Swine Flu

[CU Tiger]

And it comes full circle

Farmer may have given swine flu to pigs, Canada says - CNN.com

So now a human has given swine flu to pigs....

[Mac Howard]

Originally Posted by CU Tiger

And it comes full circle

Farmer may have given swine flu to pigs, Canada says - CNN.com

So now a human has given swine flu to pigs....

And how about an article in the Wall Street Journal that suggests that this virus may have begun in San Diego?

Until recently, Mexico was assumed to be ground zero. California doctors are questioning that. The four earliest confirmed cases are divided evenly between California and Mexico.

the Naval Health Research Centre (sic) ................. collected two samples, from a 10 year old boy and a 9 year old girl, that turned out to be neither a known seasonal flu virus or a bird flu. The samples were sent to the Centres for Disease Control for testing.

You Americans do everything first

[Passacaglia]

I'm not sure who is more annoying in this story:

U.W. diplomas won't come with handshake :: CHICAGO SUN-TIMES :: Metro & Tri-State

U. of Wisconsin-Oshkosh diplomas won't come with handshake amid swine flu fears
Comments
May 6, 2009
FROM ASSOCIATED PRESS
OSHKOSH, Wis. — University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh graduates will be awarded their diplomas during commencement this month, but the certificates won’t come with a handshake.

There will be no congratulatory hand grip from the chancellor or any other dignitaries on the graduating platform at the Kolf Sports Center for more than 1,400 graduates May 16 because of concerns about spreading swine flu.

Some graduating seniors think it’s an overreaction. Lore Balde says she invested a lot of time earning her degree and wants a handshake from university representatives.

Student Affairs Vice Chancellor Petra Roter says many students understand the rationale behind the decision.

Packets of hand sanitizer will also be given to everyone who attends.

[Samdari]

Originally Posted by JeeberD

Well, she called tonight to say that she was on her way back to town, and that she was hoping to pick up some shifts this weekend. I wonder how the other servers are going to react...

And yes, she said that her father DID have the swine flu, though by the time she got down there he was already recovering and was no longer contagious.

CDC site says people are contagious until 7 days after the onset of symptoms. She got there after that?

If I were a server, I'd casually let it drop to customers that one of the other servers ("can't tell you which one, its against HIPPA rules") has swine flu. Not that I am that paranoid about the disease, but more because I would enjoy watching the stampede out of the place.

[JeeberD]

Originally Posted by Samdari

If I were a server, I'd casually let it drop to customers that one of the other servers ("can't tell you which one, its against HIPPA rules") has swine flu. Not that I am that paranoid about the disease, but more because I would enjoy watching the stampede out of the place.

I can guess that you were never a server. 'Cause if you were you would realize that it's difficult to make money in an empty restaurant...

[Logan]

Just got an agency wide email with an H1N1 update.

"its severity has been less than originally feared."

Really?!?!?

[Groundhog]

OH NOEZ.

One of the guys from work got sent home today. His girlfriend's sister has been confirmed as having H1N1, and he spent the night at their place the past few days.

I'M GOING TO DIE!!!11!!@#!

Seriously, what a joke, people are freaking out now all around me, while meanwhile there are god knows how many people out there dying from the regular flu.

[dbd1963]

Someone from my wife's work just died of the regular flu. She was in her 30s and appeared otherwise strong. No one can believe it. Leaves behind three little ones. Very sad.

[DaddyTorgo]

"The World Health Organization raised the swine flu alert Thursday to its highest level, saying the H1N1 virus has spread to enough countries to be considered a global pandemic."

Swine flu 'not stoppable,' World Health Organization says - CNN.com

[gstelmack]

Is regular flu a pandemic? The common cold?

[gstelmack]

Ah, there's the important part:

Originally Posted by article

Increasing the alert to Phase 6 does not mean that the disease is deadlier or more dangerous than before, just that it has spread to more countries, the WHO said.

