain is already showing up this flu season in America. How the U.S. responds depends on how influenza-experts engineered this year’s vaccine and whether residents get a flu shot — which can be done on a quick trip to the grocery or drug store.

Convincing people to take advantage of that opportunity is another story.

“It’s sort of odd. One country’s experience doesn’t always mean it will be our experience,” said Lynnette Brammer, an epidemiologist in the influenza division of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Flu is just really hard to anticipate what it is going to do. There are a lot of factors.”

For instance, while Australia, Hong Kong and Southern China had a bad flu season, New Zealand did not, she said. Still, in Australia, more than 50 people have died from the flu this year, including little Vanika. The culprit is the H3N2 strain of the flu which has already surfaced this summer.

Loxahatchee teenager Jenny Spell knows all too well the danger of this strain. The Palm Beach Post earlier this year chronicled Spell’s near-death struggle with the flu that forced her onto a heart-lung machine for five days and required a kidney transplant and nearly a year-long rehabilitation.

Spell encourages everyone to get a flu shot because it is unknown whose immune system might be the one that can’t fight it off. “If you won’t do it to protect yourself, do it to protect the people you love,” said Spell, now a college student at the University of Florida.

Dr. Alina Alonso, director of the Florida Department of Health in Palm Beach County, echoes Spell’s sentiments: “You might not only be protecting yourself you will be protecting a young baby or an elderly person who may be next to you.”

Even if someone comes down with a flu strain not included in the vaccine, he or she will get less sick than if they didn’t get the shot, she added.

Dr. Allan Greissman, a specialist at Pediatric Critical Care of South Florida in Hollywood, said he is concerned about the myths about the flu vaccination. Few excuses for not getting the flu shot carry any weight, doctors say.

Healthy people who live a gluten-free life can get the flu as easily as someone who lives on Twinkies. There are options for pregnant women or people with allergies. Few people ever have an adverse reaction to the vaccine. Putting it off is not wise since it takes two weeks for the vaccine to take full effect.

Also, the vaccine carries a dead virus so that it can’t give anyone the disease.

“We are very concerned about the upcoming flu season especially because of all the bad publicity the flu shot has been getting,” Greissman said. “Our practice has seen an upswing in the number of influenza positive patients; I strongly urge the community to get vaccinated this season.”

Read the full story on the Palm Beach Post.

PCCSF Saves The Life of South Florida Teen From Near-Fatal Flu

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jenny-spell6Jenny Spell was rehearsing for her Florida high school’s production of The Sound of Music in 2014 when she started feeling achy and fatigued.

“I thought it was a common cold,” Jenny, now 18, tells PEOPLE. “During show season, there are lots of nasty germs spreading around and I thought I could beat it, but it just got worse and worse.”

The teen doesn’t remember much from the days that followed —only that her body “quit” on her and she found herself unable to move. Her mother, Ann Spell, took her to their primary care office in their hometown —  where doctors said she had flu-like symptoms.

“After three visits, she was eventually admitted to the ICU at a community hospital and I had to carry her in she was so weak,” Ann, a 53-year-old high school teacher in Loxahatchee, tells PEOPLE. “They immediately intubated her and started calling state hospitals to find a place that was equipped to handle necessary life support.”

Doctors and nurses informed Ann that her daughter would likely not make it through the night. They advised her to bring friends and family to the hospital to say their final goodbyes.

“I was preparing for her death,” says Ann. “It was terrifying, I can’t even express the pain I was feeling in that moment.

“My 16-year-old daughter was just running up the stairs earlier that week and now I was being told she wasn’t going to make it.”

Jenny was flown to Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital in Hollywood, Florida, where she was diagnosed with influenza by Dr. Gerald Lavandosky.

Read the full People Magazine story here.