Global's H1N1 Update news 20.3.2010

Influenza A (H1N1) Cases and Deaths*

*Cases reported by The World Health Organization (WHO) are as of March 7, 2010

National News

The Canadian government has announced it is planning to overhaul its vaccine supply system. GlaxoSmithKilne, the only company with a flu vaccine plant in Canada, is the government’s sole flu vaccine supplier. The single-source system came about when officials worried that a pandemic outbreak would prompt countries to close their borders, blocking potential vaccine shipments. GlaxoSmithKine ran into production delays last year with its H1N1 vaccine, and its ten-year contract expires next year. In a notice to the drug industry, health officials said they wanted to consider “a second pandemic supply contract,” and look into “additional suppliers for seasonal influenza vaccine, as necessary.” The Globe and Mail

One month after the Vancouver Olympics, three months after the H1N1 pandemic peak in Canada, and four months after the Auditor General accused Ottawa of being unprepared to respond to emergencies, the federal government has adopted its Federal Emergency Response Plan. The plan outlines emergency management roles and responsibilities of federal institutions in case of man-made or natural disasters, including floods, forest fires, terrorist attacks and pandemics. Public Safety Minister Vic Toews said a plan has always been in place, but now it’s been formalized. Auditor General Sheila Fraser says that was not so and that in November the plan was still incomplete though the ministry was created in 2003. CBC News

Vaccine News

In an update to a related story, Fraunhofer USA’s Center for Molecular Biotechnology has been awarded a $4.4 million research grant. The funding will allow the non-profit research organization to begin clinical trials for its plant-based flu vaccines. The American Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is backing the project to enable a more rapid response to military and civilian disease threats. Fraunhofer USA’s Press Release

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Situation Update

Flu Activity: FluView reports that for the week of February 28 – March 6, 2010, flu activity in the United States was relatively low, with most flu continuing to be caused by 2009 H1N1. Flu activity, caused by either 2009 H1N1 or seasonal flu viruses, may rise and fall, but is expected to continue for weeks. It’s possible that the United States could experience another wave of flu activity caused by either 2009 H1N1 or seasonal influenza.

Australia: "Good take-up" at free swine flu vaccinations..0909

VIa ABC News: "Good take-up" at free swine flu vaccinations. Excerpt:

More than 55,000 Queenslanders have been vaccinated against swine flu so far at free weekend clinics being held at high schools around the state.

More than 40 Queenslanders died in the first wave of the H1N1 virus last year, and Queensland Health (QH) says the immunisation program will reduce the impact when swine flu strikes again.

QH chief health officer Jeannette Young says she is pleased with the take-up, and clinics will run until the end of the school term.

"Anyone who goes along who is part of the child's family can certainly be vaccinated and anyone from the general community who wants to can certainly go along to one of the clinics," she said.

wat is avian influenza? how

It 'started as a natural influenza virus is naturally in wild birds carrying the virus in the intestines, but usually do not get sick of them. However, avian influenza is very contagious among birds and can some domestic birds, including making chickens, ducks and turkeys, very sick and kill them.

Avian influenza is not normally infect species other than birds and pigs. But the man came with the bird flu in Hong Kong in 1997 when the H5N1 strainInfected 18 people, including 6 deaths

What is avian flu, and because we are killing the chickens?

More recently, a virulent form of bird flu has swept through 10 countries in Asia and killed thousands of chickens and ducks, and possibly wild birds as well. In four countries, China, Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam has the flu and people infected, most of whom were believed to be in close contact with infected chickens. The governments of these countries have killed millions of birdsin an attempt to stop the spread.

Avian influenza viruses do not infect humans, as a rule, however, occurred more than 100 confirmed cases of infection with avian influenza viruses since 1997, according to World Health Organization.

The difference in virus known as H5N1, compared with human influenza and pneumonia is that bird flu is spreading in the form of the body in a fast pace and rapidly affects the lungs fill with fluid. Symptoms include: throat, fever, headache, coughin some deaths, severe breathing difficulties caused by a viral pneumonia.

What is avian flu and why people think it will make a pandemic?

What health authorities fear that the H5N1 virus can mutate rapidly and reaches the genetic material of the virus to other animals. There have been infected then there is the real possibility of causing large-scale human infection by a mutation of a new virus from humans,with both avian and human influenza viruses at the same time. The birds are infected, the greater the risk to humans and the increased likelihood that a new "super virus" could be formed.

