Flu and Fever are two types of infections and not diseases. Flu is a viral infection, and Fever is one of the symptoms of Flu.
Key Takeaways
- Flu is a contagious respiratory illness caused by the influenza virus, with symptoms such as fever, cough, and body aches.
- Fever is an elevated body temperature, in response to an infection or illness, and can be a flu symptom.
- Flu is a specific illness, while fever is a general sign of an underlying health issue.
Flu vs Fever
Flu is a contagious respiratory illness that is caused by the influenza viruses. It infects the nose, lungs, and throat and can cause mild illness or lead to death. Fever is the temporary increase in the temperature of the body in response to an illness or disease. It is above the temperature of 37ยฐC (98.6ยฐF).
The main cause of Flu is the Influenza virus. It is a dangerous and contagious virus that can cause severe infection in an individualโs body.
A normal fever can be cured easily with the help of some medications. If the body cannot cope up with the infection, then fever can also be deadly.
It depends upon the personโs immunity capability.
Comparison Table
| Parameters of Comparison | Flu | Fever |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Flu is an infection that commonly weakens the respiratory system like the nose, throat, and lungs in an individualโs body. | Fever refers to the increase in body temperature. |
| Types | Flu is of two types and they are respiratory flu and stomach flu. | Fever can be divided into various types depending upon its symptoms, and they are intermittent fever, sudden high fever, continuous fever, remittent fever, and Rheumatic fever. |
| Specialist Department | The specialist department that treats Flu is Primary Care Physician, Pediatrician, Infectious Disease Specialist, and Emergency care physician. | Fever can be treated by any specialist department, but often medicine specialists are most preferable. |
| Causes | The Flu or Influenza virus may cause because of the inhale of the germs as the droplets in the air, or by coming in contact with the person infected with Flu, etc. | The causes of fever might include factors such as infection, cancer, heat exhaustion, side effects of some specific medications, etc. |
| Symptoms | Flu is associated with the symptoms such as fever, aching muscles, headaches, shortness of breath, tiredness or weakness, eye pain, etc. | The Fever is associated with symptoms such as a gradual increase in body temperature, shivering, body aches, and headaches, sweating, etc. |
| Ways of spreading | Flu can spread by someoneโs coughing or sneezing, some infected objects, by the touch of skin, saliva, etc. | Viral fever can spread through the infected air if the other person is near. |
| Treatments | The Flu treatment includes various medications to calm the virus, self-care, etc. | The Fever includes treatments such as proper self-care, medications such as paracetamol and ibuprofen. |
| Complications and Side-Effects | Flu can cause complications such as asthma, heart disease, ear infection, bacterial pneumonia, sinus infections, etc. | The Fever can cause complications such as seizures, dehydration, cerebral edema, electrolyte disturbance, etc. |
What is Flu?
Flu is a contagious infection that is caused by the Influenza virus, which is why Flu is also known as Influenza.
It requires immediate and good care as it can cause some severe kinds of complications, or the infected person can die if his/her immune system can not fight back.
Its complications include adverse effects such as asthma, heart disease, ear infections, bacterial pneumonia, sinus infections, etc.
What is Fever?
Fever is simply the rise of the normal body temperature of an individual. The normal temperature is always between 98.6 and 99.
The Fever is associated with symptoms such as a gradual increase in body temperature, shivering, body aches, headaches, sweating, etc.
Generally, Fever only requires self-care and some specific medications such as paracetamol or ibuprofen.
Main Differences Between Flu and Fever
- The Flu treatment includes various medications to calm the virus, self-care, etc.
- Flu can cause complications such as asthma, heart disease, ear infection, bacterial pneumonia, sinus infections, etc.
Iโve put so much effort writing this blog post to provide value to you. Itโll be very helpful for me, if you consider sharing it on social media or with your friends/family. SHARING IS โฅ๏ธ
Piyush Yadav has spent the past 25 years working as a physicist in the local community. He is a physicist passionate about making science more accessible to our readers. He holds a BSc in Natural Sciences and Post Graduate Diploma in Environmental Science. You can read more about him on his bio page.
