swine flu ?

[Joey_V]

Swine flu is dangerous because it is a variation of the Spanish Flu which killed so many nearly 100 years ago. Both are H1N1 variants.

The Swine Flu has a propensity for antigenic shift - which is a rapid restructuring of their antigenic presentations at the outer membrane of the virus, this would render vaccines useless and may render current treatments like Tamiful and Relenza to be quickly ineffective.

The regular flu which is usually labeled as one that causes epidemics (not pandemics) mutates much more slowly in a manner known as antigenic drift - where a slight variation of the antigenic coat of the virus occurs over time. There are many strains with minor variations, but one or two become most dominant and these are the basis for our Trivalent Influenza Vaccine each year.

The biggest problem with a pandemic strain like the Swine Flu is that it has the ability to cause a near 100 fold increase in mortality due to the quick ability of the virus to completely shed its antigenic coat and don a new one - rendering the body helpless in antibody production, and our meds and vaccinations to nil.

To put it into perspective, the regular flu epidemic kills nearly 500,000 worldwide (last I read). This is a 0.1% mortality rate.

The Swine Flu, being a pandemic flu, can kill up to 50,000,000... a mortality rate of between 10-20% of its victims.

Wash your hands, if you're sick stay home, don a mask if you go to a hospital's emergency room.

 

[FISH_MAN]

not cool ! so when do I decide to close up shop and bunker down in my house ?
you can get this stuff airborne correct ?

 

[Bernard]

Bernard, she was totally pulling one over on you. Flu symptoms rarely persist for more than two weeks.

Actually, way back when, I did once have the flu for 6 weeks.

 

[Pcar928fan]

I once turned down a flu shot at my doctor's office, explaining to his nurse that even though I got a shot every year, I still got the flu. Her response was, "Do you get laid up in bed for 6 weeks every time?". To my "No" response she then said, "All you get is a bad cold, not the flu". I took the shot, with no ill effects.

That nurse is an idiot! TRUE Influenza virus comes on REALLY FAST, with a high temp and is VERY obvious. Tons of body aches and is GONE in 5 days! You might get a secondary bacterial infection, but as long as you are a reasonably healthy person (and even more so if you get to an antiviral like Relenza or Tamiflu withing 24 hours) you will be hurting for a few days, but 6 weeks! GIVE ME A BREAK!

 

[Pcar928fan]

Joey,

I agree with the theory, but it certainly does not look like this one H1N1 strain is particularly virulent or deadly. It has been in Brooklyn, NY for more than a week and has not broken out and no one here has died from it (other than that 23 month old baby from Mexico, at least as far as I have heard as of today anyway). Interesting that folks have died in Mexico and I think that is what has the CDC a bit concerned. Why there, what is the difference between and among strains if anything?

Seems like EVERYTHING these days is disaster just looking to happen...makes for better news to get everyone all riled up. My gut says this is no big deal, but I have been wrong before and time will certainly tell.

Maybe it will get the FDA off its dead butt and get some new vaccines (of all kinds) approved! In '07 the FDA approved 17 drugs for the whole year and 4 or 5 were vaccines... I realize they want to avoid another VIOXX thing, but COME ON GUYS lets get with the program...drug companies are going broke waiting on new drug approvals.

 

[FISH_MAN]

I think now is the time for some real borders

 

[Pcar928fan]

To late for that this go round and frankly just does not work well with Viruses. They don't honor boarders or fences... Most every epidemiologist in the world says it is pretty pointless and stupid to close boarders because of an outbreak of some kind... That is what I hear anyway.