Do you have a runny nose?

Most likely this is not flu. Flu season is over in the Western Hemisphere and almost over on the East.

Google trends (on the right) show low activity in line with actual epidemiological data. As of March 20 (end of week # 11, 2011), flu activity in Europe and Russia is decreasing, and the peak is over in 38 countries of the region. Flu levels remain moderate in Armenia, Georgia, Serbia, some areas of Russia, and Ukraine where the percentage testing positive for influenza is 58%. The UK analyzed most of the viruses screened and identified 3% viruses resistant to oseltamivir but still sensitive to zanamivir.
Idaho was the last US state to get over flu in March, right after Nevada told it good bye.
Flu is almost over, but  allergies are on the rise. High pollen levels, mostly from trees, are bad news for seasonal allergy sufferers.

Tree Pollen in US in March

Knowing what is going on in your area, including flu and pollen levels, will help you to determine the reason for your scratchy throat or headaches. Additional clues include if you feel it in your nose (cold) or behind the nose (allergy), if you have itchiness (allergy) or fever (cold).

Also, flu attacks you gradually while with allergies you get all the symptoms at once. 

The EuroFlu bulletin describes and comments on influenza activity in the 53 countries in the WHO European Region. 

See WHO/Europe web site and  ECDC Weekly Influenza Surveillance Overview. 

	A = Dominant virus A H1N1 = Dominant virus A(H1N1) H3N2 = Dominant virus A(H3N2) H1N2 = Dominant virus A(H1N2) B = Dominant virus B A & B = Dominant virus A & B = : stable clinical activity + : increasing clinical activity - : decreasing clinical activity Low = no influenza activity or influenza at baseline levels Medium = usual levels of influenza activity High = higher than usual levels of influenza activity Very high = particularly severe levels of influenza activity No activity = no evidence of influenza virus activity (clinical activity remains at baseline levels) Sporadic = isolated cases of laboratory confirmed influenza infection Local outbreak = increased influenza activity in local areas (e.g. a city) within a region, or outbreaks in two or more institutions (e.g. schools) within a region. Laboratory confirmed. Regional activity = influenza activity above baseline levels in one or more regions with a population comprising less than 50% of the country's total population. Laboratory confirmed. Widespread = influenza activity above baseline levels in one or more regions with a population comprising 50% or more of the country's population. Laboratory confirmed.

	Intensity Geographic Spread Impact Sentinel swabs Percentage positive Dominant type ILI per 100,000 ARI per 100,000 Sentinel SARI Virology graph and pie chart Armenia Medium Local Low 2 0% None 0.0 (graphs) 106.8 (graphs) sari Click here Austria Low Sporadic Low 27 51.9% Type A, Subtype pH1N1 17.9 (graphs) 3.0 (graphs) Click here Azerbaijan Low Sporadic Low 19 0% Type A and B 352.8 (graphs) Click here Belarus Low Sporadic Low 39 15.4% Type A, Subtype pH1 1211.0 (graphs) Click here Belgium Low Sporadic 56.9 (graphs) 1486.9 (graphs) Click here Bosnia and Herzegovina Type A, Subtype pH1 (graphs) Click here Bulgaria Low Local 2 0% None 0.0 (graphs) 886.1 (graphs) Click here Croatia Medium Widespread Low Type A, Subtype pH1 33.8 (graphs) Click here Cyprus Low Sporadic Low 1.9 * (graphs) 4.7 * (graphs) Click here Czech Republic 26 57.7% Type B (graphs) Click here Denmark Low Sporadic 2 0% None 66.8 (graphs) 0.0 (graphs) Click here England Low Sporadic 25 16.0% None 7.4 (graphs) 408.8 (graphs) Click here Estonia Medium Local 28 25.0% None 12.5 (graphs) 333.6 (graphs) Click here France Low Sporadic Low 25 0% None 0.0 (graphs) 1213.3 (graphs) Click here Georgia Medium Widespread Moderate 32 87.5% Type B and Type A, Subtype pH1 428.1 (graphs) sari Click here Germany Low Regional 122 58.2% Type B 0.0 (graphs) 1085.4 (graphs) Click here Greece Low Local 13 30.8% Type A, Subtype pH1N1 96.6 (graphs) 0.0 (graphs) Click here Hungary Low Sporadic Low 19 26.3% Type B and Type A, Subtype pH1 102.9 (graphs) 0.0 (graphs) Click here Iceland Medium Regional Moderate 0 0% 56.6 (graphs) 0.0 (graphs) Click here Ireland Low Sporadic Low 9 11.1% None 5.9 (graphs) 0.0 (graphs) Click here Israel Low Sporadic Low 21 14.3% Type A and B 8.8 (graphs) Click here Italy Low Regional Low 19 26.3% Type A 197.9 (graphs) 0.0 (graphs) Click here Kazakhstan Medium Local Low 5 100.0% None 1.4 (graphs) 179.5 (graphs) sari Click here Kyrgyzstan 7 0% None (graphs) sari Click here Latvia Low Regional 0 0% Type B (graphs) Click here Lithuania Medium Widespread Low 10 0% None 75.5 (graphs) 777.4 (graphs) Click here Luxembourg Low Sporadic 14 21.4% Type B and Type A, Subtype pH1 1.0 * (graphs) 20.8 * (graphs) Click here The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia None (graphs) Click here Malta Medium Sporadic Low 0 0% 10.0 * (graphs) 0 * (graphs) sari Click here Montenegro 21.2 (graphs) Click here Netherlands 17 29.4% None (graphs) Click here Northern Ireland Low Sporadic 0 0% None 14.4 (graphs) 328.7 (graphs) Click here Norway Low Sporadic 1 100.0% Type B and Type A, Subtype pH1N1 51.1 (graphs) 0.0 (graphs) Click here Poland Medium Regional 36 27.8% Type B and Type A, Subtype pH1 99.7 (graphs) 0.0 (graphs) Click here Portugal Low None 4 0% None 6.7 (graphs) 0.0 (graphs) Click here Republic of Moldova Medium Sporadic Moderate 22 40.9% Type B and Type A, Subtype pH1N1 8.1 (graphs) 229.3 (graphs) sari Click here Romania Medium Local Moderate 24 41.7% Type B 22.8 (graphs) 1078.2 (graphs) sari Click here Russian Federation Medium Sporadic Low 45 31.1% Type A, Subtype pH1 5.5 (graphs) 695.3 (graphs) sari Click here Scotland Low Sporadic Low 25 16.0% Type B 2.3 (graphs) 242.7 (graphs) Click here Serbia Medium Regional Low 1 100.0% None 117.3 (graphs) sari Click here Slovakia Medium Sporadic Low 5 40.0% Type A, Subtype pH1 257.8 (graphs) 1830.7 (graphs) Click here Slovenia Medium Local 8 50.0% Type B and Type A, Subtype pH1 8.5 (graphs) 1008.7 (graphs) Click here Spain Low Sporadic 108 16.7% Type B 31.0 (graphs) 0.0 (graphs) Click here Sweden Medium Widespread Low 16 0% Type B 5.7 (graphs) 0.0 (graphs) Click here Switzerland Low Local 11 63.6% Type B and Type A, Subtype pH1 102.4 (graphs) Click here Turkey Low Sporadic Low 112 37.5% None 6.0 (graphs) Click here Ukraine Medium Local Low 11 0% Type A, Subtype pH1 5.2 * (graphs) 624.6 (graphs) sari Click here Uzbekistan Low Sporadic Low None (graphs) Click here Europe 912 32.7% Click here