Good to know that CNN is focusing on the "Not Stoppable" headline...

[sterlingice]

It's unstoppable! We're all going to die!

SI

[duckman]

OH NOES!!!!!!1!!1

[RainMaker]

Anyone know anyone who has gotten sick yet? Seems like a shitty past couple weeks for colds/flus/bugs. Just getting over a nasty bug myself.

[chadritt]

There was a very big gamer convention in Seattle last weekend called PAX where theyve had a lot of confirmed cases.

[Groundhog]

I've had flu after flu these past few months.

[Lathum]

Originally Posted by chadritt

There was a very big gamer convention in Seattle last weekend called PAX where theyve had a lot of confirmed cases.

2 cases at university of Washington confirmed

[fantom1979]

Originally Posted by sterlingice

We're all going to die!

QFT

[tarcone]

A school district a couple hours North of me had 12 cases 2 Wednesdays ago that ballooned to 30 by Friday the same week. Havent heard anything since.

[JPhillips]

I teach college students. I figure its only a matter of time before I get it.

[RainMaker]

I heard that some people get really sick from it and others just brush it off like a minor cold.

[Groundhog]

Originally Posted by RainMaker

I heard that some people get really sick from it and others just brush it off like a minor cold.

Meaning that it's like every other cold.

[JeeberD]

Originally Posted by JPhillips

I teach college students. I figure its only a matter of time before I get it.

I work in a restaurant. It's just a matter of time until I get it. I just hope I don't pass it on to my pregnant wife...

[miked]

We have some kids here that have been quarantined to a specific dorm or something.

[MIJB#19]

Originally Posted by RainMaker

Anyone know anyone who has gotten sick yet? Seems like a shitty past couple weeks for colds/flus/bugs. Just getting over a nasty bug myself.

Well, apparently it reached my hometown. A co-worker of my brother picked it up at the biggest outdoor music festival in the Netherlands, about 3 weeks ago.

[LoneStarGirl]

One of my students came up to me today and told me that her doctor believes she has swine flu but can't confirm because the tests weren't available to him. He sent her home for two days but told her to come back to school so she wouldn't be too far behind.

And the school closest to my house (not where I work) just had 4 confirmed cases in 6th graders.

[panerd]

Funeral homes prepare for possible H1N1 surge | ksdk.com | St. Louis, MO

For Christ's sake, I know the media is usually only giving the public what it asks for but isn't there a point where their coverage is just downright irresponsible/fearmongering for ratings?

(I do realize the irony of hotlinking and thus increasing hits to this story but this station really pisses me off with their obsession with the swine flu/H1N1 <---whatever sounds scarier for the story)

[Samdari]

Originally Posted by article

Companies like Target are keeping an eye on flu outbursts -- to help keep their workforce healthy.

This struck me as humorous while reading that article. Why worry about having a healthy workforce to keep your stores open? All of your customers will be dead from swine flu.

[Uncle Briggs]

Originally Posted by RainMaker

Anyone know anyone who has gotten sick yet? Seems like a shitty past couple weeks for colds/flus/bugs. Just getting over a nasty bug myself.

My 5-year-old daughter had it last Tuesday, while we were at Disneyworld on vacation, of all times to get sick. She had about 36 hours of fever and was tired for another couple days after. Thankfully she seems to have had a very mild case.

The doctor we went to down there said they were getting a lot of positive tests on people who weren't particularly sick.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Okay, so ... all paranoia jokes aside.

If your kid gets sick (102 fever, persistent dry cough, vomiting) at what point are you supposed to take them to the doctor?

I've read the CDC recommendations and they don't recommend emergency room treatment unless there's trouble breathing, lack of responsiveness, etc. basically something that sounds damned serious.

Do we just treat it like we would if swine didn't exist, and make the decision the same way we would normally?

[Lathum]

I think when it is your kid you take no chances. I may ot take him to the ER but I don't think that a trip to the pediatrician with those symptoms is a stretch.

