Mad Cow, Bird/Swine Flu, Foot and Mouth, E.coli, Salmonella, Ebola, Marburg...

[Ruby Rose]

Both terms describe different aspects of the spread of a disease - the words have nothing to do with the severity of the disease, nor with its outcomes or mortality rate.

A disease can be widespread and transmissible without being dangerous.

Definitions here:
http://www.medterms.com/script/main/...rticlekey=4751

[mariana]

I was under the impression epidemic was concentrated in a particular region/country, whereas pandemic was spread worldwide.

[Ruby Rose]

Pandemic is used when the disease is present in two or more countries.

[1gentlemaorispirit]

Sorry if my posting was offensive to you in any way 1g. I was trying to be gently ironic. I suspect some of my grandparent's siblings/close relatives may have also died from the flu at that time.

leedsveg

Thank you, Leedsveg, but there's no need to apologise! I understood what you meant. Sometimes I don't always explain clearing what I mean.

The flu epidemic of the 1918 was to fear and took so many loved ones. What really irritates me is the way, people today fear the slightest thing! Maybe this 'wrapping up in cotton wool' attitude over recent years is doing more harm than good!

Bumps and bruises, tears and scares . . . what a wonderful tapestry in makes in life!

[cobweb]

.

[CrunchyMomma]

It's scary because it's new and little is known about it. It's difficult to tell the difference between this strain and seasonal strains, so it's incredibly hard for scientists and doctors to monitor it effectively because there is no way of knowing how many people are actually ill with it, but aren't going to the doctor. It's also somewhat scary because no one has a natural immunity to it, so there is no way of knowing just how easily it can be transmitted from person to person. What Canada, the UK and the US are finding out is that you no longer have to have traveled to Mexico or been in close contact with someone who has in order to catch it. It's spreading the way seasonal flu does, which makes for a long summer here in the Northern Hemisphere - a time in which we should be able to relax and not worry about the flu.

Granted, I'm not buying into the whole "it will be like the Spanish Flu of 1918" hype or conspiracy theories that it was "engineered in a lab to wipe out the Mexicans". I tend to be very cautious during flu season anyway, so *knocks on wood* I'm usually spared.

[Sarabi]

No pig farms are humane...

[herbwormwood]

I heard every year seasonal flu mutates so every year there is a new strain people are not immune to?
Which is why people who get flu jabs are offered a new one each year?

So, does anyone have natural immunity to the latest seasonal flu?
Also is t true this new flu is a mutated combination of
1. swine flu
2. bird flu
3. human flu?
I read a report in the Guardian actual hardcopy newspaper which explained it like this but I can't find it online.

[harpy]

I've read that too herbwormwood (about its being a combination of swine, bird and human flu viruses), but if you read this wikipedia entry http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2009_swine_flu_outbreak it seems to be disputed ("other scientists have stated that analysis of the 2009 swine flu (A/H1N1) viral genome suggests that all RNA segments are of swine origin").

So perhaps the Grauniad have pulled the article from their website or something.

[CrunchyMomma]

I heard every year seasonal flu mutates so every year there is a new strain people are not immune to?
Which is why people who get flu jabs are offered a new one each year?

So, does anyone have natural immunity to the latest seasonal flu?
Also is t true this new flu is a mutated combination of
1. swine flu
2. bird flu
3. human flu?
I read a report in the Guardian actual hardcopy newspaper which explained it like this but I can't find it online.

Seasonal flu does mutate, but some people develop a slight immunity to repeated strains that are closely related, which means they can be exposed to influenza and not feel symptoms (at that point they can, however, be a carrier of the virus) or the severity of their symptoms are lessened. Around here, flu shots are only recommended for certain age groups and people considered at risk of having life-threatening complications if they catch the virus (such as people with immune deficiencies).

As far as this strain being a combination of swine, avian and human flu I think that was either A) the initial suspicion or B) a rumor started by conspiracy theorists who have been claiming this is some act of biological warfare perpetrated by the Taliban or the Illuminati trying to control people.