If this is the case then the virus, such as a cold, it could spread very rapidly and cause high mortality rates - particularly the young, the elderly and people who are already sick.

What is avian flu, and there is a vaccine? While the vaccine Tamiflu caneffective against theavian influenza virus is a scarce commodity. The other important factor is that there is no guarantee that this vaccine will be effective against the new mutant strain of the virus and health officials point out that this could be for many months.

What is avian influenza and what can I do to protect myself?
Best advice is to avoid the possibility of exposure and to stimulate the immune system through a healthy diet (more omega-3 fatty acids, lessOf sugar, fried foods and omega-6) and start supplementing with nutrients known to improve the functioning of the immune system - such as selenium and vitamins A, C and E.

Abstract

Avian influenza or the H5N1 virus is found naturally in wild birds and can be spread to domestic chickens and pigs.

Recently, human infections have in several countries in Asia due to contact with infected birds and pigs.

The virus is very human through the Youngrapidly and affects the lungs fill with fluid.

Health officials are spreading about the possibility of human contamination has been hit with a new and highly lethal virus that can spread easily from person to person develops an ANDS would cause high mortality.

Although there is a vaccine against the H5N1 bird flu virus is to provide concise and made no resistance to a new avian influenza virus.

Antioxidant supplements are very effective in strengthening theD immune systems provide a natural protection against the virus

ssam bird flu excuse for dead poultry farms how it came?

Call it foresight or bad economics, the Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Department (AHVD) put Rs 2.49 crore in 15 State-run poultry farms that were defunct. These farms became non-functional prior to the 2004-05 fiscal.

In May last year, the Department argued that steps were taken since 2007 to make 13 of these 15 farms functional. But the outbreak of avian influenza put paid to the efforts.

"The contention of the Department is not correct, as outbreak of bird flu is a recent event. Failure to revive the farms reflected lack of adequate initiative," said a report of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) for the year ending March 31, 2009.

If that were not enough, AHVD had during 2004-09 spent Rs 1.84 crore on payment of salary and wages to 120 drivers – for doing nothing.

“Scrutiny revealed that 71 out of 226 different types of vehicles (with AHVD) were auctioned during 2000-08. Out of the remaining 155 vehicles, 114 remained off-road prior to 2004-05 and only 41 vehicles were on road during 2004-09,” the CAG report said.

It added: “Against these 41 vehicles, 161 regular drivers were engaged since 2004-05 as against the requirement of 41 drivers. As a result 120 drivers were maintained in excess of requirement involving an expenditure of Rs 1.84 crore.”

Maintenance of idle manpower indicated poor manpower management on the part of AHVD, the report concluded.

FLU

Swine flu – Avoid being at Crowded places ?why

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Dynamic Swine Flu Threat Will Persist Through 2010, Experts Say....

The timing of H1N1 “swine” flu’s arrival makes it too late to include in the 2009-2010 seasonal flu shot, which could mean two separate flu shots over the coming winter for many Americans and as many as three for children, whose immune systems have developed minimal resistance to influenza and may thus require two shots of the novel strain, according to a leading vaccinologist.

Maj. Gen. Philip Russell U.S. Army, Ret., a physician and former head of the branch’s infectious disease program, participated in a panel discussion on H1N1 this week hosted by the George Washington University’s School of Public Health and Health Services and the Homeland Security Policy Institute in Washington, D.C.

The coming winter’s seasonal flu shots are already in production, incorporating three strains that appeared over the past winter and are expected to return. A swine flu shot may arrive mid-fall, but would likely not be widely available until early 2010, possibly requiring the implementation of administration guidelines—essentially rationing-- while supplies are still short, Russell said.

Dr. Jeffrey Levi, executive director of the Trust for America’s Health, and fellow panelists shared high praise for elements of the public health sector’s current handling of the H1N1 outbreak. They agreed, however, that the country still lacks adequate logistical planning and assets to administer vaccines or medication—like 600 million or more doses—in the midst of a severe pandemic.

Whether the America public would accede to a series of seasonal flu shots “depends on how scared people are,” Levi said. A better question is whether the pharmaceutical industry would have the capacity to produce them in a global pandemic, he added.

The H1N1 response has benefitted from sound execution of high-quality pandemic flu plans drafted in response to the deadly Asian H5N1 “bird” flu, but recent weeks have revealed omissions in the plans, said panelist Paul Jarris, executive director of the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials.

