News Reports for July 28, 2012

Australia: Worst flu season in five years hits Hunter (New South Wales)

THE worst flu season in five years has hit the Hunter, but flu vaccines will not fully protect people after the latest strain of the virus mutated.

Hunter New England Health said this year's flu season closely resembled the 2007 pandemic and emergency departments were being kept busy with patients with influenza, pneumonia and other winter bugs.

(Snip)

Public health physician David Durrheim said the H3N2 strain had changed its genetic characteristics since this year's flu vaccines were developed and was only protecting people in part.

''The vaccine provides protection but it's not quite as good at protection as a perfect matching strain,'' he said. ''The people who are vaccinated are getting some influenza, but they're not getting as sick. It's not protecting all of the people fully.''

Dr Durrheim said the current pandemic was definitely worse than last year when many people had either been vaccinated or become immune to H1N1 because it had been circulating for some years.

(Snip) rates of flu symptoms have almost doubled since the start of May. Flu season had also started about four weeks early this year. It has been sweeping through the region since the start of July, ahead of its usual peak in August.

Dr Durrheim said Hunter New England Health's emergency departments, particularly in Newcastle and Lower Hunter, had been very busy.

''We have had a small number of people in intensive care since the onset of flu season,'' he said. ''We would expect deaths in particular among those who are vulnerable.'' Continued: http://www.theherald.com.au/ne...
 

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. --Unknown

     

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by: Carol@SC @ Sat Jul 28, 2012 at 02:33:04 AM UTC

India: Four more down with swine flu in Pune (Maharashtra)

PUNE: Four more persons tested positive for swine flu on Friday, taking the number of H1N1 infected people in Pune to 15, this month.

(Snip) the condition of a 62-year-old man from Shivajinagar is critical. He is on non-invasive ventilator at Sanjeevan Hospital," (Snip) The condition of three others is stable. "They are being treated at different hospitals in Pune," Pardeshi said.

(Snip) a 27-year-old woman from Pune Camp is being treated at Jehangir Hospital. The 23-year-old woman from Laxminagar, Yerawada has been home quarantined, and a 37-year-old from Kharadi is being treated at Inlaks and Budhrani Hospital.

Since July, Pune has reported 15 cases of swine flu and one death. Harishchandra Lonkar, 55, who was the first casualty after the start of monsoon, died on July 11. Since April, the city has recorded 152 cases and seven deaths. Continued: http://timesofindia.indiatimes...

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. --Unknown

     

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by: Carol@SC @ Sat Jul 28, 2012 at 02:38:36 AM UTC

Zimbabwe hit by H3N2 influenza

HARARE, July 27 (Xinhua) -- Zimbabwe has been hit by H3N2 influenza with one person dead while more than 140,000 people affected by the disease circulating all over the country (Snip)

Ministry of Health and Child Welfare Director for Epidemiology and Disease Control Dr Portia Manangazira said the upsurge in the number of influenza cases is typical in winter but what is worrying is the number of cases of the H3N2 influenza that have been recorded.

(Snip) The virus is likely to continue spreading as the cold season is still upon us," said Manangazira.

(Snip) The contagious disease has seen some people being severely affected while for others it has been life threatening. Common symptoms of the H3N2 influenza virus include chills, fever, sore throat, muscle pains, severe headache, coughing, weakness, fatigue and general discomfort. http://www.shanghaidaily.com/a...
 

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. --Unknown

     

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by: Carol@SC @ Sat Jul 28, 2012 at 02:46:54 AM UTC

New Zealand: Nasty flu arriving - get immunised now

GISBORNE people should prepare for the arrival of the influenza virus that has hit other parts of New Zealand, says Tairawhiti District Health medical officer of health, Dr Geoffrey Cramp.

National Influenza Specialist Group spokesman Dr Lance Jennings says parts of New Zealand have been hit by the H3N2 influenza virus.

An epidemic of H3N2 strain of influenza in Christchurch has put 60 people in hospital, while 12 are critically ill. The virus is expected to head north and is said to be worse than swine flu.