[Spud Addict]

Case confirmed in my home town.
Link

[CrunchyMomma]

What I cannot understand is why Mexico and the US are the only two countries that have seen consistent human to human transmission. Other countries are having little sporadic cases here and there, reported in people who have traveled to where this flu is present. I wonder why it has been so bad here?

[Frank]

^ Climate conditions perhaps?

Just had a government 'Swine Flu Information' booklet delivered with my mail.

Apparantly, every address in the UK will be receiving one.

[1gentlemaorispirit]

^ Climate conditions perhaps?

Just had a government 'Swine Flu Information' booklet delivered with my mail.

Apparantly, every address in the UK will be receiving one.

Got ours in the post today, too!

[cobweb]

we had ours lat week, so there!

[helen105281]

Not got mine yet

[CrunchyMomma]

Damn! You all in the UK get informational brochures. All we have received here in the States is conflicting news, conspiracy theories, widespread panic and racially fueled animosity.

Climate conditions perhaps?

I don't know. Influenza typically does not survive long once the weather gets humid here. It tends to peak when it's dry and cold, but fizzles out of existence once it gets warmer. Of course, the CDC cannot understand why we are still considered at the peak of regular flu season here in the States when that usually hits between December and April.

We're about to be into June, when flu is almost never documented, and 50% of lab tested influenza samples are "Novel" (swine flu) H1N1 positive and the rest are the seasonal flu strains. It's unnerving because the news is so grim every day. You think there is a lull then, all of a sudden, there are strange and unexplainable massive outbreaks in various regions.

[cobweb]

http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/2...ials-said.html

Just wondering if this mother ^ found all the 'alarm' about swine flu so hilarious - before she died?

[Risker]

What are you getting at cobweb? It wasn't just swine flu anyway, she had a caesarean and pneumonia and flu.

[Ruby Rose]

It seems a tragic story to me - I don't see why you would imagine she found it "hilarious"? Having given birth, and already having a respiratory tract infection, she was a high-risk, highly-vulnerable person. Just the sort of person who would be likely not to survive flu of any description.

[leedsveg]

http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/2...ials-said.html

Just wondering if this mother ^ found all the 'alarm' about swine flu so hilarious - before she died?

Hi Cobweb.

I took the trouble to read yours and others previous postings in this thread so I know exactly where you are coming from re swine flu. My take is that you are a caring, concerned person and I, for one, totally respect your point of view.

leedsveg

[cobweb]

What are you getting at cobweb? It wasn't just swine flu anyway, she had a caesarean and pneumonia and flu.

just that certain people seem to think its ok to make a joke of swine flu when its really not all that 'hilarious' is what i'm getting at.

[Ruby Rose]

I took the trouble to read yours and others previous postings in this thread

certain people seem to think its ok to make a joke of swine flu

I have also read all the posts on this thread, and I cannot see any that make a joke of swine flu. You are entitled of course to interpret posts differently.

There are a number of posters (me included) who feel that the (media) hysteria about swine flu is misplaced and ultimately unhelpful in global management of a disease. This is quite a different thing, as I'm sure you can both see.

[Risker]

TBH, even if there were jokes about swine flu in this thread it wouldn't bother me, to many, making light of serious situations is a coping mechanism. Otherwise we'd all spend our whole lives being miserable about everything. I don't think anyone would get angry at someone making a joke involving "normal" flu yet that kills waaaaaay more than swine flu ever has.

[Kate1978]

There are a number of posters (me included) who feel that the (media) hysteria about swine flu is misplaced and ultimately unhelpful in global management of a disease. This is quite a different thing, as I'm sure you can both see.

Indeed. What I find strange is that the media was full of hysteria about swine flu 3 weeks ago when there were 30 cases in the UK, but now there are 500+ it gets merely a passing mention if that. Could it be that they have now seized upon more juicy stories such as which MP is having their moat cleaned on a given day?

