Tracking the next pandemic: Avian Flu Talk |
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Mahshadin
Admin Group Joined: January 26 2006 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 3882 |
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Posted: October 09 2009 at 12:26pm |
H1N1 flu taking off in U.S., officials say
Fri Oct 9, 2009 2:56pm EDT
* Flu activity just below epidemic levels in U.S.
* More children killed by H1N1 than by seasonal flu * OK to give swine, seasonal flu shots at same time By Maggie Fox, Health and Science Editor WASHINGTON, Oct 9 (Reuters) - The new pandemic of swine flu has killed 76 children in the United States since it emerged in April and is worsening, U.S. health officials said on Friday. But researchers are reporting some good news about vaccines that may smooth efforts to immunize people against the pandemic flu and ordinary flu at the same time. Although it is not quite at epidemic levels yet, H1N1 is spreading in many states at a time when normally there is little or no influenza, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. Several studies reported this week show that most people, including children, who die from swine flu have underlying conditions making them more susceptible, but some who are healthy are also dying, the CDC said. "We saw a peak of pediatric deaths starting in April, May, June," the CDC's Dr. Anne Schu****** told reporters in a telephone briefing. "It's starting to shoot up again." The 76 deaths compare to 68 deaths from seasonal influenza from September 2008 to April 2009, the CDC said. Many of the children who have died had neurological conditions such as muscular dystrophy or cerebral palsy, the CDC said. The CDC is trying to roll out vaccines against swine flu at the same time as an usually early campaign of vaccinating against seasonal influenza. Officials predicted some bumps in the road and there have been some, with some counties suspending seasonal vaccination to make room for H1N1 vaccines. But a new report suggests it may be easier to do this. Trials show that giving an H1N1 shot at the same time as a seasonal influenza shot causes no problems and people are fully protected, said Dr. Anthony Fauci of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Early results from trials of adults show those who got both shots at the same time had good immune responses to the vaccine, Fauci told the briefing. The CDC said 6.8 million doses of H1N1 influenza vaccine were now available for states to order -- much of it AstraZeneca (AZN.N) unit MedImmune's nasal spray vaccine, which is approved for healthy people aged 2 to 49. States have placed orders for 3.7 million doses. Orders are placed only when there are hard and fast plans for administering the vaccine. Many states are vaccinating either healthcare workers or children first against H1N1 -- both are in the CDC-designated "priority groups" for vaccine.
Schu****** said some doctors wrongly believed that healthcare workers should not get the nasal spray but only those working with severely immune system-compromised patients, such as those getting bone marrow transplants, should avoid it, she said. CDC officials also expect 114 million doses of seasonal flu vaccine within the coming weeks. "More than 77 million doses have gone out and more is on the way. Manufacturers have readjusted their timelines for delivery of seasonal flu vaccine due to production of 2009 H1N1 vaccine," CDC spokesman Tom Skinner said by email. "It will take several weeks to get the full supply going," Schu****** added. CDC monitoring shows that 6.1 percent of all deaths in the last week of September were due to pneumonia and influenza -- just below the threshold for an epidemic, which is 6.4 percent of deaths. More than 99 percent of confirmed flu cases are the new pandemic H1N1 virus. (Editing by Eric Walsh) |
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"In a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act." G Orwell
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Mahshadin
Admin Group Joined: January 26 2006 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 3882 |
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CDC: 37 states report widespread swine flu cases
ATLANTA — Health officials say swine flu activity is picking up, with Ohio and 36 other states now reporting widespread cases.
Officials with the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Friday that the count is up from the previous week’s 27 states, including Ohio. The figures suggest a leveling off of flu activity the previous week may have been short-lived. |
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"In a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act." G Orwell
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Mary008
V.I.P. Member Joined: June 22 2009 Status: Offline Points: 5769 |
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.
Who should not be vaccinated
with the nasal-spray flu vaccine LAIV
FluMist ................................ People less than 2 years of age[3] People 50 years of age and over[3] People with a medical condition that places them at high risk for complications from influenza, including those with chronic heart or lung disease, such as asthma or reactive airways disease;
People with medical conditions such as diabetes or kidney failure; or people with
illnesses that weaken the immune system, or who take medications that can weaken the immune system.
