Latest Update on H1N1 Swine Flu as of February 13, 2010

The Centers of Disease Control and Prevention has reported that almost 57 million Americans, or more than 18 percent of the population, has at some point contracted the H1N1 swine flu.  For many, the symptoms were so mild that they did not realize they had contracted the swine flu.  Unfortunately, some 11,690 Americans have died from the H1N1 swine flu and nearly 260,000 Americans had to be hospitalized from the H1N1 swine flu.  Of these numbers, adults age 18 to 64 were hit the hardest, accounting for 76 percent of the deaths and 58 percent of the hospitalizations.  This is in contrast to the seasonal flu where 90 percent of the deaths and 60 percent of the hospitalizations are typically among percents 65 years or older.  The H1N1 swine flu thus far has come in two waves, one last spring and one this past fall.  While there are concerns that there might be a third wave this winter, this seems less likely as 70 million Americans have now been immunized against the H1N1 swine flu and there have only been 500 deaths since December 11, 2009.

Federal Government Considering Limiting H1N1 Flu Vaccine to Those At Highest Risk

At a Senate hearing yesterday, the CDC, the U.S. Department of Health, and the Department of Homeland Security were criticized by Senator Joseph Lieberman, Chairman of  the Senate Homeland Security & Govermental Affairs Committee, as well as by other committee members for allowing the states to decide how to best distribute the H1N1 flu vaccine.  State plans for distribution of the vaccine were developed based upon the assumption that 120 million doses of the vaccine would be available by mid-October.  The states developed plans to distribute the vaccine first to high priority individuals, which the federal government estimated to be 169 million people.  Since typically only 30 percent of the population chooses to receive the seasonal flu vaccine, the assumption was that there would be enough vaccine to give it those individuals in the high priority group who wanted it.  In fact, however, there was only approximately 28 million doses of the vaccine available by mid-October.  Despite this, the federal government and the states did not change their plans so as to give priority to what had been previously identified as an even smaller super priority group.  This group consists of approximately 42 million individuals, and includes those individuals with underlying health conditions that complicate their getting the H1N1 swine flu – and which have had the highest percentage of deaths.  Unfortunately, since federal and state plans had targeted the larger 169 million group and only 28 million doses of the vaccine were available, this resulted in a large number of the super priority group at the greatest risk of death being unable to get the vaccine – while other individuals at a significantly less risk were able to receive the vaccine.  Committee members highlighted the example of employees of Goldman Sachs receiving the vaccine in New York City while there was no plan to target the super priority individuals that needed the vaccine the most.  Committee members also highlighted the example of the City of San Francisco where a random lottery method was being utilized to determine who would receive the vaccine, instead of the vaccine being given first to the super priority group of individuals at the greatest risk of death from the H1N1 swine flu.   Criticism by committee members of the lack of a federal approach that would target those individuals at the greatest risk first poses the potential that the federal government will take a stronger approach and require the states to modify their H1N1 swine flu vaccination programs.  Another criticism of committee members related to the lack of planning by the federal government to insure that there was flu vaccine production capabilities by U.S. manufacturers.  Instead, four of the five manufacturers of the H1N1 swine flu vaccine are overseas manufacturers.  This resulted in Australia and Canada stepping in and telling the manufacturers located in their countries that they were prohibited from sending the vaccine to the U.S. until their domestic demand for the vaccine was satisfied.  This is one of the reasons that the U.S. received such a signficantly reduced amount of vaccine than it had anticipated.  As such, committee members criticized the federal government for not anticipating that other countries might demand that their manufacturers supply their domestic demand before allow the exportation of the vaccine to the U.S.   The primary criticism of committee members, however, about the failure of the federal government and the states to modify their priorities about who could receive the H1N1 swine flu vaccine once it was realized that a signficantly reduced amount would be available - and thus the failure of the federal government and the states to live up to their promises that the greatest risk individuals would receive the vaccine first.  Unfortunately, as it came out at the Senate hearing, the target group for the vaccine has been a larger group of 169 million (based upon the assumption that a larger amount of vaccine would be available) as opposed to the 42 million individuals at the greatest risk, with the result that many if not most of the 42 million highest risk individuals have not been able to receive the vaccine.