[cobweb]

i would still find it really weird if people made jokes about 'normal' flu, or any other kind of flu, but more so with 'swine' flu as there is a supposed connection with intensive farming.

i don't find anything remotely funny about disease/illness/death, i must be really weird!.

[cobweb]

http://www.orcadian.co.uk/

i just read on here ^ (click and scroll down a bit) that there are plans to immunise everyone (at least where i live, in Orkney - so presumably it'll be happening all over the U.K) against Swine Flu.

They say 50% of us here will be vaccinated this year, the remaining 50% next year. Well they can factor out me, my son and my husband from their equations as we won't be toddling along for any vaccinations!

i suppose this means more animals suffering for the sake of human 'health'.

[Kate1978]

Like with anything, worrying about something achieves little. I am just making sure that I eat healthily so that my body is as strong as it can be should I catch it, and making sure that I wash my hands with soap frequently to avoid spreading/catching nasties.

I don't normally have a flu jab, and am unlikely to have one for this.

I wish a full and speedy recovery to those who have caught the illness.

[Gorilla]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/...st/8100590.stm

The first person in Europe to die after being diagnosed with swine flu has been named as 38-year-old Jacqueline Fleming from Glasgow.

Ms Fleming died on Sunday at the Royal Alexandra Hospital in Paisley. She had been suffering from underlying health problems and had recently given birth.

Her family said it had been "absolutely devastated" by her death.

In a statement, Ms Fleming's family said it was doing everything to support her two sons and partner.

The statement, issued by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, said: "We can confirm that our beloved Jacqueline Fleming passed away yesterday afternoon.

"Our whole family is absolutely devastated and we are doing everything we can to support Jacqueline's two sons and her partner.

"Jacqueline has been ill in hospital for a number of weeks but nothing can prepare you for such shattering news and to that end we would ask the media to respect the privacy of our entire family so that we can grieve in peace."

A family friend of Ms Fleming, who was from the Thornliebank area of Glasgow southside, said: "It is a tragedy. She had an 18-year-old son and a boy of around nine or 10 and a new baby who will grow up without a mother now.

"I think they are taking it really badly. She was in hospital for a couple of weeks and there were days she was getting better and days she was taking a turn for the worse.

"They hoped she was going to pull through and it was a shock when she died. The family are really devastated."

She added: "She was a really nice lady, really kind, a quiet woman, just a family person really."

Earlier, Scotland's Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon said that while Ms Fleming's death was tragic the public should take some reassurance from the fact that most cases of the virus were "relatively mild".

Speaking to the BBC News Channel, Ms Sturgeon said: "Obviously this death is a tragedy and I would express my deepest condolences to the family of the patient concerned.

"However, I do also think it is important to stress that in any flu outbreak, unfortunately, we will see a small number of deaths and that doesn't change the fact that for the vast majority of people contracting this virus the symptoms are relatively mild."

[Buddha Belly]

How many die of MRSA each day? 1593 in the whole of 2007, so 4.3 per day.
There is now 1261 confirmed cases of swine flu/ Mexican death fever and 1 death, which means about 4837 people dying of it in this country. Not bad really.

This is the biggest non-story of the year. There are much more things to be worried about than this latest scare tactic.

[pavotrouge]

oh, my favourite topic... hiya from swine flu city!
Most schools in the part of Düsseldorf where I work have been closed down because some Japanese kids brought the flu back home from their holiday trips.
Strangely, only Japanese people have been getting it... shows how much of a secluded own society they've got.

(nope, that's not meant remotely racist- a third of the inhabitants are Japanese).

Anyway, for most people here swine flu wasn't much different from a regular cold, not even a proper influenza.
The horror case you hear about in the news must be people with a very weak immune system.

[Buddha Belly]

I know, a month ago the UK government was warning everyone that swine flu is a huge killer. ONE UK person dies (who had other serious medical issues) and the government is stressing that there is no need to unduly panic. This after they have rammed the possibility of a slow, snotty death on us all for months.
As I have said from the start there is much worse things to worry about than a bad cold.

