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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.