What is a influenza ?
Influenza is a viral infection that affects mainly the nose, throat, bronchi and, occasionally, lungs. Infection usually lasts for about a week, and is characterized by sudden onset of high fever, aching muscles, headache and severe malaise, non-productive cough, sore throat and rhinitis.
The virus is transmitted easily from person to person via droplets and small particles produced when infected people cough or sneeze. Influenza tends to spread rapidly in seasonal epidemics.
Most infected people recover within one to two weeks without requiring medical treatment. However, in the very young, the elderly, and those with other serious medical conditions, infection can lead to severe complications of the underlying condition, pneumonia and death.
source: here.
What is phase 6?
Phase 6 is a pandemic, according to the WHO definition.
source: here.
WHO pandemic phase descriptions [pdf 456kb]
What about severity?
At this time, WHO considers the overall severity of the influenza pandemic to be moderate.
The moderate assessment reflects that:
1. Most people recover from infection without the need for hospitalization or medical care.
2. Overall, national levels of severe illness from influenza A(H1N1) appear similar to levels seen during local seasonal influenza periods, although high levels of disease have occurred in some local areas and institutions.
3. Overall, hospitals and health care systems in most countries have been able to cope with the numbers of people seeking care, although some facilities and systems have been stressed in some localities.
Large outbreaks of disease have not yet been reported in many countries, and the full clinical spectrum of disease is not yet known.
source and full text: here.
What do I do now? What actions should I look for in my community?
Stay informed. Go to reliable sources of information, including your Ministry of Health, to learn what you can do to protect yourself and stay updated as the pandemic evolves. Community-specific information is available from local or national health authorities.
You can also continue to visit the WHO web site for simple prevention practices and general advice. WHO is not recommending travel restrictions nor does WHO have evidence of risk from eating cooked pork.
source: here.
A/H1N1 influenza: questions and answers
Published 7 May 2009, doi:10.1136/bmj.b1849
BMJ 2009;338:b1849
Full text available here. This particular article has been made available in the public interest.
What is pandemic flu?
The term pandemic relates to the virus’s geographical spread rather than its severity. A flu pandemic is an ongoing worldwide epidemic caused by a novel influenza virus that infects a large proportion of people lacking immunity to that virus.
The three flu pandemics of the 20th century were in 1918, 1957, and 1968.
What is different about A/H1N1 flu?
Swine flu is a highly contagious acute respiratory disease of pigs, caused by one of several influenza A viruses. So far three type A flu virus subtypes have been found in pigs: H1N1, H1H2, and H3N2. The Mexican virus is of the H1N1 family, named after its two surface proteins. Mortality in pigs tends to be low. Human infection with swine flu has been detected occasionally since the late 1950s, usually among people working with pigs,but secondary cases after human to human transmission have been very rare.
The A/H1N1 virus has been found to contain a unique combination of genes from pig, bird, and human flu viruses. Infections from human to human have been occurring for the past three weeks, at least. <-- at the time they publish it.
Is it worth wearing a face mask?
A systematic review last year (BMJ 2008;336:77-80, doi:10.1136/bmj.39393.510347.BE) showed that many simple and low cost interventions in healthcare settings, including facemasks, could help to reduce the spread of respiratory viruses. Masks can be simple and need not be of the N95 type (respirators with a 95% filtration capability).
It’s worth remembering that ordinary surgical masks become sodden within about an hour and a half, so clinicians would have to change masks about six times a day if they wanted to wear a mask continuously. Although most surgeries and hospitals will have stocked up on gloves, masks, and gowns, supplies are limited, so it is best to use them only when around affected patients.
There is no convincing scientific evidence that the widespread use of facemasks by members of the public can stop the disease spreading. They can give false reassurance and may encourage people to ignore basic hygiene measures that have proven effectiveness.
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As someone who’s directly involved in the work on vaccine development, I believe there are values in a cervical cancer vaccine. The vaccine is against Human Papillomavirus (HPV) a virus that causes warts, including genital warts. Some of the strains of this particular virus, when introduced to a female sexual reproductive organ would eventually cause cervical cancer. I shall not talk about the different manufacturers so I won’t be accused of promoting a certain product.
The reason why the vaccination is to be started at a young age for girls is to trigger the recipients’ immune system to have antibodies so they will be able to ‘fight’ the virus by the time they are being introduced to the HPV. One would ask how the HPV is introduced into a woman’s cervix which would later cause cancer. It is through sexual intercourse. That is why, vaccination against HPV is to be started earlier, before a female is sexually active.
As for any value in a woman who is already sexually active to get the vaccination, it is still too early to tell but I do not see any harm in doing so for women who are already sexually active (unless there is any contra-indication).
As for the scares of certain reactions in Gardasil vaccine, one has to understand the nature of how vaccines are produced. Vaccines are mass-produced using various methods depending on the nature of the pathogens of the vaccine you are producing against. For instance, an avian influenza vaccine is mass-produced by injecting the target virus into chicken eggs. The vaccine is later harvested and processed before being packed into vaccine bottles, ready to be used by medical professionals. So, those who are allergic to eggs might have some sort of reaction when getting a vaccine against avian influenza virus that is produced from eggs.
Same story with reactions to Gardasil and other vaccines. That is why, it is very important for everyone to be aware of what we are allergic of and to really understand the risks that we are putting ourselves into before agreeing to any form of vaccination or before taking any drugs. It is also the medical professionals’ responsibility to inform their patients of all the possibilities and risks of a particular vaccine (or drug).
Another possible reason for the reaction is a direct reaction to the vaccine itself. Vaccines are actually live but ‘disabled’ pathogens (ie. a virus) or a segment of a pathogen (ie. of a bacteria, virus etc), that are able to trigger our immune system to produce antibodies to ‘fight’ the pathogen. Unlike the actual pathogen, vaccines, being ’stripped off its fangs’, would not make us ill or as ill as the actual pathogen. However, sometimes, vaccines would make us feeling lethargic or feverish sometimes. This is due to our immune system reacting to the presence of the vaccine in our body, hence triggering a reaction. There are other reactions depending on the type of vaccines.
Bottom line, apart from just swallowing whatever that our doctors tell us, we should do a little bit of reading too before agreeing to a certain treatment/vaccination. I remember fighting with a doctor who insisted on giving me a vaccination without my doing my homework first. I’ve stopped going to her clinic since. We as patients, have every right to know what they are poking into our body.
Hope this explanation provides some insight into the world of vaccines. I do not think anyone is trying to be an expert as “2nd class” puts it. I think people are genuinely concerned and it is the responsibility of those who understand to share their knowledge with others.