influenza

Measures of H1N1 flu continue to decrease, in Kansas and nationwide, health officials said Friday, but what health officials call "influenza activity" continues to be much higher than would be expected this time of year. The Kansas Department of Health and Environment reported that another death — the state's 19th — has been linked to the virus. KDHE said a 75-year-old man from the Topeka metropolitan area — Jackson, Jefferson, Osage, Shawnee and Wabaunsee counties — was infected with H1N1 when he die

there can be multiple ups and downs.   -federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

 

Slamming on car brakes could cause lung damage to motorists and pedestrians, says a new study. The study, which involved lab tests, found that particles released by brake pads harm lung cells through a chemical process known as oxidative stress. November 13th, 2009 FDA finds bits of steel, rubber in Genzyme drugsWASHINGTON — Federal health regulators have found tiny particles of trash in drugs made by biotechnology firm Genzyme.  

About 170,000 doses of A/H1N1 flu vaccine are being withdrawn in Canada from Friday after health officials reported an unusually high number of allergic reactions. Health officials in the western province of Manitoba reported Thursday a higher-than-usual number of allergic reactions after using vaccine from a batch manufactured by a factory of British drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) in Quebec. Usually one or two allergic reactions are expected for a batch of that size, but Manitoba has recorded six se  

The death toll from A/H1N1 flu in Finland had risen to 12, health authorities announced Friday. So far, 5,356 cases of the disease have been confirmed and more than 100,000 people are estimated to have contracted the virus, according to National Institute for Health and Welfare. On Wednesday, a 39-year-old woman and a 72-year-old man died of the virus.  

Four North Carolina patients at a single hospital tested positive for a type of swineflu that is resistant to the medication Tamiflu, health officials said Friday. The cases reported at Duke University Medical Center over six weeks make up the biggest cluster seen so far in the U.S. Tamiflu — made by Switzerland's Roche Group — is one of two flu medicines that help against swineflu, and health officials have been closely watching for signs that the virus is mutating, making the drugs ineffective. Mo  

Unlike other states, and even metro Atlanta, the supply of vaccine against swine flu is coming to Troup County in drips and drops. "I don't know why we're not getting the supply like some others are," said Martha Allred, director of human resources for Emory Clark-Holder Clinic in LaGrange. The clinic, which ordered its swine flu vaccine directly from the state because of its large number, still is waiting to get the supply.

We are not doing mass clinics because we do not have a large enough supply of vaccine on hand anywhere for that   -Hayla Hall

 

East Stroudsburg Area School District will hold its second large-scale clinic today to dispense swine flu vaccines to district students, but there will be some changes to streamline the process after thousands turned out Wednesday. "We came away with lessons learned," said Eric Forsyth, the school district's director of administrative services, following the district's first clinic, which drew about 4,000 people and a two-hour wait for most. The second clinic is being held today from 8 to noon at J. T  

Vaccine shortages have ended, so H1N1 flu shots will be offered to all Albertans starting Monday. One-day clinics will also be held throughout the week in Fort Macleod, Taber, Picture Butte, Claresholm, Cardston, Pincher Creek and Raymond. At the same time, health officials said Friday the number of new flu cases has dropped significantly so daily assessment clinics in Lethbridge and Calgary will shut down effective Monday, 9 p.m. until further notice.

We have a good supply of vaccine   -Andre Corriveau

 

It was a long human lifetime ago, yet it was only yesterday. It was a time of tumult when writer F. Scott Fitzgerald said that a young generation had "grown up to find all gods dead, all wars fought, all faiths in men shaken." It was the year 1919, and even after the passage of 90 years, it was a year that still has relevance and resonance for the times we live through today.

grown up to find all gods dead, all wars fought, all faiths in men shaken.   -F Scott Fitzgerald