Swine Flu

[Kodos]

Oh no! The egg McMuffin I ate had Canadian Bacon on it. I am doomed!

[Passacaglia]

Originally Posted by SteveMax58

[Corny Joke]If you die of Swine Flu...do you go to Hog Heaven?[/Corny Joke]

Not bad. Mine was going to be something about pigs flying. You know...swine flew...eh.

[panerd]

How do they take a swine flu victim to the hospital? A hambulance.

Have you heard the latest news story about the swine flu, it's really a big boar.

[JeeberD]

Apparently there are possibly some cases in the Houston area...

http://blogs.chron.com/sciguy/archi...04/post_79.html

• The disease may have reached Harris County. There are rumors circulating in the Texas Medical Center this morning of a few suspected cases of swine flu in Harris County. Houston Health and Human Services spokeswoman Kathy Barton said, "We are in active surveillance mode. We have cases we are interested in, but we are only going to talk about confirmed cases." Confirmation may come later today.



...and a school district near San Antonio shut down completely for at least a week.

SCUCISD Classes Canceled All Week - Health News Story - KSAT San Antonio

SCUCISD Classes Canceled Due To Swine Flu

SAN ANTONIO -- The Texas Department of State Health Services on Sunday announced that all 14 schools and district facilities in the Schertz-Cibolo-Universal City Independent School District will be closed effective immediately after several more flu-like illnesses have been discovered in the department's ongoing swine flu investigation.

The closure will be in effect for at least a week for 11,000 students and 1,400 district employees. All extracurricular activities also were cancelled.

[Autumn]

Originally Posted by SteveMax58

Man...feel like I dodged a bullet the other night. I almost ate the Mexican style DiGiorno pizza...but opted for the Supreme at the LAST MINUTE!!

I never really believed in Angels or things like that...but something (or somebody) just made me change my mind.

That was a close call. I think maybe there's a reason you are still here on earth. Something you were meant to do.

[JediKooter]

Swine flu and now an earthquake. Mexico is doomed!!! DOOOOOMMMMED!!

[molson]

It's pretty ridiculous to see the media freak out so much about something that has caused about 150 deaths worldwide.

It was only about 40 years ago that about 35,000 died in the U.S. alone from the Hong Kong Flu. And only about 90 years since the Spanish flu killed 675,000 here. How would the media cover something like that today? It boggles the mind.

[terpkristin]

Originally Posted by molson

It's pretty ridiculous to see the media freak out so much about something that has caused about 150 deaths worldwide.

It's something new for them to report, so they don't have to keep depressing us with news on the economy...

/tk

[JediKooter]

I don't know about you guys, but, all this swine talk makes me want to get a BLT.

[sterlingice]

I'm having pork chops tomorrow night, doing my part in the fight

SI

[JediKooter]

Wonder how business is going at the Piggly Wigglys...

[panerd]

What I don't get about this story is why the intense media coverage? Obviously most everyone is mocking it on here but I also consider this site to be above average intelligence. But even my friends and coworkers think it is way overblown. (And I sadly can't say that about stuff like American Idol or the Octomom) Where is the audience for this story?

I do have to admit though that I am fascinated watching this thing pick up steam and go completely over the top. I am actually actively checking sites during work to see what ridiculous story they have next. 40 more people sick in NY! Add that to the probably 30,000 that have the other flu's and you have quite a story.

Not even saying it isn't news. A 100 died in Mexico and the flu is now in this country so I expect some coverage. But it seems as though the 3rd world nature of Mexico is more of the culprit for the deaths than the virus. And while I would hope in a perfect world that 100 deaths makes the news there are like 5 stories a day from other countries with high death tolls that don't get even page 5 coverage. Maybe it will become big but they do this so often and so early with every story that when something catastophic does happen they will have cried wolf so many times we won't know what hit us.

[gstelmack]

The only part of this that is unusual is that it's been hitting people in their prime who apparently don't get hit this hard. Also that swine flu doesn't normally jump person to person. However, here in the US it's acting like a fairly typical flu, which can (and does) kill, but for the most part is just making people sick.

[JonInMiddleGA]

I guess I'm the guy who doesn't understand why the coverage is a big deal.