Children (under) <5 years old with a history of recurrent wheezing Children or adolescents receiving aspirin People with a history of Guillain-Barre syndrome, a rare disorder of the nervous system Pregnant women People who have a severe allergy to chicken eggs or who are allergic to any of the nasal spray vaccine components.[3] The CDC wants Parents to be aware of Vaccine Safety.... They have a special PDF .... Please read All of it and know what members of your family should not have certain vaccines. Not everyone should have all vaccines.... read the PDF... http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/recs/vac-admin/downloads/contraindications_guide.pdf ...................... (note... 200 pound man and 3 yr old child get same dosage of nasal type FluMist spray.)
... (intranasal), the dose for children of all ages (and adults) is a 0.2 cc sprayer. ......................................................... |
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Iowa102
Adviser Group Joined: May 08 2007 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 227 |
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Looks like Google took down the graph and is now just displaying the map. The graph was starting to look pretty scary.
http://www.google.org/flutrends/ |
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Mahshadin
Admin Group Joined: January 26 2006 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 3882 |
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Bacterial Pneumonia Contagious: Report Many people who have died of H1N1 swine flu in the United States have also had bacterial infections, health officials reported on Wednesday. A study of 77 patients who died of the new pandemic H1N1 virus showed 29 percent of them had so called bacterial co-infections, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported About half of these had Streptococcus pneumoniae, which can be prevented with a vaccine, the CDC said. It said doctors may be missing these infections in people severely ill with flu. The CDC has already reported that H1N1, declared a pandemic in June, has become more active as weather cools and schools reopened after summer breaks. Cases are reported in all 50 states and it is still circulating globally. H1N1 is not any more deadly than seasonal influenza so far but it attacks a younger age group than seasonal flu does and because virtually the entire population lacks immunity, it can infect far more people at once than seasonal flu usually does. "The findings in this report indicate that, as during previous influenza pandemics, bacterial pneumonia is contributing to deaths associated with pandemic H1N1," the team of experts at the CDC and state health departments reported. "Our influenza season is off to a fast start and unfortunately there will be more cases of bacterial infections in people suffering from influenza," CDC epidemiologist Dr. Matthew Moore, who helped organize the study, added in a statement. http://www.postchronicle.com/news/health/article_212261195.shtml?ref=rss |
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"In a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act." G Orwell
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Mary008
V.I.P. Member Joined: June 22 2009 Status: Offline Points: 5769 |
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This map does not comport with the CDC... like widespread flu for NYS? very little flu here. CDC
See Region Graphs here-
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Mary008 I am still confused about the Pneumonia shot does it cover baterial and viral strains? I and my son both have had that vaccine...just wondering.
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Mary008
V.I.P. Member Joined: June 22 2009 Status: Offline Points: 5769 |
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hi... unfortunately it affords no viral protection. But it does protect against Pneumococcus bacterium... of the more than 80 types out there, it protects against 23.
My parents have had that vaccine also.
................ It doesn't protect against pneumonia caused by microbes other than pneumococcus bacteria, nor does it protect against pneumococcal bacteria strains not included in the vaccine. ..............
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FluKnow
Valued Member Joined: September 30 2009 Status: Offline Points: 8 |
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this is where i get confused... if bacterial pneumonia then shouldn't doctors be prescribing antibiotics for this flu? I mean i know that prescribing them for an infection we can't see is bad but if they aren't testing how would they know if they need to? says something about Doctors missing it...
So it's almost like i should demand antibiotics if my kids get this flu- if I want to keep my kids one step ahead of it?> wouldn't you agree?
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Mary008
V.I.P. Member Joined: June 22 2009 Status: Offline Points: 5769 |
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Some Doctors do give patients antibiotics to hold... but that is in certain cases, most like to know what is going on...and to actually see the patient. They also have to deal with insurance issues.
The pneumonia and bacterial issues they consider rare. ... many are hospital associated.
Acquired while there for something else. Under age 2 seem to have more respiratory
issues to deal with... but the numbers that do are not huge compared to the general
populatiion. We had a very high rate of flu in NYS in the spring and summer... most all the
kids did fine. If your child has other ongoing health issues, the best thing to do is ask
your Doctor how to handle this brand of flu.
.................
Mary008
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Elver
Valued Member Joined: June 14 2008 Status: Offline Points: 7778 |
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http://h1n1.nejm.org/?p=929
Bacterial Coinfection in H1N1-Related Deaths
"Researchers analyzed autopsy tissue specimens from 77 patients who died of H1N1-related illness. Of those, 29% had evidence of bacterial coinfection."
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