World Health Organization Declares Flu Pandemic

[Cricket]

As the death toll climbs, the World Health Organization declared a swine flu pandemic, a move that could prompt fast-track production of preventive vaccines. The declaration of a global epidemic came Thursday as WHO officials huddled in an emergency session in Geneva in the wake of 141 swine flu deaths worldwide, including 12 in New York City.

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/us_w...xzz0I9hImOPH&D

The World Health Organization may have just declared a pandemic of the H1N1 flu virus, but the United States has been acting as if a pandemic was under way for weeks, health officials said on Thursday. http://www.reuters.com/article/marke...44150420090611

There are those who are saying that this declaration is politically motivated. I guess I am having a hard time seeing what the connection might be, but on the other hand, more people die from the regular flu every year so it is hard to understand what all the commotion is about either. Any thoughts?

[Hades]

I personally think the alarm is causing more harm than the illness itself.

This flu is less lethal than a regular flu. Every country must have its own reasons for ignoring it or shouting it out loudly.

To put some examples:
1-In Argentina where I was born and lived until 2008 it's on the front page of every newspaper, because every other subject (politics, economy, society, lifestyle, etc...) of the country is shameful.
2-In Poland, where I'm now until end of 2009, this issue has little to no attention at all, often having to browse deep into the Health section of the newspaper to find any mention about it.

And in none of these countries anybody died of H1N1 yet.

[Cricket]

Exactly! Which is why I am wondering why they are making this such a huge deal. Do you get the feeling there is more to this than we know?

[Hades]

Do you get the feeling there is more to this than we know?

Yes, definitely. If it really deserves as much attention as every country is giving it, then it should be a lot more dangerous than it seems to be and a lot more people died from it already and it's not recorded in the statistics.

[Cricket]

Is it possible that some countries under report the number of cases due to fear of travel (tourist money) warnings and restrictions?

[Hades]

Well maybe at the beginning when it was only Mexico's problem (and some countries canceled all the flights from that country), but at this point you can see people wearing masks on nearly every airport of the world so I think all the tourists know very well what risks they are taking and the countries have no serious reason to hide it.

The statistics should drop now that we're getting summer in the northern hemisphere where the numbers are higher. Lets hope that will buy us some time to produce the vaccine in massive scale.

[StrongInTheArm]

The pandemic status is just a term which describes the geographical spread of a disease. It does not mean the disease is any more likely to kill you then it was before, just that you are more likely to get it, because it has spread more widely.

The fear isn't so much for first world countries such as the USA where stock piles of anti-viral drugs are plentiful. The fear is for third world countries that cannot cope with such a major health issue. The fear is that deaths in the third world, will as a consequence, be very high.

Notice that in Australia the number of reported cases has shot up dramatically over the last week or so. This is because they are in their winter flu season. The numbers of cases are expected to dramatically rise as the autumn and winter approach. That will be the most dangerous time in the Northern hemisphere, not least because a vaccine is not predicted to be fully available until that time. Lead times for the mass production of any vaccine is expected to lag behind the flu season meaning it will not be widely available when it is most needed.

As a consequence any available stocks will, in the UK at least, be used to vaccinate health professionals and those most in need.

Strangely enough, those over 65 tend not to be affected by the H1N1 strain, this might be because they have already been exposed to variants of it in the past. Anyone younger are thought to be vulnerable to contracting the disease.

The great fear is that this strain will mutate into a more virulent form. As more and more people contract it, this is more likely to happen.

[marshalprince7]

StrongInTheArm has said very well his thoughts. But the thing is there is not accurate cure for this Flu right now and spread from person to person, that' why its been said to Pandemic, Even in India like countries its been up now.

Although vaccines are there but of no work in latter stages. So from my point of view it was the correct time to declare it Pandemic as so many countries are affected already. And something has to be done for this too.

[StrongInTheArm]

The UK government claims that by the end of August there will be 100,000 cases being reported a day in the UK.