H1N1 Swine Flu Update As of Nov. 16, 2009 – First Cases of Adverse Reaction to Vaccine in Wash, D.C. area and Nationwide; Pediatric Deaths In U.S. and Europe Doubling Every 4 Days

The Director of National Institutes of Health has confirmed that 5 people in the United States have developed Guillame-Barre Syndome as a complication of receiving the H1N1 swine flu vaccine.  He confirmed this in a television report which showed an otherwise healthy male student in the Washington, D.C./Northern Virginia area who recently developed Guillame-Barre Syndrome the day after receiving both the H1N1 swine flu and seasonal flu vaccines.  The day after receiving the two vaccines, he developed extreme muscle twitches and spasms which led to partial paralysis.  He is now recovering, though he has to use a walker to assist in walking.  He expects to take several months to fully recover.  In commenting  on television on this news story, the Director of the National Institutes of Health confirmed that thus far there have been 5 individuals who have contracted Guillame-Barre Syndrome after receiving the H1N1 swine flu vaccine.  He explained, however, that while one can die or become permanently paralyzed by the Guillame-Barre Syndome, most people recover from it.  As he explained, the government has never denied that there is some risk to the H1N1 swine flu or any flu vaccine.  The question, however, is a matter of balancing risks – and given the number of deaths, and especially pediatric deaths, from the H1N1 swine flu, he argues that the benefits of receiving the H1N1 swine flu vaccine far outweighs the risks associated with taking the vaccine.   The statistics thus far support his argument since both the United States and Europe report a doubling of the number of pediatric deaths from the H1N1 swine flu approximately every 4 days, indicating a dramatic rise in pediatric deaths from the H1N1 swine flu as the weather turns colder and we enter the normal flu season.  And already the number of pediatric deaths from the H1N1 swine flu is several times greater than that the number of pediatric deaths during an entire flu season from the seasonal flu.  In this regard, pediatric deaths are defined as deaths occurring among individuals 18 years or younger.  During a normal flu season, there are typically 85 pediatric deaths from the seasonal flu.  This year, howevever, even though it is only the middle of November, health officials report 540 pediatric deaths thus far just from the H1N1 swine flu.  This is up from only 156 pediatric deaths from the H1N1 swine flu only a week ago.  European countries have reported a similar spike in H1N1 swine flu deaths, with there previously having been 48 deaths but with this number increasing to 85 deaths in just 4 days.  Unlike the seasonal flu where most individuals requiring medical care are over age 65, thus far 90 percent of those individuals requiring medical care from the H1N1 swine flu have been under the age of 65.  Totally, approximately 22 million Americans have contracted the H1N1 swine flu, killing an estimated 3,900 people thus far.  Of this number, 8 million of those individuals contracting H1N1 swine flu have been young people 18 years and younger.  Of the 8 million pediatric or young people that have contracted the H1N1 swine flu, 36,000 have been hospitalized and 540 have died in the U.S.

H1N1 Swine Flu Update As of November 9, 2009 — Vaccine Remains In Short Supply As Child Deaths And Hospitalizations Continue to Rise From H1N1 Swine Flu

During the past week, the CDC reported 15 laboratory confirmed child dates from the H1N1 swine and 3 undifferentiated H1N1 child flu deaths.  This continues the trend of an increasing number of child deaths from the H1N1 swine flu with each new week.  This brings the total of child deaths in the U.S. from the H1N1 swine flu to 145 – with 80 of those having occurred since school began this fall (i.e. since August 30, 2009).  Over 99 percent of influenza type-A flu reported to the CDC has been identfied as the H1N1 swine flu, continuing the trend of essentially all flu cases thus far this flu season being the H1N1 swine flu.  Also, both the number of hospitalizations and deaths from the H1N1 swine flu continues to rise.  Originally, the CDC had hoped to have 140 million does of the H1N1 swine flu vaccine available by the middle of October.  In contrast, by the middle of October only 14 million doses had been shipped and by November 6, 2009, only 26,248,100 does had been shipped.  Many individuals, especially in New York City, have begun to protest as large corporations such as Goldman Sachs have received supplies of the H1N1 swine flu vaccine while local health departments and schools have yet to receive supplies of the vaccine to even administer to the highest risk.  The U.S. experience where it seems that influence and politics determines who gets the swine flu vaccine contrasts with the experience of European countries where the government has a list of high-risk individuals and is administering vaccines to only high risk individuals.  For this reason, while there is often a sense of panic and long lines for individuals to even attempt to get the vaccine in the U.S., with many in the line ultimately turned away for lack of vaccine supply, there are no lines and no panic in the European countries.

