Times of India: New cases of AH1N1 in India

Two new cases of swine flu have been reported in the city. Senior officials in the ministry of health and family welfare said the patients were admitted to a city hospital last week with symptoms of the viral influenza and laboratory tests were conducted with samples of their nasal swab.

No deaths have been reported yet in this season. Delhi health minister A K Walia has said he is soon going to hold a meeting of the health officials concerned to discuss the steps required to tackle a possible increase in the cases of swine flu and dengue. The first dengue case for this season was also reported last week at AIIMS.

"The H1N1 virus was present in the environment. Moderate temperature and humidity are conducive to spreading of the influenza virus. Last year, the first case of the influenza virus was reported around June.

Rest of this article in The Times of India here

El Universal: Venezuela confirms 415 cases of influenza AH1N1

Eugenia Sader, Venezuela's Minister of Health

Eugenia Sader, Venezuela's Minister of Health, said that the cases of influenza AH1N1 have spread throughout 19 states, adding that no new deaths were reported.

The Minister of Health confirmed at a press conference that there are 415 cases of influenza AH1N1 nationwide, spread in 19 Venezuelan states. She said that no new deaths have been reported. "The number of deaths remains unchanged," she added.

The top health official said that there are confirmed cases of AH1N1 in the states of: Mérida (189 cases); Capital District (77); Miranda (69); Trujillo (15); Táchira (10); Carabobo (8); Lara (7); Guárico (5); Aragua (5); Vargas (5); Yaracuy (5); Cojedes (5); Zulia (4); Amazonas (3); Nueva Esparta (2); Barinas (2); Anzoátegui (2); Sucre (1) and Portuguesa (1). The figures corresponded to January 1-March 27.

Venezuela's President Hugo Chávez on Sunday urged people during his weekly program Aló Presidente (Hello, President) to meet hygiene standards recommended by the Ministry of Health and welcomed the cooperation of private hospitals.

Chávez called government officials to intensify the prevention campaign. The Venezuelan head of state devoted some five minutes to give recommendations related to AH1N1 in his Sunday program, which lasted more than 6 hours.

Meanwhile, for the second consecutive week, classes will remain suspended in primary schools and high schools in the state of Mérida, southwestern Venezuela, as a preventive measure after the outbreak of AH1N1 in the Andean region.

The Andes University also announced that the academic and administrative activities have been suspended until further notice.

Read this article at El Universal

My first post in 144 days

Apologies to everybody that expected to find updates on the new AH1N1 outbreak in Mexico in here.

I will try to follow the AH1N1-news more closely again from now on.

Mecca: Two pilgrims down with H1N1 influenza virus

MECCA: The health ministry has detected the H1N1 influenza virus in two female pilgrims from a European and east Asian country, while an African was found to have contracted cholera.

The Saudi Gazette reported today that the women, aged 26 and 52, were infected in their countries of origin.

It said the ministry's monitoring unit diagnosed the duo as soon as they arrived, and were given the necessary treatment at a hospital.

One of them has since been discharged while the other is in stable condition, said the report from Riyadh.

The Saudi Gazette said the unit was determining how the 41-year-old man, currently undergoing treatment, was infected with the disease.

Read more: New Straits Times 

LankaJournal: A threat of spreading Influenza AH1N1

Sri Lanka's Ministry of Health warns that there is a threat of spreading Influenza AH1N1 in the island.
The Unit of the Ministry states that all hospital staff is already kept on alert regarding this.

 

According to the Ministry sources 15 patients have been found from various parts of the island. They have been called over for treatment with fever and cold who were identified as Influenza AH1N1 patients following investigations.

 

The Ministry of Health makes a special request from the public to concentrate on medical treatment immediately if symptoms such as fever, cough, cold and headache are exposed.

 

Read More www.h1n1now.com

BBC: Child sick with swine flu dies

A child who was diagnosed with swine flu just over a week ago has died, the Public Health Agency has confirmed.

The eight-year-old girl was a pupil at Ceara School in Lurgan, County Armagh - a special school for children with severe learning disabilities.

Twenty people from Northern Ireland died in last year's swine flu outbreak, including a number of children with severe learning difficulties.

The girl was one of two people diagnosed with the virus last week.

The other case, involving a man from Northern Ireland, was not linked.

Read the rest here.

Here we go again...

It seems the right time to re-open this blog.
See the next blog...

Final entry (for now)

A little over a year ago, in the midst of the Mexican flue/ Swine-flue/ AH1N1-hype, I started a blog with news and views, rumours, predictions and solutions about the 2009 outbreak of A/H1N1.

A year has passed and most sources have stopped updating their websites about the flue.

It is time I stop updating too. This is my last entry in this blog.

