It may be the end of the holiday season, but it looks like the flu season is getting under way.

Influenza activity began to increase across the United States for this year’s flu season shortly after the holidays.  Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, new York and Virginia are experiencing high levels of flu, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Other states are also beginning to see an increase in flu activity, including Illinois. 

the Logan County Department of Public Health has confirmed a few flu cases in the last couple weeks. 

“Local flu activity remains low at this point, but is beginning to increase in our area,” Mary Anderson, a communicable disease nurse with the health department.

 Symptoms of the flu include fever, coughing, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, headaches, body aches, chills and fatigue. 

Vaccination is the best protection against contracting the flu. Those 6 months of age and older should get vaccinated against the flu every year. the combined seasonal and H1N1 flu vaccine is available at the Logan County Department of Public Health through the walk-in clinic from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, or on the H.O.P.E mobile during its regularly scheduled stops. 

in addition to getting the flu vaccine, there are other simple steps people can take to prevent the spread of flu:

•  clean your hands frequently with warm soap and water or an alcohol-based hand gel.
•  Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue or use your elbow, not your hands.
•  contain your germs by staying home when sick until your fever is gone without the use of fever reducing medications.  

For questions or more information on influenza, contact the Logan County Department of Public Health at 735-2317, or by e-mail at . People can also visit the Logan County Department of Public Health website at lcdph.org.  

MILTON — more than a hundred people who were potentially exposed to hepatitis A were vaccinated Monday at Milton Elementary School.

Five cases of hepatitis A were reported in Eastern Cabell County last week and are still being investigated by the Cabell-Huntington Health Department, spokeswoman Elizabeth Ayers said. no additional cases have been reported, she said.

The five cases include both adults and children. those who were exposed to a confirmed case within the past two weeks — approximately 150 to 200 people — have been contacted by the health department, Ayers said. the vaccine clinic in Milton was geared toward those people, she said, with a final vaccination total of 138 people.

“This clinic was especially for those people who were possibly exposed to hepatitis A. we weren’t here to vaccinate the entire school,” Ayers said.

Ayers said there were three children confirmed as having hepatitis A at Milton Elementary School. the school was contacted about the situation, with members of the Cabell-Huntington Health Department further seeking out children and parents who might have been in direct contact with the infected children.

“If you were in this particular group, you were notified by the health department directly on Friday. this included children who were in the same classroom or on the same school bus and their families,” she added.

Ayers said the health department staff feels the situation is under control and there is no reason for Tri-State residents to be alarmed.

“We’re following all the protocols we’re advised to do by the state and the CDC and doing everything we can to get people vaccinated,” she said. “This incident really is a great incident to raise awareness of the importance of vaccinations.

“Anyone 18 and younger can get this vaccine for free and it’s available for adults for a small charge,” she continued. “It’s better to pay that and suffering through a little pain you may have than contracting a virus that may cause severe pain and discomfort.”

Hepatitis A is transmitted through fecal-oral contact, and hand-washing is stressed to prevent the spread of the disease. It is not spread by blood-to-blood contact like hepatitis B or C.

Symptoms usually appear 15 to 50 days after exposure and can include fever, jaundice, gray-colored stools, dark urine, abdominal pain, vomiting, fatigue, loss of appetite, nausea and joint pain. Some people, especially children, may have no symptoms, which is why proper hand-washing is critical, health officials say.

The disease is preventable, with vaccines available to both children and adults in a series of two doses six months apart. most children younger than 4 are immunized since pediatricians have recently begun recommending the vaccine. Adults and children older than 4 are urged to get the vaccine. those who have received one dose of the vaccine and have been exposed should get a second dose. once receiving both doses, the vaccine lasts a lifetime.

The Cabell County outbreak comes on the heels of five reported cases of hepatitis A in Boyd County, Ky., last month. One of the people identified in that string of infections was a drive-thru worker at an Ashland restaurant. Ayers said she could not comment on whether the Cabell County and Boyd County instances were related.

In addition to Monday’s clinic in Milton, the vaccine is offered at the health department from 8 to 11 a.m. or 1 to 3 p.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. the cost is $27 per shot for adults.

For more information, call the Health Department at 304-526-3397 or cabellhealth.org.

There are several std's out there, several of them are… clahmidia(not sure of the spelling), syphlis,gonorrhea and then there is also AIDS, not sure what any of the symptoms are as i've never had an std, contact your doctor or health department for testing for stds

Sometimes referred to as STI now, which stands for sexually transmissible infection. disease is the result of it kinda getting out of control i guess. there are many signs and symptoms, but some common ones are a rash around the genitals or mouth, perhaps lethargy.. may progress into more severe symptoms. Depends which STI you have.

std are diseases in which you carry and contract to each other by sexual intercourse there are alot of them if you think you have one then you should consult your doctor quickly!!! many people are un aware that they have them but as soon as they have sex with someone they give it to them and it causes misery and alot of embarassment for either person….. look it up on google and just type in the full std it should tell you more there..

in short, they are diseases that are transmitted only by having sex(intercourse, oral, etc.). Symptoms may not show up from 1 to 10 years later. symptoms differentiate for each STD you acquire