News Reports for September 2, 2012

New Zealand: Chance of catching a dose of flu looking less likely as cases drop

(Snip) Health officials says influenza cases have dropped and should continue to fall away.

The most recent figures for the week August 20-26, show that, nationwide, 203 people saw a doctor because they had flu or flu-like symptoms, down from 305 people the previous week. Last month, the H3N2 epidemic caused 60 flu-stricken people to be treated in a special isolation ward in Christchurch Hospital. That strain continues to dominate, making up 59 of the 131 confirmed cases of last week.

(Snip) Waitemata and South Canterbury represented the highest number of flu consultations per head of population - 273 cases per 100,000 and 181 per 100,000 respectively.

She said about 1.2 million Kiwis, or 20 per cent of the population, had been vaccinated against influenza by Friday (Snip).

Meanwhile, the Northern Hemisphere is braced for its turn. Several experts have predicted this winter's flu season could be severe after the serious outbreaks in Australia and New Zealand during our winter.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/heal...

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

     

---

by: Carol@SC @ Sun Sep 02, 2012 at 05:46:58 AM UTC

India: Swine flu confirmed in state (Odisha)

BHUBANESWAR: The state government on Saturday confirmed Odisha's first swine flu case this year. The H1N1 virus had claimed 32 lives in the state in 2010, when the disease was first reported in Odisha.

A 22-year-old woman admitted in a private hospital in Bhubaneswar has been found positive for the Influenza A virus, a senior health official said. She was described as a suspected case for H1N1 on Friday and TOI was the first to report the case.

"The Regional Medical Research Centre (RMRC) has conveyed to the government that laboratory test of samples taken from the woman has tested positive for H1N1," (Snip) "We have despatched a team of personnel to the patient's native place and the treatment centre for further investigations. (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

     

---

by: Carol@SC @ Sun Sep 02, 2012 at 05:53:18 AM UTC

India: Alert sounded as swine flu re-emerges (Odisha)

The first H1N1 positive case of this year, which has been detected in a private hospital of the City, has put the Health Department on its toes. A 26-year-old woman was diagnosed with swine flu which is believed to have made a re-emergence. The woman was earlier admitted to SCB Medical College and Hospital, Cuttack, before she was referred to the private hospital here. When her condition deteriorated, she was put on ventilator support  and the samples were sent for testing to the Regional Medical Research Centre (RMRC) which confirmed the virus. The RMRC has the only bio-security lab for such investigation in the State.

Sources said a few more suspected cases of H1N1 will be sent for testing on  Sunday. (Snip)  With the monsoon still on, re-emergence of the H1N1 could be a cause of worry for the Health  Department given the its outbreak in 2010. In fact, a large number of States, including  Maharashtra, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, have reported scores of H1N1 cases. Tamil Nadu has recorded close to half a dozen deaths as yet.

(Snip)

It has also sent a team to the private hospital and another team to the native village of the woman to ascertain how she contracted the virus.  What could prove tricky for the department is that none of the major Government hospitals, including the three medical colleges, sent samples for investigation which is why the real number of cases never comes to light. 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

     

---

by: Carol@SC @ Sun Sep 02, 2012 at 07:02:26 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

India: City reports eight fresh H1N1 cases, total tally reaches 49 (Uttar Pradesh)

LUCKNOW: Eight fresh positive cases of H1N1 infection were reported on Saturday out of 22 samples (Snip).  And if, SGPGI sources are to be believed, then majority of the cases reported at SGPGI emanated from Lucknow. On Friday, out of 41 samples (Snip) 13 tested positive. With this, the total count of H1N1 positive cases has reached 49.

(Snip)

However, health officials continue to be in denial mode over rising swine flu cases in the city. Chief medical officer Dr SNS Yadav on Friday had said, "The media has created a scare regarding swine flu. According to the latest book of medicines and international standard, the word 'swine' has been removed from the name of virus, as it used to create panic. The infection has been renamed as Influenza A H1N1." But, experts feel that there has been no renaming. "Since its inception, the scientific name of the virus is Influenza A H1N1. But in a layman language, the virus is known as swine flu," said Prof Amita Jain, senior microbiologist at King George's Medical University. tnn

The CMO (Chief Medical Officer) however denied the information. "No new case of swine flu has been reported. And all the patients who were infected by the virus are in healthy condition," said Dr Yadav. He continued to stress that swine flu virus is not dangerous as it is not active now. (Snip) http://timesofindia.indiatimes...

(Note: The Chief Medical Officer is losing all credibility and is really making the government look bad, IMO. Every time new cases are confirmed by Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences, he denies them. I'm wondering why he still has a job! "Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences is a premier medical institute of India".)

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

     

---

by: Carol@SC @ Sun Sep 02, 2012 at 06:08:50 AM UTC

US: More swine flu cases traced to county fairs in Pennsylvania

Two new confirmed cases of swine flu and a third possible case have been reported among children who had contact with pigs at the Somerset County Fair in western Pennsylvania, the state health department reported.

All three cases were youths who participated in the Aug. 18-25 fair in Meyersdale. They are the latest to come down with the flu, a new strain known as H3N2v that is contracted by handling live pigs. Those infected experienced typical flu symptoms.

(Snip)

This is the same virus that was blamed for sickening 10 people who attended the Huntingdon County Fair earlier this month in western Pennsylvania.

