SwineFlu cases

[SFG2Lman]

well 2 of my really good buddies were swine flu cases 0 and 1 where I work, they didn't seem ecstatic about it, they looked a little bleary eyed and such but it only last about 3 days and they were done with it...i did not happen to catch it, but they said its just like having the regular flu, just with a different name

 

[Sub_Umbra]

well 2 of my really good buddies were swine flu cases 0 and 1 where I work, they didn't seem ecstatic about it, they looked a little bleary eyed and such but it only last about 3 days and they were done with it...i did not happen to catch it, but they said its just like having the regular flu, just with a different name

A little research into the deadly Spanish Flu of the early 20th century will yield many similar stories -- about a relatively mild flu that came and went in the summer without many fatalities -- and then came back during the next flu season and killed tens of millions.

So about your two good buds that got sick and there wasn't much to it: did either of them find it odd that they even came down with any flu at all so far outside of the flu season? Did that send up any flags to them? For those who pay attention to things like that, it is alarming -- just as it was with the Spanish Flu early in the 20th century.

Those who think nothing of flu spreading so far out of season will likely fail to contemplate what havoc the same virus -- or a mutated virus -- might raise during the next actual flu season (again, like the Spanish Flu did 90 years ago) when the weather is colder and folks are more confined indoors and school is in session. Try to remember that what is happening now in the Northern hemisphere is happening during a season in which normal flu viri are unable to even spread through human populations.

That is newsworthy.

 

[SFG2Lman]

excellent point i had not thought of it in that manner, that must be why they are working so hard and fast on the vaccination, they must want it BEFORE flu season. And now that you mention, before my friend went in to get tested he said "Yeah...so I got a cold in JULY! what the hell is this?" I didn't even think about it till you said something, interesting.

 

[chmsam]

Could be a wee bit o' a problem lads & lasses since at this point at least to the best of my knowledge there are no longer any facilities within the US that can manufacture a vaccine on that scale (hundreds of thousands if not millions of doses) that are in operation. Which country do we want to trust to produce a viable and high enough quality H1N1 vaccine and in a hurry?

"Gee, let's outsource some more. What could possibly be the problem with that?" H1N1 is one thing, but how about a real bio hazard threat popping up?

 

[LuxLuthor]

In this one case, it is not a matter of outsourcing. Rather it is a matter of lawyers, and failure of the federal government to do any meaningful tort reform. Companies with "legal exposure" in the USA have zero interest in making a vaccine without protection from lawsuits.

 

[chmsam]

Well, this is going a bit OT but it's a combination of effects. End result is there is a lag time in development and who knows where the vaccine will come from. In the meanwhile, just use common sense and think about dope slapping people who can't keep their snot and sneezes to themselves.

 

[Sub_Umbra]

This is interesting. Sounds like it could be solved with the stroke of a pen...the right pen. Note that in any mandatory forced innoculation no citizen will be able to sue the Fed for damages resulting from any bad vaccine forced into them. If the Fed is indemnified why would they stop there?

 

[Wits' End]

Interesting light news on disease research.

Science ponders 'zombie attack'

If zombies actually existed, an attack by them would lead to the collapse of civilisation unless dealt with quickly and aggressively.

In some respects, a zombie "plague" resembles a lethal, rapidly spreading infection. The researchers say the exercise could help scientists model the spread of unfamiliar diseases through human populations.

I found a link to the paper, haven't read the whole thing
http://www.mathstat.uottawa.ca/~rsmith/Zombies.pdf

Abstract
Zombies are a popular figure in pop culture/entertainment and they are usually
portrayed as being brought about through an outbreak or epidemic. Consequently,
we model a zombie attack, using biological assumptions based on popular zombie
movies. We introduce a basic model for zombie infection, determine equilibria and
their stability, and illustrate the outcome with numerical solutions. We then refine the
model to introduce a latent period of zombification, whereby humans are infected, but
not infectious, before becoming undead. We then modify the model to include the
effects of possible quarantine or a cure. Finally, we examine the impact of regular,
impulsive reductions in the number of zombies and derive conditions under which
eradication can occur. We show that only quick, aggressive attacks can stave off the
doomsday scenario: the collapse of society as zombies overtake us all.

 

[LightWalker]

I think we should be even more concerned about the vaccine.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDR-UJYms6w

 

[Sub_Umbra]

Here is an interesting article I just ran across:

KPC: The Other Potential Pandemic--And We're Completely Ignoring It

The gist of it is that in flu pandemics many are weakened by the flu but actually killed off by bacterial infections that come along later. The author makes the point that there is a new bacteria, Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase (KPC), waiting in the wings and it will be very hard to treat.