[RainMaker]

I read an article somewhere that said that the elderly are actually not getting Swine Flu at the rates we thought. That in fact there may have been a similar flu 50 years ago that they would have built antibodies for back then. That the ones that will particularly hit hard are younger kids.

There was a 14 year old girl who died in the suburbs although they are saying she also had an undiagnosed heart condition.

[gstelmack]

Originally Posted by RainMaker

There was a 14 year old girl who died in the suburbs although they are saying she also had an undiagnosed heart condition.

Every death in this area so far has had complicating health factors.

As for when to take kids to the doctor, just call and ask the doctor. There is usually a triage nurse that will listen to the symptoms and tell you if they need to be seen or not. Our local pediatrician even has a 24 hour nurse line that costs like $10 to call.

[albionmoonlight]

Originally Posted by gstelmack

Every death in this area so far has had complicating health factors.

As for when to take kids to the doctor, just call and ask the doctor. There is usually a triage nurse that will listen to the symptoms and tell you if they need to be seen or not. Our local pediatrician even has a 24 hour nurse line that costs like $10 to call.

Triangle Pediatrics?

[gstelmack]

Originally Posted by albionmoonlight

Triangle Pediatrics?

Yes, they are awesome.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Now waiting for the eventual callback from the pediatric nurse via the answering service.

On the one hand, it's probably nothing overly major. On the other hand when you've got a kid who is hardly ever sick & even more rarely sick with anything for more than 24 hours, it's even more worrisome than it would normally be & the whole H1N1 thing is just icing on the cake. The 102 last night is the highest fever we've seen in him since he was three years old. Not much worse time to get sick than over a weekend, kid or adult, it just adds an extra level of WTF should I do to the mix.

[PilotMan]

Alright Jon, so my two youngest boys (7 and 6) have now both been sick with what I assume is the same virus. They were sick two weeks apart. Both fever's were very high, one got up to 104.7 the other was 103.8. One had vomiting, both had coughs, and both lasted about 2-2.5 days. Tylenol did take the fever down some, and things didn't get any worse. The younger of the two's fever broke only last night. Hang in there, fever's are manageable, its only when they don't respond to Tylenol that you get nervous.

I wouldn't go to the ER unless there were other circumstances. Our doc said they aren't even testing for swine flu, and even if he has it, they just want you away from everyone else.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Thanks PM, kind of reassuring to hear the same thing I got this morning.

Basically, ride it out. Any fever under 105 they no longer even call the doctor for. No Tamiflu or any other drug administered to anyone not presenting extreme symptoms (major breathing problems, blue tinged skin, etc). Clear liquids, motrin as tolerated, tepid baths or cloths until the motrin/tylenol is tolerated, standard nausea/vomiting protocol otherwise.

"There's roughly 10,000 viruses active right now, quite a few flu bugs, he's definitely got one of them but they're all being treated the same and it's all things you'd do at home whether the doctor sees him or not. We don't even test to try to figure out which one unless there's some extreme situation, since it really doesn't matter much". In short, suck it up buttercup, we can't do shit about this other than wait it out.

On the plus side, as a random observation, a top notch experience with the on-call pediatric nurse. Personable, engaged, thorough, pretty much the whole nine yards you'd want in that situation. Neither dismissive nor hyperworried, just plain old helpful.

[albionmoonlight]

Originally Posted by gstelmack

Yes, they are awesome.

Yup. We love them.

[Glengoyne]

My wife and I went out for our anniversary last night, and dropped our kids 5 YO boy, 9 YO girl off with my brother in law and Sister in law. When we got back the boy had a 103 temp. Since then he's been vomiting, with a runny nose but no respiratory issues.