Thursday, Nov. 5, 2009 – Research For the First Time Indicates Why And Which People Die From H1N1 Swine Flu

A study of 1,088 people hospitalized between August 11-23 in California from the H1N1 swine flu came up with the surprising finding that the old or elderly are actually the ones most likely to die from the H1N1 swine flu.  This study indicated that 11 percent, or 118 people, died of the 1,088 hospitalized.  The percent of deaths rose to 20 percent for patients over age 50 and dropped to 2 percent for those patients under the age of 18.  It is believed that the higher death rate for patients over age 50 potentially relates to their having more underlying health conditions.  Overall, 30 percent, or 340 people, of the 1,088 people hospitalized had to be admitted to intensive care units.  This study was published today in the Journal of the American Medical Association.  These findings do not change the fact that, for some reason, the young are still more likely to come down with the H1N1 swine flu.  For this reason, the CDC has announced that it will continue to give priority to give the vaccine for the H1N1 swine flu to the young.

H1N1 Swine Flu Vaccine and Death Update As of November 2, 2009

The Centers for Disease Control reports that essentially all individuals in North America exhibiting flu symptoms have tested positive for the 2009 H1N1 swine flu.  This confirms previous statements of health officials that the seasonal influenza has yet to strike the population yet and that anyone with flu symptoms is almost sure to have the H1N1 swine flu.  Last week’s surge of 19 child deaths from the H1N1 swine flu was the most child deaths from the H1N1 swine flu in a single week since the epidemic began in April.  Worldwide, the World Health Organization reports over 5,000 deaths from the H1N1 swine flu, but the vast majority of these deaths were in North America (i.e. the United States, Canada and Mexico).  While during the summer months the H1N1 swine flu had been most prevalent in South America, with the beginning of school in the United States, the United States has experienced the most cases of the H1N1 swine flu, with over 5.3 million Americans estimated to have thus far contracted the H1N1 swine flu.  While most people experience only mild flu symptoms, young people are being hit the hardest and represent the greatest number of people needing to be hospitalized or developing severe complications.  On October 30, Dr. Thomas Frieden, Director of the Centers for Disease Control, indicated that the number of child deaths in the U.S. now stands at 114 and is sure to sharply rise in the coming weeks.   In this regard, the CDC has announced that Young people 25 and under represent more half of all hospitalizations and almost 25 percent of the deaths from the H1N1 swine flu thus far.  Unfortunately, Dr. Frieden also announced that the last 234,000 doses of liquid Tamiflu were being released and distributed from the national stockpile.  Tamiflu is an antiviral medicine which, if given at the first sign of flu symptoms, can greatly reduce the severity of the H1N1 swine flu.  Young people, however, cannot take the capsule form that adults can take and can only take the liquid form.  As such, there is a concern about how to treat young people that develop H1N1 swine flu symptoms once these last doses of liquid Tamiflu are used up.    On a world-wide basis, the World Health Organization has reported that Iceland and Sudan experienced their first deaths from the H1N1 swine flu this past week while Great Britain continues to be hard hit.

CDC Estimates That 5.3 Million Americans Have Contracted H1N1 Swine Flu Thus Far

19 Child Deaths From H1N1 Swine Flu This Week – Highest Thus Far

The CDC announced today that there have been 19 child deaths from the H1N1 swine flu this week, the highest weekly total since the H1N1 swine flu epidemic began in April of this year.

Latest H1N1 Swine Flu News As of Friday, October 30, 2009. Is the H1N1 Swine Flu Vaccine Safe? Where Can One Get the Vaccine?