U.S. containment plans assumed that pandemic flu strains would be detected overseas, like Asia, before they spread in North America. H1N1, instead, originated in Mexico and was already spreading in the United States by the time its threat came to light, Jarris said, noting that 1918’s Spanish flu originated in Kansas.

“We forgot the past and failed to prepare for that contingency,” said Jarris, who along with other panelists warned that H1N1 will likely pose a critical public health threat for roughly 18 months.

“We are still in the early stages of this. We are several weeks into a novel outbreak, so this is not over,” Jarris said.

The panelists reserved high praise for the government’s risk communication during the outbreak. They lauded government for letting the public health sector, including Dr. Richard Besser, acting director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, speak directly to the American people about the severity of the risk. The country has also benefitted from the communication skill of President Barack Obama, who said last month that the disease is “a cause for deep concern, but not panic,” Levi said.

To read more about the huge challenges of pandemic preparedness, check out "Biothreat Detection and Response" from the February issue of Security Management.

The latest news on swine flu is tat?

The latest news on swine flu

The latest update from the World Health Organization (WHO) has declared that as of the 6th of July the worldwide total of H1N1 influenza A cases (swine flu) had reached 94,512 including 429 deaths.

Of these officially recorded cases by the WHO Australia accounts for 5,298 including 10 deaths and lies in sixth position of countries to date worse affected.

However according to the latest Australian government figures the picture is far bleaker because as of yesterday Australia has now had 8,337 confirmed cases of the H1N1 virus, including 18 deaths - the national breakdown of cases is currently the ACT 336, NSW 1,858, NT 578, Qld 1,976, SA 920, Tas 137, Vic 2,067, WA 463.

There are currently 132 people in hospital around Australia with the virus, 29 of these are in intensive care - the total number of hospitalisations in Australia since the H1N1 pandemic began is 902.

The United States has been particularly affected with 33,902 including 170 deaths, followed by Mexico with 10,262 cases including 119 deaths, Canada with 7,983 cases including 25 deaths, the United Kingdom with 7,447 cases including 3 deaths and Chile with 7,376 cases including 14 deaths.

These numbers are of course a week old and current estimates will undoubtedly exceed them as it often takes weeks or months to collect data on flu deaths.

The WHO says it has received information from health authorities in Denmark, Japan and Hong Kong that some H1N1 viruses appear to be resistant to the antiviral drug Tamiflu - the viruses were found in three patients who did not have severe disease and all have now apparently recovered.

The WHO says investigations by the Global Influenza Surveillance Network into almost 1000pandemic H1N1 viruses have not found the resistant virus in the close contacts of these three people and all other viruses have been shown sensitive to the anti-virals Tamiflu and Relenza.

The WHO says that instances of drug resistance appear to represent sporadic cases of resistance and currently there is no evidence to indicate the development of widespread antiviral resistance among pandemic H1N1 viruses and antiviral drugs remain a key component of the public health response when used as recommended.

Health officials in the U.S. say another $1 billion will be spent on the bulk ingredients for an H1N1vaccine.

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius says while there are plans for a mid-October vaccination programme it remains unclear whether the vaccine would be offered for swine flu - the WHO is expected to issue guidance on whether an H1N1 swine flu vaccine will be offered alongside the seasonal flu vaccine.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is reportedly working with scientists at the National Institutes of Health to ensure the vaccination programme will be safe and effective.

Health experts estimate that at least 1 million people have been infected with swine flu in the United States and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says it has confirmed 211 deaths.

In Australia 18 Queenslanders have reportedly been hospitalised with swine flu and 5 remain in intensive care - across the state 2,000 people have now tested positive for the H1N1 flu virus - Queensland Health says 2,026 cases of H1N1 were confirmed in the state last night with more than 400 diagnosed with swine flu over the weekend.

Health experts say people who have mild flu-like symptoms do not need to visit their GP and parents should keep children at home if they are sick with flu-like symptoms and this also applies to workers who develop flu symptoms - they say only those with underlying medical conditions which render them more vulnerable to developing complications need to be tested for the virus.

In central Queensland, all 91 inmates at the Capricornia low security prison farm near Rockhampton are undergoing tests after some prisoners showed flu symptoms and 6 men have been isolated, while they wait for swine flu test results.

To date Queensland has recorded no death from the illness, but health officials across the country are warning Australians not to become complacent about the H1N1 flu outbreak.

Seasonal epidemics of influenza occur yearly during autumn and winter in temperate regions - in some tropical countries, influenza viruses circulate throughout the year with one or two peaks during rainy seasons.