It hit him fast. He was in a parade in the morning, and played hard all afternoon. Just before we dropped him off, he said he had a tummy ache, and he was complaining about me refusing to turn the heater on in the car on the way over. I guess we should pay more attention. On the bright side, because we didn't pay attention, we got to go out for a fantastic dinner. On the down side, we probably infected my three nephews with something unsavory.

[flere-imsaho]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

On the plus side, as a random observation, a top notch experience with the on-call pediatric nurse. Personable, engaged, thorough, pretty much the whole nine yards you'd want in that situation. Neither dismissive nor hyperworried, just plain old helpful.

Sounds like the nurses at our pediatrician's practice.

Hope your young one gets better.

[clemsonfan]

My youngest son has it. He got a 102 fever and was not feeling well yesterday. I immediately made him an appt at his pediatrician's office. They saw him last night and tested him for the flu. It came back positive so we got a script for Tamiflu and got a dose in him last night. If we had waited another day or so we wouldn't have been able to get Tamiflu. You have to have had symptoms for less than 48 hours. So hopefully instead of him being out of school for a full week, he'll only miss 3 days or so.

By the way, the Tamiflu cost us $60 even with insurance! Without insurance it would have been $120.

[flere-imsaho]

Time to buy Roche and Gilead stock.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Saw this post over at Bill Harris blog. In three days, his son's grade went from normal attendance to 70% absent, including his son. Sounds like none of them are getting super-sick though.

Dubious Quality: The Swine

[Alan T]

Well, our town highschool has been officially closed and all student activities (including football game tonight) have been cancelled until next Wednesday at the earliest.

Reportedly 40% of the students and staff were out today because of swine flu.

I wonder how many of those students found it a convenient excuse for a "skip day"

[cartman]

I've got something kicking my ass right now. On Tuesday I started to get a bit of a runny nose, but I didn't pay much attention to it, since I was around a cat, and unless I take some antihistamine before being around a cat, I get that way.

But the bottom dropped out Wednesday morning. I woke up with a completely congested head. I was supposed to meet the boss for breakfast, but he called, and when he heard me talk, told me to stay at home. I went back to sleep, and didn't wake up until 7pm that night, then fell back asleep around 11pm. When I woke up yesterday, I wasn't anywhere near as congested, but I felt completely wiped out. Now today I'm still wiped out, but with the addition of a 101 degree fever and diarrhea. Haven't had any nausea. Not much fun at all.

[flere-imsaho]

On Friday we were told there was a confirmed case at Sam's daycare (in one of the preschool classes, but still...).

Sam just got over the Croup, so I'm hoping he'll be able to avoid H1N1 at least until we can get him vaccinated.

[cuervo72]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

Okay, so ... all paranoia jokes aside.

If your kid gets sick (102 fever, persistent dry cough, vomiting) at what point are you supposed to take them to the doctor?

I've read the CDC recommendations and they don't recommend emergency room treatment unless there's trouble breathing, lack of responsiveness, etc. basically something that sounds damned serious.

Do we just treat it like we would if swine didn't exist, and make the decision the same way we would normally?

Our kids had a scheduled checkup (chicken pox shots, etc) on Monday, which coincided with my son having a low-grade fever (I think it got to 101, but no higher). They really didn't do anything besides giving him another prescription for Flovent (he does have asthma and has difficulty breathing often when sick) and telling us to keep giving him albuterol nebs. They had us come in on Wed just in case as a follow-up, but basically we just let it run its course.

[JonInMiddleGA]

And now it's a "national emergency"
My Way News - Obama declares swine flu a national emergency

[cuervo72]

Interesting.

I was actually thinking about this tonight as I was watching the news (taped from yesterday) reporting that in some case thousands of people were lining up for vaccines, most being turned away because of inadequate supply; at the same time the CDC was admitting that progress was lagging behind where they had planned to be at this point.

What I wondered is if this situation could be compared (eventually) to Katrina. The Bush administration was skewered for its reaction to that emergency. Could Obama face similar scrutiny here if the situation worsens?