Swine Flu Information Sources
As Swine Flu news coverages increases, you likely already have plenty of information. However, these are sources I think may be useful in coming weeks.
CDC site - the offical source, and a good example of why I'm happy to pay my US taxes:
http://www.cdc.gov/swineflu/
WHO site - a global perspective, may err on being overly diplomatic, but still good:
http://www.who.int/en/
ProMed - a nongovernmental list serve with rapid, multi source information:
http://www.promedmail.org
Map, with composite data sources:
http://www.healthmap.org/swineflu
Good NPR hour long interview, which covered things well today:
http://wamu.org/programs/dr/09/04/27.php#26232
Epidemiologic trends, and influenza virus biology, currently suggest containment to Mexico isn't going to happen. The next big question is what the mortality rate in healthy adults and children will be in the US. Sorting out the discrepancy between the (thus far) zero fatality rate in the US, versus the (still unclear) mortality rate in Mexico will help predict where things are most likely to head next.
recent branches
Whats the site for a bio hazard suit... I am going to need one when I visit Brian next anyways.
S: Good thinking .. this flu is freakin me out!! I'm going to ask my coworkers to start wearing a bio suit as well. You can't be too safe
J: My gut tells me the media is blowing this out of proportion .. but since you posted the links I have to assume you feel it's a serious threat? In the Emergency Rooms are docs being told to isolate all flu cases and screen for the swine flu?
I read that in Egypt today (and elsewhere) tens of thousands of pigs are being slaughtered .. which even to a lay person like me makes no sense and is a sad result of media hype
Remember 76? (I was 5 and remember getting a vaccine even though I told mom i didn't want one)
http://www.capitalcentury.com/1976.html
B- It's still early, but it currently appears this strain of flu may have similar virulence to the other seasonal influenza strains that have recently circulated. The initial reports from Mexico of very high estimated mortality rates appear to reflect their rapid attempt to capture all possible cases - and they got other respiratory deaths (not from the new influenza strain) in their first data sets. If the much more reassuring US stats hold, it'll be a challenge to have a new strain circulating but not the disaster of some past high-mortality pandemic influenza episodes. Our influenza season should be waning soon, so the Southern Hemisphere may be the next key place to watch how things develop.
I think people have learned from 1976, too. Just because a fast-track vaccine gets made doesn't mean we have to deploy it - and the gov't is already making comments to that effect. All in all, the epidemic early warning system has worked remarkably well so far this time. Yes, we're screening in the ER, to get a better handle on the epi curves; but I'm otherwise working pretty much as I always have.