Nationwide, there have been 288 confirmed cases this year compared to 12 last year - the first year it was found in humans, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The first death from the flu was reported Friday in Ohio. A 61-year-old woman from central Ohio who had contract with hogs at Ohio's Ross County Fair had underlying medical conditions, but authorities believe the flu likely contributed to her death. Ohio and Indiana lead the nation with infections, 101 and 138 respectively, according to CDC reports. Continued: http://www.mcall.com/news/brea...

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

     

---

by: Carol@SC @ Sun Sep 02, 2012 at 06:19:07 AM UTC

Canada: Swine flu fears close Saanich Fair pig barn to public (British Columbia)

Thousands checked out cows, horses, donkeys and ducks at the Saanich Fair on Saturday but a new strain of swine flu kept the pig barn closed to the public.

Caleb Scott and Max Elvedahl, both 10, stood behind the gate of the closed barn telling fairgoers they couldn't see their pigs. "We don't want people or our pigs getting sick," Caleb said.

(Snip)

While no cases of H3N2v have been detected in Canada, the Public Health Agency says it already could be in the swine population.

(Snip)

Saanich Fair organizer Gloria Dol said keeping the pigs isolated was a precautionary measure. "All of our pigs have been checked by vets," Dol said. "It's a precaution for both pigs and people." Continued: http://www.vancouversun.com/he...

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

     

---

by: Carol@SC @ Sun Sep 02, 2012 at 06:28:51 AM UTC

Kentucky H3N2v Case Raises Serious Pandemic Concerns

Recombinomics Commentary

The CDC has released another series of early August H3N2v sequences (collected between August 5-10) from isolates in Michigan (Snip), West Virginia (Snip), Illinois (Snip), Ohio (Snip) and Kentucky (Snip).  All sets of sequences were closely related to each other and the 34 prior sets of sequences from Hawaii, Indiana, Ohio, Maryland, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin indicating the novel sub-clade had clonally spread across the United States via sustained human transmisison.  These sequences were closely related to the prior 2012 isolate, A/Utah/10/2012, as well as the two sequences from a 2011 West Virginia day care cluster A/West Virginia/06/2011 and A/West Virginia/07/2011, where 23 contacts of the index case had ILI and there was no swine contact or exposure.

All of the above sequences were from outbreaks which have been described by the CDC in various publications such as FluView, MMWR, Have You Heard, or various H3N2v website including the state case count that is updated each Friday, with the exception of the Kentucky isolate. (Snip)  

Thus, the CDC was well aware of the Kentucky case prior to updates on August 24 and 31, but this case was not cited.

However, on August 16, 2012 Ashton-Boyd County issued a press release and the Kentucky Health and Family Services Cabinet issued a health alert on the detection of seasonal H3N2 and claimed that "No cases of the H3N2 variant influenza that contain genetic material from swine influenza have been reported in Kentucky to date".

Recombinomics made many inquiries to Kentucky and the CDC regarding the sequence confirmation that these cases were sequence confirmed, but multiple calls and e-mails were not answered.  The "seasonal" H3N2 cases are children who live in Boyd County, which is adjacent to Gallia County where hundreds of ILI cases had been reported at the Gallia Junior County Fair, and the symptomatic children in Kentucky, who had not been to the fair or had swine contact, were influenza A positive.

The seasonal H3N2 in 5-6 children in August in Kentucky adjacent to a massive H3N2v outbreak in Ohio and West Virginia's Mason County, which was also adjacent to Boyd County, was highly suspect.  H3N2v would represent community transmission, which the CDC has denied.

(Snip) the August 24 deposit of H3N2v sequences from an August 5 collection, raises serious pandemic concerns and transparency issues, as do the 188 "seasonal" H3N2 cases reported by the CDC for weeks 31-33 in week 34 FluView ( http://www.recombinomics.com/N... )

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

     

---

by: Carol@SC @ Sun Sep 02, 2012 at 06:45:46 AM UTC

Most U.S. Schools Unprepared for Pandemics

http://www.everydayhealth.com/...
September 2, 2012
United States:  Many U.S. schools are not prepared for another pandemic, according to a new study.  Saint Louis University researchers analyzed survey responses from about 2,000 school nurses at primary, elementary, middle and high schools in 26 states and found that less than half of the schools include pandemic preparedness in their school plan and only 40 percent have updated their school plan since the deadly 2009 H1N1 swine flu pandemic.  Only about 30 percent of schools stockpile any personal protective equipment, 1.5 percent stockpile medication in anticipation of another pandemic, about 23 percent of schools have no staff members trained on the school's disaster plan, and nearly 34 percent of schools train students on infection prevention less than once a year.
(snip)

"Findings from this study suggest that most schools are even less prepared for an infectious disease disaster, such as a pandemic, compared to a natural disaster or other type of event," study author Terri Rebmann, an associate professor of environmental and occupational health, said in a journal news release. "Despite the recent H1N1 pandemic that disproportionately affected school-age children, many schools do not have plans to adequately address a future biological event."
(more)


"I am opposed to any form of tyranny over the mind of man."  Thomas Jefferson

---

by: History Lover @ Sun Sep 02, 2012 at 14:48:32 PM UTC

Please post new news stories to...

News Reports for September 3, 2012

Thank you!

---

by: AlohaOR @ Mon Sep 03, 2012 at 04:22:46 AM UTC