Doctor says influenza, walking pneumonia cases rising in Sask.

A Saskatoon physician is saying the province is seeing more cases of walking pneumonia, which is abnormal compared to other years.

Family physician Dr. Carla Holinaty said on the Jan. 22, Greg Morgan Morning Show they are also seeing more and more people test positive for influenza.

She said most colds last five to seven days before symptoms go away, but it is not uncommon to be left with a lingering cough for several weeks afterward.

Holinaty said the cold temperatures, more people cramming into small spaces to get out of the cold, and the humidity are all reasons why more people get sick in the winter.

Listen to the interview here:

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GREG MORGAN: Is it normal this time of the year for people to be sick? Or do we have more sickness going around than usual?

HOLINATY: Winter definitely is when we see far more illnesses and people. There are a couple of different things at play there. The first one is that it’s cold and gross outside, so we’ve crammed a whole bunch more people into indoor spaces, sharing that air, and we don’t tend to have a lot of great ventilation that’s turning that air over and cleaning it, so you’re just breathing more air with more people, and you’re more likely to be exposed to things like viruses.

The other things at play are factors from the environment itself. So we’re starting to learn more that temperature can play a role in our immune function at the very start of the system, so sort of in our nose and upper airways, and they can decrease our ability to fight off viruses right as they are entering our system and prevent us from getting sick. The humidity can potentially play a role as well, and the air is usually drier in winter; In that dry air when people cough or sneeze, those little humid particles that carry the virus can hover in the air for longer.

Are humidifiers beneficial?

HOLINATY: It can definitely. The humidifier is good for lots of things; if you’re sick itself, it can kind of help thin some of those respiratory secretions. So if you’re congested, if you’ve got that thick mucus, especially when you’re trying to sleep, breathing in that extra humid air helps kind of thin that mucus so you can clear it a little bit better instead of it being trapped like a big glob of glue sitting in your airway.

Is the flu shot still a good idea, or is it too late in the season?

HOLINATY: No, I think it’s still a good idea. We’re still seeing lots of influenza. This week. I’ve probably seen three or four positive influenza, so we’re definitely seeing it circulate out there. So if you haven’t had one, definitely you will still get some benefit and some protection from being vaccinated.

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Have you had a lot of cases of walking pneumonia?

HOLINATY: Yes, we’re still seeing quite a lot of it. That’s been a little bit of a blip this year. That’s definitely something that’s different than what has been typical in past years.

Can you explain what walking pneumonia is?

HOLINATY: When you talk about walking pneumonia, it tends to be a type of pneumonia that’s caused by a bug that’s called mycoplasma pneumonia. It’s a little bit tricky because it doesn’t tend to cause as severe symptoms as most of the other pneumonia are and that’s why it’s called walking pneumonia.

People are often walking around not knowing that they have pneumonia, so they feel like they’ve got maybe a really bad cold that’s just not going away, sicker than a regular cold, longer than a regular cold, but maybe not so sick that they’re thinking, my goodness, I bet I have pneumonia.

Are sicknesses lasting longer?

HOLINATY: Are viruses lasting longer? Probably not, but it can be really frustrating for people, especially that nagging cough. We know that kind of acute phase of most of our viral infections will last five, maybe seven days, and then most of those symptoms will go away. But it’s not uncommon to get something that’s called a post-viral cough, where your airways are still kind of irritated, they’re not fully healed or recovered yet, and people can cough for several weeks after the rest of that illness and symptoms have resolved.

When should you seek help from your doctor?

HOLINATY: The number one thing I often tell people is, if you’re sitting at home and the alarm bells in your head are going off and you’re thinking — ‘You know what, I feel like something is wrong’ — or you’re feeling like it’s not safe, please always call us, come in and see us. Listen to those alarm bells inside your head. If everything in you is saying something is really wrong here, we would always rather see you than have you stay at home worrying that it’s going to be an inconvenience for somebody.