WHO just went to the 4th of 6 levels of alert, with the next level likely to bring travel & trade restrictions, and level 6 being an official pandemic. More importantly though, to borrow the phrasing from one of the many articles "the issue is a never-before-seen strain that people have little if any natural immunity to". Meanwhile the U.S. is cautioning against travel to Mexico, the EU (or the head of their health agency unofficially) is cautioning against travel to Mexico or the US, and several countries including Russia and Taiwan are starting to quarantine travelers who show symptoms while China wants pretty much any inbound traveler has so much as sneezed in the past couple of weeks to check in with them upon landing.

I mean, how much bigger does this need to get before it warrants some attention instead of another 3 minutes on some other topic that the average person can't do jack shit about either? This is the newest charging rhino on the block, whether it stops charging before it makes contact or not doesn't mean it isn't heading this way with a bad attitude.

[Masked]

Is the question why is this news or why is the media coverage over the top and borderline silly?

JiMG and gstelmack listed several of the reasons why this is news and why WHO and others are reacting as such - direct human to human transmission, novel strain, young, otherwise healthy victims, and perhaps unusually high mortality (iirc, Spanish Flu killed less than 5% of those infected).

Does poor media coverage really suprise anyone?

[Passacaglia]

This article gets bonus points since it mentions an actuary:

Millions and Millions Dead | The Onion - America's Finest News Source

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Millions and Millions Dead
JUNE 2, 1999 | ISSUE 35•21


As the body count continues to rise, a shaken nation is struggling to cope in the wake of the mass deaths sweeping the world population. With no concrete figures available at this early stage, experts estimate at least 250,000 U.S. citizens have died in the last month alone, with death tolls across the globe reaching into the millions.

The wave of deaths has left a brutal aftermath, rocking survivors with feelings of loss and horror, traumatizing the American cultural landscape to its core and leaving behind emotional devastation some say may take years to heal.

What's worse, experts say, the crisis shows no signs of letting up any time soon.

"Oh, my God," sobbed Edina, MN resident Elizabeth Kendrick, 42, whose father, retired insurance actuary Gilbert Ploman, 68, lost his life last Thursday at Shady Villa Nursing Home. "He was a good man, a kind man who never did anything to deserve this terrible fate. Why did something like this have to happen? Oh, God, why?"

As wrenching as Kendrick's grief is, she is just one of the countless Americans who feel the anguish that continues to tear the country apart. Across the nation, in millions of homes in thousands of cities, similar scenes played out, as survivors gathered to mourn, pray, and somehow pick up the pieces while attempting to make sense of it all.

In Fargo, ND, Tom Blake, 89, attended the funeral of his wife Edith, who died of a brain tumor Thursday night. In Augusta, ME, family members broke down in tears, overwhelmed by news of the hang-gliding death of 26-year-old outdoorsman Lance Blaine. And in Cicero, IL, no explanations could comfort the family of accidental auto-erotic-asphyxiation victim Bob Carpenter. Everywhere, those left behind comforted each other as best they could, looking for some kind of hope.

"This epidemic knows no bounds, follows no common denominators, and crosses all demographic lines without impunity," said Harvard University's Gregory Jameson. "Although senior citizens and the terminally ill have seemed to suffer the most casualties, this syndrome does not discriminate. Rich and poor, young and old, people of all races, creeds and backgrounds imaginable have succumbed to its relentless advance."

Friends and family comfort potential victims of the death epidemic in Manila.

"We are, all of us, at risk," Jameson said, "and medical science is powerless to stop it."

As devastating as the crisis is here at home, it may be worse overseas. World Health Organization officials are reporting similar death rates across the globe, with widespread casualties reported from as far away as Somalia, Borneo, Brazil, Malaysia and Luxembourg.

In the wake of such suffering, there is no way to adequately explain the tragedy. Yet the seemingly random nature of the mass deaths has made them even harder for the survivors to understand.

"In a situation like this, it's only natural to want to assign blame," said Dr. Frederick MacDougal of the National Center for Infectious Diseases, who recently lost a third cousin to a degenerative nerve disorder. "But the disturbing thing about this case is that no one factor is at fault. People are dying for such a wide range of reasons—gunshot wounds, black-lung disease, falls down elevator shafts—that we have been unable to isolate any single element as the cause."

"No one simple explanation can encompass the enormous scope of this problem," MacDougal added. "And that's very difficult for most people to process psychologically."