But if H1N1 will re-appear, or if a new flue-virus will appear. be assured that this blog will reopen.

Thank you for visiting, reading and commenting on this blog.

Signing off,
pmlgrn

The cost of the H1N1 Scare Tactics

Figures have recently been released that show how much money the government of Canada spent on the H1N1 flu pandemic. The feds spent $37 million on advertising and communications. This was more than was spent on anti-virals ($14 million), preparing emergency responses ($8.6 million) and outbreak management ($21 million).

After the figures were released, Dr. Richard Schabas, a former Ontario medical officer of health, renewed his criticism that the government spent too much money after the flu outbreak had finished. In the end, although the H1N1 did qualify as a worldwide pandemic, its effect on the vast majority of those who caught it was mild. Many people had this particular strain of flu and didn’t even know it. The number of people who died from H1N1 was about one tenth of the number of Canadians who die each year from ordinary flu.

There is nothing unusual in the fact that the government spent so much money advertising in order to tell people where they should go and get their flu shots. It was perfectly consistent with the way democratic governments operate in the 21st century.

Read the rest of this article 

AOL News: Did Hyping H1N1 Create A Dangerous Flu Fatigue?

With the World Health Organization warning yet again this week that the H1N1 virus has yet to reach its peak, a flu season that's milder than average hardly seems that way. Now, the nearly yearlong coverage of H1N1 has left some worried that future influenza outbreaks will be met with ambivalent flu fatigue among the public.

'It's inevitable that there's H1N1 fatigue,' Dr. Robert Daum, an infectious disease specialist at the University of Chicago Medical Center, told AOL News. 'Health officials, the media and the public are all stuck between a rock and a hard place on this one.'

No doubt, the H1N1 virus was a legitimate health threat. The WHO estimates that 16,000 people have died from the flu strain, which targeted children and teens rather than the elderly. The virus was also prevalent during spring and summer months, whereas flues usually peak in the winter.

Complete article:
AOL News: Did Hyping H1N1 Create A Dangerous Flu Fatigue?

KRDO.com: Another Outbreak Of H1N1 Could Be Coming Soon

H1N1 has been very quite since the start of 2010 but that does not mean that it has gone anywhere.

The first out break of H1N1 was in April of 2009 with another wave of outbreaks in October, and with the history of pandemics a third outbreak or wave could happen before the end of the season.

'Based on history of previous pandemics sometimes there has been what we call a third wave, and we have not seen that yet. We can't for sure write H1N1 off, at least for this particular winter season we are going to have to wait and see.' This is according to Dr. Bernadette Albanese with the El Paso County Department of Health and Environment.

The best way to prevent getting the flu is still getting vaccinated. Other ways that can prevent the flu, washing your hands, covering your mouth when you cough or sneeze and if you are sick, stay home and get better before you go back to work or school.

KRDO.com: Another Outbreak Of H1N1 Could Be Coming Soon

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Nat Geo Report: Sharks killed for swine flu vaccine

Sharks are being killed to obtain a substance called squalene for preparation of swine flu vaccine, according to a report by National Geographic.

The report said vaccines being made to protect people from swine flu are killing sharks because millions of doses of the pandemic H1N1/09 vaccine contain a substance called squalene, which is extracted from shark livers.

Olive oil, wheat germ oil and rice brain oil also contains natural squalene, but in smaller amount. This has drawn drug-makers' attention towards killing of sharks, especially the deepwater species, that contain huge amount of the substance.

According to the report, commercial fishers are being hired to obtain shark livers.

Read the rest of this article here

Orlando Sentinel: Secret health talks & Bio hazards

The U.S. isn't ready to deal with a flu pandemic, and even less prepared to handle a more serious disease or biological attack.

This alarming assessment comes from former U.S. Sen. Bob Graham of Florida, based on how the nation has responded to theswine flu. That response has been hampered by shortcomings in making vaccines and tracking the disease.

Mr. Graham is co-chair of a panel on terrorism that found the most likely mass attack would be biological. Given that threat, and the systemic problems exposed by the swine flu, policymakers need to get right to work on fixes. As the senator has noted, terrorists won't give us six months' warning.


Secret health talks

When he was running for president, Barack Obama vowed that his administration would put together a plan to reform health care and broadcast those negotiations on C-SPAN "so the American people can see what the choices are." That was then.

Now, the White House and Democratic leaders in Congress are hammering out a final deal on reform behind closed doors. President Obama's spokesman weakly argued that there already has been enough public exposure in the process.

The head of C-SPAN, the network that covers Congress, has called on its leaders to allow their health-care talks to be televised. Brian Lamb pointed out that the legislation in question "will affect the lives of every single American."

If Mr. Obama really is committed to transparency in government, he'll make sure Congress lets the cameras in.