[dWhite]

Originally Posted by StrongInTheArm

The pandemic status is just a term which describes the geographical spread of a disease. It does not mean the disease is any more likely to kill you then it was before, just that you are more likely to get it, because it has spread more widely.

And for those that are too lazy to do their own research on Pandemic:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pandemic

A pandemic (from Greek πᾶν pan "all" + δῆμος demos "people") is an epidemic of infectious disease that is spreading through human populations across a large region; for instance a continent, or even worldwide. A widespread endemic disease that is stable in terms of how many people are getting sick from it is not a pandemic. Further, flu pandemics exclude seasonal flu. Throughout history there have been a number of pandemics, such as smallpox and tuberculosis. More recent pandemics include the HIV pandemic and the 2009 flu pandemic.

[~kev~]

They are worried about what might happen this fall.

The spanish flu of 1918 started out as a mild flu during the spring, then came back in the fall to kill 20 - 50 million people. There is a LOT of worry among health officials that this flu is going to do the same thing.

[dWhite]

Originally Posted by ~kev~

They are worried about what might happen this fall.

The spanish flu of 1918 started out as a mild flu during the spring, then came back in the fall to kill 20 - 50 million people. There is a LOT of worry among health officials that this flu is going to do the same thing.

Which killed more people than the Black Plague did in Europe.

[Zap]

Originally Posted by ~kev~

They are worried about what might happen this fall.

The spanish flu of 1918 started out as a mild flu during the spring, then came back in the fall to kill 20 - 50 million people. There is a LOT of worry among health officials that this flu is going to do the same thing.

Law of averages also states that we are overdue for another event like this.

[anonymously]

Even if it is only mild, with the rate of spread being high, many front line services could be in trouble. Services like hospitals, doctors, fire fighters. Also there could be disruption to travel, water and electricity and gas.

The WHO warnings are to try and prepare the world for those sort of consequences and also to underline that we need to take care of the poorer, vulnerable countries.

[micoblanco]

The number of swine flu cases here in the Philippines is rapidly increasing. It scares me but when I've heard a news stating that dengue is more lethal than this AH1N1 virus, I feel relieve... I survived dengue so I guess.. AH1N1 would be a piece of cake. j/k

[Lolito Nakayama]

Originally Posted by micoblanco

It scares me but when I've heard a news stating that dengue is more lethal than this AH1N1 virus

Also meningococcemia

[StrongInTheArm]

Originally Posted by micoblanco

The number of swine flu cases here in the Philippines is rapidly increasing. It scares me but when I've heard a news stating that dengue is more lethal than this AH1N1 virus, I feel relieve... I survived dengue so I guess.. AH1N1 would be a piece of cake. j/k

Don't you mean H1N1, where did the A come from


There are many diseases that are more lethal than swine flu. In actual fact in comparison, it is quite a mild form of flu. The problem is, it is a new strain and as such few have any sort of immunity to it. If you are fit and healthy, it will feel just like any other flu you might get.

The problem is if you have an underlying illness, such as heart disease, or diabetes, or a disease which affects your immune system, then the chance of complications is very much greater.

Although there are reports that some physically fit and healthy people are dying from swine flu, so don't take it too lightly.

[Zap]

I'm going to be wearing a mask over my face this fall and winter, so if you hear of any Michael Jackson sightings. Don't panic. It's just me.

[StrongInTheArm]

The way things are in London, UK, I wouldn't be surprised if I contracted the disease this summer.

It has been estimated by the UK Gov. that by the end of August we will see a hundred thousand new cases reported daily.

I am already meeting people who know family or friends with swine flu or that have had it. (Of course unless tested, these are just rumours).

[micoblanco]

Originally Posted by StrongInTheArm

Don't you mean H1N1, where did the A come from (...)

The 2009 flu pandemic is an A(H1N1) pandemic and a global outbreak of a new strain of influenza A virus subtype H1N1, identified in April 2009, commonly referred to as "swine flu", which is transmitted between humans.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swine_Flu_(2009)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AH1N1