As experts continue to struggle for a solution, the nation is left to cope with the crisis one day at a time. But as it stands, the death rate is so high that most of the resources of the world's funeral homes are being called upon to deal with the vast quantities of bodies. Virtually every mortician in the nation is currently employed in some capacity to meet the demand, and more corpses are arriving daily. The cost of the non-stop interments exceeds billions of dollars each year.

As more people succumb each day, hospitals and doctors are finding themselves on 24-hour call. Taxed to the limit, the nation's health-care infrastructure is proving inadequate to handle the needs of sick and dying patients. And though sales of health aides and pharmaceuticals have skyrocketed, nothing has stemmed the tide.

Despite efforts to keep pace with the death toll, for now, all the nation can do is watch and wait. Since the crisis began, a vast majority of Americans have lost at least one family member, close friend, co-worker, distant relative, neighbor or peripheral acquaintance, or know someone who has. Yet even for the lucky few who remain unscathed, the fear remains.

"Our family has been spared so far, but for how long?" asked mother of four Karen Beemis, of Scottsdale, AZ. "Every night I lay awake in bed worrying and thinking, 'This is going to get one of us someday, too. Who will be the first? Grandma? Grandpa? My great-uncle Ted in Michigan?' There's just no way of knowing."

Meanwhile, as the world continues to grapple with this seemingly unstoppable threat, the deaths—and the sorrow, fear and pain they have wrought—continue.

As Margaret Heller, a volunteer at a clinic in Baltimore put it, "We do everything we can. But for most of the people we try to help, the sad truth is it's only a matter of time."

[flere-imsaho]

So, I consult for pharmaceutical companies, including my current client. Given the number of MDs, Ph.Ds and RNs floating around the office, this has obviously been a big topic of conversation. Of course, however, these people are super-informed.

Here's my understanding of why this is important:

Any flu virus has the potential to become a pandemic, and the actions being taken by the WHO and CDC are good practice, common sense actions for this type of threat at this point in the process.

The news media are taking these actions, combining it with little science, extrapolating out to the worst case scenario, and trying to get their audiences all riled up. That's not to say that the worst case scenario won't happen, but it should be noted that worst case scenarios usually don't happen.

While there are some aspects of the current virus that are of unique note, there's still too little data, and too small of an incidence rate, to draw strong conclusions.


Based on what I'm hearing, there's certainly no need to panic, but the recommendations for restriction on travel certainly do make sense until more is definitively known about the virus. While it's not outside the realm of possibility that this will turn out to be a particularly virulent or devastating strain of flu, it's probably more likely that we'll see a few dozen or even a few hundred more deaths and then it'll fade. So, it's worth keeping up on, but it's not "OMG PANIC" time yet.

[JediKooter]

I guess my problem with how this has been covered...according to the CDC website, annually, 250k to 500k people die EACH YEAR from the flu and we have a little over 100 that have died. Where is the media alarm bells from years past when up to half a million people have died from the flu?

100 compared to up to half a million seems a bit off kilter here.

[Mustang]

I love some of these questions on the 'ask the Dr.' portion on CNN


"Is there a way to irradiate money in order to attempt to kill this virus on coins and dollar bills to attempt to stop this spread through currency, or should we use bank cards only in order to decrease the cross contamination currency could cause."

"I was wondering as far as the swine flu is concerned, would it be tied to the rocket launch that N. Korea sent into the ocean last month? It just seems crazy that the majority of the infected are in the costal states, especially mexico, which is directly across from Korea. I believe that the virus seems to be man-made and could have possibly been sent into the ocean to where it would contaminate the water."

"wonder if we were so smart years ago allowing the commercial air carriers to cut back on the number of air exchanges on flights. As I recall, to save fuel, the carriers reduced the air exchanges from over 30 to less than 5 per hour. I always turn off the overhead air vent when flying. At least anecdotally, it seems obvious that with such a reduction, the incidence of flight-related airborne illnesses has risen. Perhaps the governent should focus its attention on this aspect of the crisis and encourage the carriers to re-up the number of in-flight air exchanges."

"What are the chances of this being a genetically created virus by a pharmaceutical company who will miraculously present the cure a month from now and generate millions in profit."



*L*

oooookay.

