Fighting the flu on the internet

THE battle against the flu doesn't only take place in the doctor's surgery, the fight continues online at GrippeNet.fr.

The website is a combined effort from l'Institut national de la santé et de la recherche médicale (Inserm) et l'Institut de veille sanitaire (INVS) that attempts to track the evolution of the illness across France.

Volunteers are asked to sign up to the site and answer a number of questions each week on how they feel and whether they are suffering from a fever, a cough or other symptoms.

The collection of information is then analysed in real time to provide insight into the presence of influenza in France, and allow detailed study into how the disease spreads across the country.

But people are warned that the GrippeNet.fr website is not for reporting illnesses and that the first port of call for anyone feeling unwell is the doctor.