[Lord Perennialist]

Yeah... I'm not even worried about swine flue. I'm betting my vegan-fed digestive system can deal with it. Its the elderly and young that have to worry... but then again these are the people who are most in danger from the common cold too.

But to watch the news here in the U.S., all this talk about pandemics and deaths, you would think that news media is trying to gear the American people up again to elect a Republican congress or something...

Here in America we've been manipulated by playing on our fears for too long. So I'm not concerning myself with swine flu.

[Gorilla]

Swine flu has now mixed with bird flu. Scientists say they will find a cure when pigs fly.

[gogs67]

Glasgow to become Europe's Swine Flu capitol within days




Three hundred suspected swine flu victims are being diagnosed every day in Scotland as doctors fear the spread of the disease is spiralling out of control. .

Health chiefs even allowed hundreds of people to be diagnosed over the phone by staff with no medical training as they became swamped last week.

A Sunday Mail investigation today reveals bosses have identified the six worst swine flu clusters across the country.

One expert yesterday warned surgeries and hospitals could be "overrun".

It has also emerged that two thirds of the new cases are in the south side of Glasgow - which experts believe will be Europe's swine flu capital within days.

Heavily pregnant mum Karen Smith told the Sunday Mail how she was given the all-clear after phoning NHS 24 - only to have her diagnosis reversed 24 hours later.

The confusion left 15 members of Karen's family - including five children - without medication for three days and quarantined for a week.

Karen, of Pollok, Glasgow, should have been seen immediately by a doctor as she was 33 weeks pregnant and aged 21 - two of the most "at risk" groups.

She said: "It's a nightmare. Trying to get answers was impossible. We are none the wiser as to whether we had it.

"The first person I called on Thursday said it wasn't swine flu and, even if it was, I wouldn't get treatment as I am pregnant.

"At 5am on Saturday a woman, who wasn't a doctor, called to ask about my symptoms. She said it was swine flu.

"I asked to be tested but she said there are too many cases for tests in my area." Karen's experience came less than a week after Jacqueline Fleming, 38, became the first person in Britain to die from swine flu. She died in Paisley's Royal Alexandra Hospital last Sunday. Her newborn baby, Jack, died the next day.

The Scottish Government introduced "clinical diagnosis" on June 11. That meant NHS staff could follow guidelines on a flow chart to determine if a caller had swine flu.

Staff were told patients in high-cluster areas - south-east Glasgow, south-west Glasgow, Renfrewshire, East Renfrewshire, Inverclyde and the Cowal peninsula - did not need swabbing or a doctor's visit.

Patients were told to send an unaffected family member to hospital for anti-virals.

They were not seen by a doctor and, in some cases, could not even speak to one by phone.

The Scottish Government secretly abandoned the policy on Thursday, admitting it had caused alarm.

On Monday 71 people were diagnosed as having the flu but on Tuesday it was 351.

On Wednesday there were 300 diagnoses, Thursday's total was 354 and on Friday 245 people were told they had the virus.

Government adviser Professor Hugh Pennington said: "To conduct diagnosis like this and expect it to be accurate is pie in the sky. We need lab testing.

"It is worrying and indicates that they are becoming overrun by the number of cases. When a 21-year-old pregnant woman called up with symptoms, she should have gone to the top of the list to see a doctor."

Professor Henry Niman, who has made a global flu tracker website, said: "The pipeline of clinically confirmed cases is higher in Scotland so, when combined with lab-confirmed ones, it would be the highest."

The Scottish Government said: "Lab testing is resuming for all possible cases in NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde. With the opening of swabbing centres, the number of confirmed cases is likely to increase."

http://www.sundaymail.co.uk/news/sco...8057-21459588/




Good old Glasgow, they lost the European murder capital accolade to Limerick last year!

Still got the strokes and heart attacks record though and now, to cap it off, Swine Flu!!

[cobweb]

oh, charming, i'm visiting Glasgow in a few weeks, will look forward to that then!

[gogs67]

oh, charming, i'm visiting Glasgow in a few weeks, will look forward to that then!