Worldwide epidemics of seasonal influenza result in about 3 to 5 million cases of severe illness, and about 250,000 to 500,000 deaths - about 36,000 people die each year from the seasonal flu in the United States alone.

11 fresh deaths take India's swine flu toll to 1,061

Eleven swine flu deaths, eight in Gujarat alone, were reported Sunday, taking the toll in India to 1,061, health officials said here.
Also, 33 new cases were reported in the country, taking the total number of people affected with the contagious flu to 27,712.
Of the total eight deaths reported from Gujarat, four occurred Sunday and four others happened earlier but were confirmed Sunday. A total of 152 people have died in the state due to the deadly virus.
Two deaths were also recorded from Rajasthan, which is seeing a sudden spurt in the number of cases and deaths. About 162 people have died so far due to the Influenza A (H1N1) virus in the state.
One death was also reported from Punjab where so far 35 people have died due to the flu.
However, Maharashtra continues to report the maximum number of deaths and cases in the country. Since the first swine flu death in India Aug 3 which occurred in Maharashtra's Pune town, about 284 people have died in the state, while 4,732 people have been detected with the virus.
"Till date, samples from 117,094 people have been tested for Influenza A (H1N1) in government laboratories and a few private laboratories across the country, and 27,712 them have been found positive," said an official statement here.
New cases were also reported from Delhi (14), Gujarat (13), Uttar Pradesh (two), Haryana (one) and Jammu and Kahsmir (one).

Six fresh cases of swine flu in Delhi

Six new cases of swine flu were reported in the national capital Sunday, a health official said.

"There were six new cases today. The cumulative number of H1N1 infections in the city has reached 9,595,” a health ministry official added.

On Friday, a 55-year-old woman succumbed to the disease, taking the toll due to Influenza A (H1N1) to 89 in the capital.

Swine flu latest from the NHS1

The chief medical officer has said that the number of people with flu continues to fall. In the week to January 7, the number of cases has fallen to fewer than 5,000 estimated cases.
The overall number of patients in hospital was down to 393, with a slight reduction in critical care patients, at 103. There were 360 deaths in the UK, with 251 in England, 64 in Scotland, 28 in Wales, and 17 in Northern Ireland.
Despite the decrease in swine flu numbers, it remains important that people in at-risk groups are vaccinated. Healthy children under five years and over six months began to be vaccinated before Christmas, and more than 86,000 are estimated to have been given the vaccine. In total, more than 3.2 million doses have been given to priority groups.

Vaccinations

Vaccination of people in clinical risk groups is well under way, with an estimated 3.2 million doses of vaccine administered so far. NHS hospitals and GPs are now vaccinating patients facing the greatest risk of complications. Patients will be contacted by their GPs if they fall into one of the at-risk categories.
Healthcare staff dealing with the public are also being vaccinated to help keep medical services running smoothly and to prevent them from passing the virus to patients.

Who is a priority for vaccination?

People who are most at risk from swine flu need to be vaccinated first. These groups are, in order of priority:
People aged between six months and 65 years in the seasonal flu vaccine at-risk groups.
All pregnant women. The European Medicines Agency has indicated the vaccine can be given to pregnant women regardless of their stage of pregnancy.
People who live with those whose immune systems are compromised, such as cancer patients or people with HIV/AIDS.
People aged 65 and over in the seasonal flu vaccine at-risk groups.
Healthy children aged over six months and under five years old.
Frontline health and social care workers will also be offered the vaccine at the same time as the first clinical at-risk groups. Health and social care workers are both at an increased risk of catching swine flu and of spreading it to other at-risk patients.

What are the seasonal flu vaccine at-risk groups?

These are people with:
chronic respiratory disease, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD),
chronic heart disease, such as heart failure,
chronic kidney disease, such as kidney failure,
chronic liver disease, such as chronic hepatitis,
chronic neurological disease, such as Parkinson's disease,
diabetes requiring insulin or oral hypoglycaemic drugs, and
immunosuppression (a suppressed immune system), due to disease or treatment.

Who is at greatest risk of serious complications from swine flu?

Some people are more at risk of complications if they catch swine flu, and need to start taking antivirals as soon as it is confirmed that they have the illness. Doctors may advise some high-risk patients to take antivirals before they have symptoms, if someone close to them has swine flu.
It is already known that people are particularly vulnerable if they have:
chronic (long-term) lung disease,
chronic heart disease,
chronic kidney disease,
chronic liver disease,
chronic neurological disease (neurological disorders include motor neurone disease, multiple sclerosis and Parkinson's disease),
immunosuppression (whether caused by disease or treatment), or diabetes mellitus.
Also at risk are:
patients who have had drug treatment for asthma in the past three years,
pregnant women,
people aged 65 and over, and
children under five.