In the past couple of weeks, five possible flu cases have been reported by a Gisborne general practice that looks for cases of influenza as part of the national surveillance system. These cases are yet to be confirmed by laboratory tests.

Because of the spread of infection in some areas, the Ministry of Health has announced the extension of the publicly- funded influenza vaccine programme to the end of August.

(Snip)

Two Gisborne schools say the number of absences due to winter illnesses are usual for this time of year, and Kaiti Medical Centre chief executive Ingrid Collins says no-one has presented with full-blown flu yet.

"Our isolation means we are often prevented from coming into contact with viruses in the first instance . . . but it is on its way." Continued: http://www.gisborneherald.co.n...

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. --Unknown

     

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by: Carol@SC @ Sat Jul 28, 2012 at 06:22:07 AM UTC

India: Bandra (W), Andheri, Powai most affected by H1N1 this year (Maharashtra)

(Note: Bandra, Andheri, Powai are suburbs of the city of Mumbai in the state of Maharashtra.)

The incidence of H1N1 in the city this monsoon has been as peculiar as the behaviour of the virus itself. After lying dormant for whole of 2011, the virus came back in circulation in March and peaked in July with 116 cases. However, experts are debating whether to term it the resurgence of the virus or write it off as harmless seasonal flu.

(Snip) between March and July, 178 people tested positive for H1N1, out of which 116 cases were in July itself. Interestingly, the incidence is clearly driven by testing of patients mostly from affluent pockets of the city. Most of the samples have tested positive in private laboratories, where the test costs about Rs 4,500. The laboratories at Kasturba Hospital and Haffkine Research Institute, where the testing is done for free, have been doing it only for a miniscule percentage of the samples.

(Snip) there is definitely some increase in cases, but given the strange pattern of testing it is difficult to gauge if there is an overall increase in the incidence. Civic data too reveals the same. About 96% of the positive cases in the city have come from affluent pockets.

(Snip) "This year most of the cases have come from areas like Bandra (west), Andheri, Powai, Bhandup and Goregaon" . For instance , out of six people who tested positive on Friday, three were from Bandra, Mahim and Santa Cruz.

A 32-year-old man from Kanjurmarg and a 70-year-old man from Vikhroli were also affected by the virus. About 31 people each from West (Bandra, Khar and Santa Cruz) and (Bhandup, Powai, Vikhroli) wards have tested positive in the month of July. These areas have remained the highest in the count of positive cases.

But does it mean the virus is absent in other pockets of the city? "The answer is no," (Snip) "The only difference is testing is restricted to patients with right indications, unlike in private set-ups where all and sundry could be going for it," (Snip)

(Snip) 13-15 % of those who were underwent testing have come positive. Statewide, 436 people tested positive between April and July this year. "The incidence is no doubt more than last year but not as much as during the pandemic in 2009. (Snip) http://timesofindia.indiatimes...  

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. --Unknown

     

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by: Carol@SC @ Sat Jul 28, 2012 at 06:52:48 AM UTC

India: Suspected H1N1 case in Nilgiris (Tamil Nadu)

A one-and-half-year-old boy from Nilgiris was admitted to Coimbatore Medical College Hospital (CMCH) on Friday after he showed symptoms of swine flu. The boy was said to have been infected by the virus from his mother and grandfather who also had the flu symptoms.

The boy, son of Prameetha (23) (Snip) was found with A(H1N1) symptoms on Thursday. Prameetha (Snip) was earlier infected by the swine flu virus from her father-in-law (Snip) Prameetha was given Tamiflu tablets at a health centre after she betrayed the symptoms. The woman's condition had since improved (Snip) http://newindianexpress.com/st...

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. --Unknown

     

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by: Carol@SC @ Sat Jul 28, 2012 at 07:09:15 AM UTC

Identical H3N2v Sequences In LaPorte County Fair Cases

Recombinomics Commentary

The CDC has released three sets of sequences from the LaPorte County Fair in Indiana.  The first series was from direct sequencing of the clinical sample from one patient, designated A/Indiana/07/2012.  That series was followed by two cloned isolates, one from A/Indiana/07/2012 and the other from a second case, A/Indiana/09/2012.