Well, if thwe Sunday Mail is anything to go by, Glasgow may be closed by then!

[jimmeh]

I work in all the hospitals in Glasgow. Don't come near me!

[gogs67]

I work in all the hospitals in Glasgow. Don't come near me!

So does it seem to be as bad as made out in that article yet, or is it lookin like more tabloid sensationalism?

[Est]

Swine flu has now mixed with bird flu. Scientists say they will find a cure when pigs fly.

[jimmeh]

So does it seem to be as bad as made out in that article yet, or is it lookin like more tabloid sensationalism?

To be honest you would never know to walk around the hospitals that there's anything serious going on. I've seen consultants, nurses and cleaning staff put on masks and scrubs to enter isolation rooms, but there's no panic.

I think it seems worse than it is because everyone with severe respiratory problems are being treated as possible cases. Therefore, many of the wards probably have patients in isolation but they turn out to be negative for H1N1

[gogs67]

And...............i kid you not...........i've just heard that all the police up here are to be tested for Swine Flu and innoculated!
Dunno how they could announce that with a straight face?

[cobweb]

Gogs everyone here in Orkney is meant to be vaccinated soon!

[DarmokTheGreen]

Swine flu has now mixed with bird flu. Scientists say they will find a cure when pigs fly.

I am glad that I read this post *before* reading that swine flu (very infectious, not very serious) mixing with bird flu (not very infectious, very serious) is a worst case scenario.

[jimmeh]

Here's an interesting article. Russian researchers are investigating a link between H1N1 and the genetic modification of potatoes. See what you think -

According to the report, the protease enzyme (the enzyme that begins the digestion of proteins) of the potatoes in question has been altered to make them more hardy and less vulnerable to the Potato virus X, a dangerous plant disease that can cause devastating losses of potato crops. This genetic change causes an “explosive” replication of the H1N1 influenza virus."

http://www.examiner.com/x-672-Disease-Prevention-Examiner~y2009m6d21-H1N1-flu-linked-to-French-fries-sold-in-fast-food-restaurants

[cobweb]

^ OMG..........this is how we will wipe our own species out one day

[Guate_Vegan]

^ Hey I think that's a good thing, we're a horrible species lol.

[bringsMore]

Here's an interesting article. Russian researchers are investigating a link between H1N1 and the genetic modification of potatoes. See what you think -

http://www.examiner.com/x-672-Disease-Prevention-Examiner~y2009m6d21-H1N1-flu-linked-to-French-fries-sold-in-fast-food-restaurants

Honestly I can't take it seriously - merely because the whole

Scientists from Russia’s Ministry of Health are warning in a secret report to Prime Minister Putin...

sounds like the pro-Russian propaganda that we receive every day.

[gogs67]

Here's an interesting article. Russian researchers are investigating a link between H1N1 and the genetic modification of potatoes. See what you think -

http://www.examiner.com/x-672-Disease-Prevention-Examiner~y2009m6d21-H1N1-flu-linked-to-French-fries-sold-in-fast-food-restaurants

There really isn't much in that article that i'd worry about!

The protease would be denatured by deep frying and would be inactive whether the potatoes were genetically modified or not, for one.
Secondly, the vast majority of fatalities in the 1918 outbreak were young, healthy people (no chips then????)

In addition, the countries that are reporting large numbers of H1N1 cases are those countries that grow these genetically modified potatoes: the US, Australia, Canada, United Kingdom, and Chile, a country that grows large quantities of potatoes for the US. Large countries that do not allow planting of genetically modified potatoes, such as Russia, China, and India, report few H1N1 case, 3, 318, and 16, respectively

This is just nonsense.

the UK does not grow 'large quantities' of GM potatoes for the US whereas India HAS been growing GM potatoes for the last 6 years!
Total contradicton.

And how does Mexico fit in with the theory? GM potato tacos anyone?

Dinnae lose sleep over this!

[jimmeh]

I wasn't taking the article seriously - I just thought it was interesting. I like a good old conspiracy