received this from a friend... not sure how true... in any case, just be careful...
Urgent notice: TV
news just broadcasted. temporarily pls do not eat beef or beef products
due to the transport to Suzhou of 570 head of cattle had infected with
Bacillus anthracis. Suzhou just finished an emergency meeting. Pls
notify as many friends and family members. a friend just called and
shared that
the avian flu is very serious! Beijing Union Medical College Hospital
leadership dinner had announce that news and this news had blocked from
the outside media! This was almost similar like a decade ago the spread
of SARS. It is advisable to wash our hands frequently, avoid drinking
tap water and dont eat unsolicited poultry pork and raw eggs.There is no
available treatment yet.
Showing posts with label Swine Flu and Influenza A (H1N1). Show all posts
Showing posts with label Swine Flu and Influenza A (H1N1). Show all posts
Sunday, April 14, 2013
Monday, December 14, 2009
Seasonal Flu Vaccines
got this info from a friend...
Suitable for people who have asthma, chronic disease and even pregnant woman. Only the second type which is Nasal Spray de den cannot use on Pregnant woman. Melissa said, after inject must drink a lot of water. She said will feel tired and sleepy.
Who Should Get Vaccinated
In general, anyone who wants to reduce their chances of getting seasonal flu can get a seasonal influenza vaccine. However, it is recommended by ACIP that certain people should get vaccinated each year. They are either people who are at high risk of having serious seasonal flu-related complications or people who live with or care for those at high risk for serious seasonal flu-related complications. During flu seasons when vaccine supplies are limited or delayed, ACIP makes recommendations regarding priority groups for vaccination.
People who should get the seasonal vaccine each year are:
Children aged 6 months up to their 19th birthday
Pregnant women
People 50 years of age and older
People of any age with certain chronic medical conditions
People who live in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities
People who live with or care for those at high risk for complications from flu, including:
Health care workers
Household contacts of persons at high risk for complications from the flu
Household contacts and out of home caregivers of children less than 6 months of age (these children are too young to be vaccinated)
source: http://www.cdc.gov/flu/about/qa/fluvaccine.htm
Suitable for people who have asthma, chronic disease and even pregnant woman. Only the second type which is Nasal Spray de den cannot use on Pregnant woman. Melissa said, after inject must drink a lot of water. She said will feel tired and sleepy.
Who Should Get Vaccinated
In general, anyone who wants to reduce their chances of getting seasonal flu can get a seasonal influenza vaccine. However, it is recommended by ACIP that certain people should get vaccinated each year. They are either people who are at high risk of having serious seasonal flu-related complications or people who live with or care for those at high risk for serious seasonal flu-related complications. During flu seasons when vaccine supplies are limited or delayed, ACIP makes recommendations regarding priority groups for vaccination.
People who should get the seasonal vaccine each year are:
Children aged 6 months up to their 19th birthday
Pregnant women
People 50 years of age and older
People of any age with certain chronic medical conditions
People who live in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities
People who live with or care for those at high risk for complications from flu, including:
Health care workers
Household contacts of persons at high risk for complications from the flu
Household contacts and out of home caregivers of children less than 6 months of age (these children are too young to be vaccinated)
source: http://www.cdc.gov/flu/about/qa/fluvaccine.htm
Monday, June 22, 2009
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
First confirm case of Influenza A (H1N1) in Singapore
The patient is currently being treated at the Communicable Disease Centre at Tan Tock Seng Hospital and is in stable condition.
The patient is a 22-year-old Singaporean woman who was in New York from May 14-24.
She arrived back in Singapore from New York on SQ25 on 26 May at 6.30am.
She began to develop a cough while onboard.
She passed the thermal scanner uneventfully as she did not have fever then.
Later in the morning, she consulted a GP who decided to send her to TTSH via a 993 ambulance, given her travel history.
She was immediately admitted for testing. Laboratory confirmation of her infection was made by midnight of 26 May.