The initial direct sequence was closely related to sequences from West Virginia (A/West Virginia/06/2011 and A/West Virginia/07/2011) and Utah (A/Utah/10/2012), as noted.

The cloned sequences represented full sequences for all 8 gene segments, and the two sets of sequences were identical, confirming a common source.  In addition to an N2 sequence related to N2 circulating in swine H3N2, the LaPorte cluster sequences were closely related to the recent cases cited above, signaling the emergence of a novel constellation in human cases. Continued: http://www.recombinomics.com/N...

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. --Unknown

     

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by: Carol@SC @ Sat Jul 28, 2012 at 07:14:32 AM UTC

New swine flu virus infects four people at U.S. county fair

Helen Branswell

A new flu virus that is occasionally jumping from pigs to people has done it again.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control is reporting that the new swine influenza H3N2 virus has infected four people who attended a county fair in Indiana. Indiana is one of six U.S. states in which human infections have been found since this variant H3N2 virus was first spotted at the end of last July.

The four latest cases were all people who had contact with pigs; they became infected in early-to-mid July after exhibiting pigs at a county fair in the northwestern part of the state.

The CDC says 12 pigs from the fair were tested for the virus and all were positive.

(Snip) state health officials are still looking for additional cases, to date there doesn't seem to have been human-to-human spread in this cluster of infections.

(Snip) there have been 17 human infections with this virus, all in the United States. The infections have mainly been seen in children. Many, though not all, had exposure to pigs. In some of the earlier cases, the CDC acknowledged limited person-to-person spread had likely occurred.

The new Indiana cases came to light when two of the people went to a hospital emergency department because of their illness. None of the four was admitted to hospital and all have recovered.

With the start of the agricultural fair season, health officials in the U.S. are on the lookout for more cases, says Jhung, an epidemiologist with the CDC's Influenza Division. Continued: http://www.thestar.com/news/wo...

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. --Unknown

     

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by: Carol@SC @ Sat Jul 28, 2012 at 07:20:29 AM UTC

India: Jamnagar businessman dies of swine flu, kin test positive (Gujarat)

RAJKOT: A 45-year-old businessman succumbed to H1N1 virus on Thursday night at a private hospital in Jamnagar. A resident of Mehulnagar in Jamnagar Bhagvanji Vataliya was admitted in a private hospital three days ago after he ran high fever and complained of cough. (Snip) He tested positive for the virus and died at 10 pm on Thursday, a few hours after the report came.

Vataliya's two family members were taken to a hospital in Rajkot for treatment after they tested positive for H1N1 virus. (Snip)

(Snip)

JMC's health department immediately carried out a survey in the area where Vataliya lived. JMC officials said people are being checked to see if they had any symptoms of H1N1 virus. "We have asked local residents to inform nearby hospitals if they suspect anyone with swine flu symptoms," a JMC official said.

(Snip) Earlier, a 55-year-old businessman Naresh Shah died of swine flu in a private hospital on July 3. http://timesofindia.indiatimes...  

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. --Unknown

     

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by: Carol@SC @ Sat Jul 28, 2012 at 07:57:19 AM UTC

China: Stringent rules over bird's nest

BERA - China has introduced a new stringent medical and health guideline to check the import of bird's nest from bird-flu infected countries, Deputy Agriculture and Agro-based Industries Minister Datuk Chua Tee Yong said.

Chua said, however, the guideline would not affect local exporters as Malaysia was free of bird flu. "We believe the move is targeted at other countries and not us. Local exporters should not be unduly worried but instead prepare to face competitors," he said, after a dialogue with bird's nest traders and farmers in the Bera MCA office here yesterday. Continued: http://news.asiaone.com/News/A...

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. --Unknown

     

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by: Carol@SC @ Sat Jul 28, 2012 at 08:02:41 AM UTC

Please post new news stories to...

News Reports for July 29, 2012

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Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. --Unknown

     

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by: Carol@SC @ Sun Jul 29, 2012 at 06:40:08 AM UTC