Well, we have a diagnosis. The boy has the flu. Is it the dreaded and feared swine flu? As his pediatrician put it (shout out to Dr. Bergman!), the swine flu is the only flu in town. I’m headed off now to get Tamiflu for the whole family.
What does this mean to you, the dear, sweet, healthy FrontBurnervian? Remember that the swine flu is just the flu. It’s no more dangerous than regular flu flu. Thing is, no one has immunity to it, making it very contageous. Got that? Our pediatrician says the hard part of his job is deciding whom to treat with Tamiflu. Treat those who’ve been exposed to it now, and they’ll likely just be exposed again in a few weeks or a few months (he’s expecting a lot of people will get sick this year). And down the road, we’re almost certain to run out of the stuff. Right now, he says he’s only prescribing for family members of those who’ve got it. If your kid has a fever, get him to the doc pronto. Get it early, and Tamiflu lessens the severity of the flu. Wait a couple days, and it does nothing.
Finally, if you’ve French-kissed either me or my son recently, you’re probably going to die. Watch out.