National Pandemic Flu Service

The National Pandemic Flu Service was launched in July. This online service assesses patients for swine flu and, if required, gives them an authorisation number that can be used to collect antiviral medication.
The system, which can also be accessed by phone, will take the strain off GPs as swine flu spreads. For the moment, it is being used only in England.
“The National Pandemic Flu Service is a new self-care service which will give people with pandemic swine flu symptoms fast access to information and antivirals,” said a Department of Health spokesman.
“This new service will free up GPs, enabling them to deal with other illnesses that need their urgent attention.”
The launch of the system brought important changes to the official advice that is given to people who think they may have swine flu. That advice – and the new system – is supported by the Royal College of General Practitioners.
Swine flu medicines
To learn about the medicines used to treat pandemic flu, including the benefits and side-effects, go to the pandemic flu medicine guide.
Reporting side effects
If you take an antiviral and have suspected side effects, first contact your GP to check that you are OK. You can then report your side effects on MHRA's new online system.


Advice for antivirals

Several newspapers reported that the World Health Organization (WHO) had changed its advice regarding use of antivirals for swine flu. Its advice suggests that while antivirals should always be given in serious cases, they may not always be necessary for otherwise healthy people.
The papers pointed out that this appeared to differ from the approach taken in the UK, where Tamiflu is being widely used.
However, the Department of Health said:
"We believe a safety-first approach of offering antivirals, when required, to everyone remains a sensible and responsible way forward. However, we will keep this policy under review as we learn more about the virus and its effects.
"The WHO recommendations are in fact in line with UK policy on antivirals. We have consistently said that many people with swine flu only get mild symptoms, and they may find bed rest and over-the-counter flu remedies work for them.”
For an explanation of swine flu, its symptoms and treatment, go to Swine flu A-Z
For quick questions and answers go to Swine flu Q&A
For information in other languages and formats go to Swine flu: other languages
To check your symptoms go to the National Pandemic Flu Service
For advice on how to protect yourself and your baby go to Swine flu and pregnancy

Latest advice

If you have flu-like symptoms and are concerned that you may have swine flu, the advice is to stay at home and check your symptoms at the National Pandemic Flu Service.
Patients with swine flu typically have a fever or a high temperature (over 38°C / 100.4°F) and two or more of the following symptoms:
unusual tiredness,
headache,
runny nose,
sore throat,
shortness of breath or cough,
loss of appetite,
aching muscles,
diarrhoea or vomiting
Call your GP if:
you have a serious underlying (existing) illness,
you're pregnant,
you have a sick child under one year old,
your condition suddenly gets much worse, or
your condition is still getting worse after seven days (five for a child).
For people who do not have internet access, the National Pandemic Flu Service can be accessed by phone on:
Telephone: 0800 1 513 100
Minicom: 0800 1 513 200
For more information on the National Pandemic Flu Service, go to Flu Service: questions and answers.
People in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland can visit www.direct.gov.uk/pandemicflu

Advice for pregnant women

Pregnant women are one of the higher risk groups for swine flu, as they are for all influenza viruses. It is therefore important for them to take precautions.
This website provides full and up-to-date advice for pregnant women and parents of young children. The advice has not changed recently and is available at the following links:
Swine flu advice for pregnant women.
Swine flu pregnancy and parenting Q&A.
Swine flu symptoms, including high-risk groups.
Chief medical officer's advice on pregnancy, holidays, and parents.
Reduce the risk of catching or spreading flu
Cover your mouth and nose when coughing or sneezing. Use a tissue.
Dispose of used tissues carefully.
Wash your hands frequently with soap and water or alcoholic hand rub.
Clean hard surfaces (e.g. kitchen worktops, door handles) frequently using a normal cleaning product.
Catch it, Bin it, Kill it

Although the UK has moved to a treatment phase for swine flu, it’s important that people continue to do everything they can to stop the virus from spreading.
The most important way to stop it spreading is to have good respiratory hygiene (i.e. sneezing and coughing into a tissue) and hand hygiene (keeping your hands clean). The video Catch it, Bin It, Kill It explains the importance of catching your sneeze in a tissue, placing it quickly in a bin and washing your hands and surfaces regularly to kill the virus.