[flere-imsaho]

Originally Posted by Mustang

"I was wondering as far as the swine flu is concerned, would it be tied to the rocket launch that N. Korea sent into the ocean last month? It just seems crazy that the majority of the infected are in the costal states, especially mexico, which is directly across from Korea. I believe that the virus seems to be man-made and could have possibly been sent into the ocean to where it would contaminate the water."

Twenty bucks says this question came from one S. Palin, Alaska.

[sterlingice]

Mustang- the sad thing is that while I'm sure some of those are the gems- there are many more that are just as bad

SI

[Lathum]

Originally Posted by Mustang

I love some of these questions on the 'ask the Dr.' portion on CNN


"Is there a way to irradiate money in order to attempt to kill this virus on coins and dollar bills to attempt to stop this spread through currency, or should we use bank cards only in order to decrease the cross contamination currency could cause."

"I was wondering as far as the swine flu is concerned, would it be tied to the rocket launch that N. Korea sent into the ocean last month? It just seems crazy that the majority of the infected are in the costal states, especially mexico, which is directly across from Korea. I believe that the virus seems to be man-made and could have possibly been sent into the ocean to where it would contaminate the water."

"wonder if we were so smart years ago allowing the commercial air carriers to cut back on the number of air exchanges on flights. As I recall, to save fuel, the carriers reduced the air exchanges from over 30 to less than 5 per hour. I always turn off the overhead air vent when flying. At least anecdotally, it seems obvious that with such a reduction, the incidence of flight-related airborne illnesses has risen. Perhaps the governent should focus its attention on this aspect of the crisis and encourage the carriers to re-up the number of in-flight air exchanges."

"What are the chances of this being a genetically created virus by a pharmaceutical company who will miraculously present the cure a month from now and generate millions in profit."



*L*

oooookay.

None of these questions surprise me. Anyone intelligent is actually at work and doesn't have time to surf the internet for information about a superflu.

Except all of us that is.

[Lathum]

Originally Posted by JeeberD

I have a Mexico vacation booked started May 12. Gotta decide pretty quick if I'm going to cancel it or not, dammit...

My wife's boss had a business trip planned to Mexico and canceled it. Not so much worry about dying there but picking something up and being quarantined.

[albionmoonlight]

Originally Posted by JediKooter

I guess my problem with how this has been covered...according to the CDC website, annually, 250k to 500k people die EACH YEAR from the flu and we have a little over 100 that have died. Where is the media alarm bells from years past when up to half a million people have died from the flu?

100 compared to up to half a million seems a bit off kilter here.

I think that (1) the media knows that fear = ratings, and (2) because this virus is new and unknown, there is a chance that it could really take off due to a lack of natural immunity to it.

[Cringer]

Our first school closing down here in this area. I blame San Antonio and Houston though, not Mexico. It clearly jumped over us from Mexico and those snobby bastards brought it back down here just to screw us.

SWINE FLU HITS VALLEY? | school, district, students - Now - TheMonitor.com

[Lathum]

My wife is flying from Seattle to Boston today. Hopefully they wait to shut down the airlines until she gets back.

actually...

[Cringer]

Huh. I haven't paid much attention to this really, but as of yesterday morning I have had a slight fever, body aches, and a cough that kills my lungs. I just read those are symptoms. The cough is the only thing bugging me so...oink, oink.

[Lathum]

Originally Posted by Cringer

Huh. I haven't paid much attention to this really, but as of yesterday morning I have had a slight fever, body aches, and a cough that kills my lungs. I just read those are symptoms. The cough is the only thing bugging me so...oink, oink.

Maybe we need to ask CNN if this can be passed through the interwebs

[Lathum]

just got this email

I just wanted to drop a note to remind people of university policy with
the flu. As of last night, there were no reported cases of swine flu
in Washington state. To prevent any issues here, the UW has asked that
students who display flu systems 1) refrain from attending class and 2)
GO TO HALL HEALTH to be checked out. If you are displaying such
symptoms please also, email me and your TA if you will be missing an
assignment and email your TA to let them know you are missing class.
Notification should be made before rather than after assignment due
dates if possible. When scheduling make ups or extensions after you get
better, please be sure you bring documentation from Hall Health. Hall
Health has a standard notification letter for faculty of student
illness. Remember, Hall Health provides one "free" visit for students
each quarter for check up or minor illness visit. This would count as
such a visit.