Copyright © 2010, Orlando Sentinel

Cartoon: How to tell if you booked the wrong holiday flight...

Japan Today: 70% of Japanese see need to stock food if H1N1 flu spreads

About 70% of Japanese consumers believe it is necessary to stock up on food if the H1N1 flu spreads further and they are instructed to refrain from going outdoors, according to a recent government survey.

Of the 893 people who said food needs to be stocked in the poll, the largest number of respondents, or 33%, said they want about seven days’ supply, showed the findings by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. Some 80-90% cited rice, canned food and wheat-based items such as instant noodles as the types of food they intend to buy if the need arises.

Japan Today: 70% of Japanese see need to stock food if H1N1 flu spreads

Montana's News Station: H1N1 e-mail scam making the rounds

The Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services is reporting that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has warned the state about fraudulent e-mails referencing a CDC sponsored State Vaccination Program.

The scam asks recipients of the messages to register personal information if they received a 2009 H1N1 vaccine. But, the CDC has not implemented a state vaccination program requiring registration.

Users that click on the e-mail are at risk of having a malicious program code installed on their computer's operating system.

Montana's News Station: H1N1 scam making the rounds

WHO investigates Tamiflu resistance, updates antiviral recommendations for H1N1 patients with severely compromised immune systems

Following recent reports of clusters of Tamiflu resistance, the WHO recommended that patients with severely weakened immunesystems who become infected with the H1N1 (swine flu) virus receive additional antiviral treatment as needed throughout the duration of their illness, Agence France-Presse reports.

'Although the WHO said there was no evidence that the two clusters found in Wales and in North Carolina [U.S.] marked a wider public health threat, it reiterated calls for vigilance and modified treatment advice for the frontline flu drug,' the news service writes.

In addition to ramping up antiviral treatment, the agency advised physicians treating patients with suppressed immune systems who are not responding to Tamiflu be given the alternative antiviral, Relenza (12/2).
The WHO also announced an investigation into the Tamiflu-resistant cases of H1N1 in hospitals in Wales and the U.S. showed the virus had not spread among hospital workers and the community, the Canadian Press reports.

Read the rest of this article:
WHO investigates Tamiflu resistance,
updates antiviral recommendations for H1N1 patients with severely compromised immune systems

AFP: Netherlands reports mutant swine flu death

Dutch authorities said Thursday a patient infected by a mutant strain of the swine flu virus had died, but added that this was not the cause of death.

Harald Wychgel, spokesman for the Dutch Institute for Health and the Environment, told AFP that there had been a 'minor change in the virus to make it resistant to Tamiflu,' a key treatment for influenza.

'He died not because the virus was resistant but because he was seriously ill and caught the Mexican (swine) flu,' Wychgel said.

The man, whose age had not been given, died Sunday in the northern city of Groningen, local health official Hans Coenraads said.

'We have carried out tests on the patient's associates to see if the mutation had spread but we found no such indications', he said.

Reports said that two more patients in the Netherlands had shown resistance to Tamiflu.

It is the fifth fatal case of mutated A(H1N1) flu in Europe, after two in France and two in Norway.

The World Health Organisation said last month that mutations had been observed in Brazil, China, Japan, Mexico, where the swine flu pandemic began, Ukraine, and the United States, as early as April.

Italy also reported a non-fatal case on Monday.

'The mutations appear to occur sporadically and spontaneously. To date, no links between the small number of patients infected with the mutated virus have been found and the mutation does not appear to spread,' a WHO statement said on November 20.

The WHO also underlined that there was no evidence of more infections or more deaths as a result, while the mutated virus detected up to that point remained sensitive to antiviral drugs used to treat severe flu, oseltamivir (Tamiflu) and zanamivir (Relenza).

Scientists fear that mutations in flu viruses could cause more virulent and deadly pandemic flu. The global health watchdog reiterated a call for close monitoring.

'Although further investigation is under way, no evidence currently suggests that these mutations are leading to an unusual increase in the number of H1N1 infections or a greater number of severe or fatal cases,' it added.

AFP: Netherlands reports mutant swine flu death

Salt Lake Tribune - H1N1 spread continues to slow

Three more Utahns have died and 37 more have been hospitalized due to the H1N1 flu, according to the state's weekly update.

One person, between the ages of 5 and 24, died in the Weber-Morgan Health District. A woman older than 65 died in the Central Utah Health District, and a woman between the ages of 50 and 64 died in the Southwest Utah Health District. A total of 23 Utahns have died from causes related to the flu since its second wave in late August.

Nevertheless, the percentage of patients seen for influenza-like illness has dropped for the fifth straight week.

Read the rest of this article here:
Salt Lake Tribune - H1N1 spread continues to slow