In a recent poll, 49 percent of Americans stated that they believe the H1N1 swine flu vaccine to be safe.  Others, however, have concerns, especially about whether the preservative that is used in the vaccine can attribute to autism in young children.  The CDC’s position is that the vaccine is manufactured using the same techniques and thus is as safe as the seasonal flu vaccine.  While individuals having an allergy to an past seasonal flu vaccine or to eggs are recommended to avoid receiving the swine flu vaccine, the CDC states that it is safe for all others and that the risks of illness or death from the H1N1 swine flu is signficantly greater than the risk of any potential side-effects.  Thus far, it is estimated that 5.7 million Americans have been infected with the H1N1 swine flu and there have been over 5000 deaths nationwide.  Many hospitals are being swamped with H1N1 swine flu patients and 600 schools across the country have had to close because of the H1N1 swine flu.  More than half of the people who have been hospitalized with the H1N1 swine flu have been age 24 or under.  This makes the current strain of H1N1 swine flu vastly different than the typical seasonal flu, where most hospitalizations and deaths are among the very elderly.  Throughout the country, hospitals are being overwhelmed with the number of 2009 H1N1 swine flu patients, with the number of being seeking treatment being far above that experienced from the normal seasonal flu.   Meanwhile, the H1N1 swine flu vaccine remains in short supply, though 1.6 million new doses were shipped just this week.  Originally, the CDC has estimated that 120-140 million doses of the vaccine would be made available by mid-October.  Unfortunately, only 14 million doses of the vaccine were shipped by mid-October.  As of today, October 30, 2009, 23 million does of the H1N1 swine flu vaccine have been shipped.  Shipments have been to the states on a per capita basis, so all areas should have the same availability of the vaccine.  Unfortunately, demand is out-stripping the current supply of the vaccine.  Also, local health departments have adopted different policies as to the priorities in which individuals will be eligible to receive the H1N1 swine flu vaccine.  In states such as Maryland, the priority has been to provide the vaccine at public health clinics.  In states such as Virginia, however, the approach has been to primarily distribute the vaccine to school children.  Thus far, only elementary students in Virginia have received the H1N1 swine flu vaccine.  This differing approach to how the H1N1 swine flu vaccination as confused the public and made it frustrating for high risk individuals such as pregnant women to know where to be vaccinated.  Also confusing is the information being given out by doctors on how to treat the H1N1 swine flu.  The CDC has stated that at the first symptoms of the H1N1 swine flu one could take Tamiflu or another antiviral medicine.  But some doctors have cautioned that taking an antiviral medicine actually increases the risk that one will develop pneumonia.  Meanwhile, most doctors recommend taking Motrin or Tylenol to bring down any fever that one develops.   Meanwhile, an increasing number of doctors have recommended taking no aspirin, or tylenol or Motrin etc. and instead to use luke warm baths to bring down a patient’s fever.  Their argument is that the body needs to use its temperature/fever to help fight the virus.  Success has been reported using both approaches, while deaths of healthy individuals have been reported where no amount of treatment helped.  All of this creates confusion and frustration among the public as the public does not know is the recommended way of treating an individual infected with the H1N1 swine flu – and has no way of knowing of whether their personal physician is giving them appropriate treatment advise or not.  Hence, one of the things that the CDC needs to do is to share information with the public about what have been successful ways of handling and treating patients with the H1N1 swine flu so as to minimize its side effects and the risk of hospitalizations or deaths.  Unfortunately, if one goes to the CDC website for physicians, there is only information as to how determine what individuals should receive the vaccine and there is no information or guidelines on how to actually treat individuals with the H1N1 swine flu (i.e. such as whether to give a patient medicine such as tylenol to bring down a patient’s fever).  This has lead to physicans having to come up with their own protocal for treating H1N1 swine flu, with the recommended approach varying significantly from one physician to another.

New York Governor Declares a State of Emergency To Deal With H1N1 Swine Flu Pandemic

On Thursday the Governor of the State of New York declared a state of emergency to deal with the H1N1 swine flu pandemic.