Please be sure to review the emails sent by UW in regards to this
evolving issue.

Thank you.

Sincerely,

Prof. XXXXXXXXXXX

I have a mid term in that class on Thursday. I wonder how many cases of Swine Flu will be popping up between now and then

[Mustang]

Prof. XXXXXXXXXXX?

Didn't know you were a mutant.

[Mustang]

Originally Posted by sterlingice

Mustang- the sad thing is that while I'm sure some of those are the gems- there are many more that are just as bad

SI

Unfortunately that is correct. There was one in there about sanitizing slot machines since the elderly visit casinos a lot and they are susceptible to the flu.

Give them an A for creativity at least.

[Lathum]

could you imagine this happening in NY or some other major US city?

Authorities ordered restaurants to serve only takeout food and also mandated the closing of bars, clubs, theaters, pool halls, gyms, sport centers and convention halls until May 6, said Juan Jose Garcia Ochoa, a top city government official.

[JeeberD]

Originally Posted by Lathum

could you imagine this happening in NY or some other major US city?

That's my big worry...either all of my employees getting sick and us having to shut down, or everyone becoming shut-ins and not going out to eat. Either way, that puts a huge damper on business...

[Lathum]

Originally Posted by JeeberD

That's my big worry...either all of my employees getting sick and us having to shut down, or everyone becoming shut-ins and not going out to eat. Either way, that puts a huge damper on business...

yeah, you are obviously much closed to ground zero.

have you decided on your trip? Is it to a resort area?

[JeeberD]

We've switched to Barbados instead. I'm not sure what her source was, but she said she heard that the kids in NY who are sick had been in Cancun, and that's where we were going to be flying in to. I would much rather be safe than sorry, though I'm still not 100% worry free considering we're going to be on airplanes with recycled air with people who have been god knows where for a total of 14 hours...

[JediKooter]

Originally Posted by albionmoonlight

I think that (1) the media knows that fear = ratings, and (2) because this virus is new and unknown, there is a chance that it could really take off due to a lack of natural immunity to it.

I'm definitely agreeing on number 1. However, since I have now tuned out the news about this, is the media at the very least trying to explain number 2 or are they still calling it a pandemic and just relaying how many new cases have been reported?

[flere-imsaho]

It doesn't qualify as a pandemic yet. Anyone who's saying that doesn't know what they're talking about.

[Passacaglia]

I'm not sure I can find the link anymore, but I read yesterday that Chicago Public Schools instituted a "no handshakes" rule.

[Passacaglia]

My bad, looks like it was just one school in Chicago:

Chicago Public Radio Blog » Handshakes Banned on Swine Flu Fear | News and Notes from WBEZ

[DanGarion]

OMG I just coughed!!!!!


Do I have Swine Flu?

[Dr. Sak]

Originally Posted by DanGarion

OMG I just coughed!!!!!


Do I have Swine Flu?

No...that chicken you ate last night just became loose in your throat.

[DanGarion]

Originally Posted by Dr. Sak

No...that chicken you ate last night just became loose in your throat.

OH NO I HAVE BIRD FLU!

[JediKooter]

Should have ate the fish...

[lordscarlet]

Originally Posted by DanGarion

OH NO I HAVE BIRD FLU!

Sorry guys, but I chuckled.

[DanGarion]

Originally Posted by lordscarlet

Sorry guys, but I chuckled.

No reason to be sorry. We are all (mostly) friends here even if we want to flog each other at times.

[Ronnie Dobbs2]

[ColtCrazy]

Well, there's been one case found in Northern Indiana. This prompted our school district, in Southern Indiana, to issue a memo to have us remind our students about proper hygiene, etc (which is fine). Then, an Indiana Health official then came out to talk about safety measures, including not shaking hands.

There's been even talk that some districts may close if they get as many as one case.


Is this media driven? I think so.

[path12]

That picture is 80,000 kinds of awesome.

[terpkristin]

Back to seriousness, while I think the media is blowing things out of proportion, I found a link to this free online book on Boing Boing:
Microbial Threats to Health: The Threat of Pandemic Influenza (Microbial Threats to Health: The Threat of Pandemic Influenza), written in 2005 and published by the National Academies Press. Actually, if you sign up (free) you can download the PDF.

/tk

[Desnudo]

Looks like I picked the wrong week to quit taking pig flu vacine.