The patient has been vigilant in monitoring her own condition and had sought immediate medical attention once she realized that she was unwell.
Her attending GP, through his quick response in activating the 993 ambulance for the patient, had also helped to minimize the spread of infection from this case.
The Health Ministry says it has initiated contact tracing of her close contacts. They will be quarantined and provided with antiviral prophylaxis.
Passengers who had travelled in the same flight and were seated in rows 52 to 58 are urged to call the hotline at 1800-333 9999 to enable the MOH to check on their health condition.
The MOH adds that all medical practitioners and healthcare institutions should continue to be vigilant to suspect cases.
Singapore will continue with temperature screening for passengers entering Singapore at all checkpoints (land, sea and air).
All passengers passing through or entering Singapore are given Health Alert Notices on board their flights, advising them to monitor their own health if they have been to affected areas and to seek medical attention immediately if they are not well.
more info here:
http://sg.news.yahoo.com/cna/20090527/tap-062-singapore-confirms-case-h1n1-231650b.html
The patient is a 22-year-old Singaporean woman who was in New York from May 14-24.
She arrived back in Singapore from New York on SQ25 on 26 May at 6.30am.
She began to develop a cough while onboard.
She passed the thermal scanner uneventfully as she did not have fever then.
Later in the morning, she consulted a GP who decided to send her to TTSH via a 993 ambulance, given her travel history.
She was immediately admitted for testing. Laboratory confirmation of her infection was made by midnight of 26 May.
The patient has been vigilant in monitoring her own condition and had sought immediate medical attention once she realized that she was unwell.
Her attending GP, through his quick response in activating the 993 ambulance for the patient, had also helped to minimize the spread of infection from this case.
The Health Ministry says it has initiated contact tracing of her close contacts. They will be quarantined and provided with antiviral prophylaxis.
Passengers who had travelled in the same flight and were seated in rows 52 to 58 are urged to call the hotline at 1800-333 9999 to enable the MOH to check on their health condition.
The MOH adds that all medical practitioners and healthcare institutions should continue to be vigilant to suspect cases.
Singapore will continue with temperature screening for passengers entering Singapore at all checkpoints (land, sea and air).
All passengers passing through or entering Singapore are given Health Alert Notices on board their flights, advising them to monitor their own health if they have been to affected areas and to seek medical attention immediately if they are not well.
more info here:
http://sg.news.yahoo.com/cna/20090527/tap-062-singapore-confirms-case-h1n1-231650b.html
Monday, May 25, 2009
Malaysia confirm first case of H1N1
KUALA LUMPUR - Malaysia's top health official Friday confirmed the country's first case of Influenza A (H1N1) amid fears that some of those exposed to the infected patient could have gone on to Indonesia.
"I can confirm (that it) is the first case in Malaysia," health ministry director general Ismail Merican told AFP.
Acting health minister Kong Cho Ha, who addressed a hastily-convened press conference later, said the patient was a 21-year-old male student who arrived on a flight from the United States on May 13, giving no further details on his identity.
He said the patient came down with fever, sore throat and body aches the next day and was admitted to the Sungai Buloh quarantine facility in central Selangor state on the same evening and is now in stable condition.
He said five family members who live with the patient have been placed under home quarantine in order to monitor their condition.
The government has urged all passengers who travelled on Malaysian Airlines flight MH091 from Newark in the United States to Kuala Lumpur, that landed at 7.15am on May 13 to contact the ministry for further instructions.
"No passengers have been quarantined, we are still trying to trace them," Kong said of the 199 passengers and crew onboard the flight. "We will segregate them (when located). If they have no signs (of the disease) they can go after a certain number of days," he added.
However, he said there was a fear that some of those exposed to the infected patient may have gone on to Indonesia.
"We mention Indonesia because that flight is a code share with (Indonesian carrier) Garuda so the assumption is that there could be some passengers going to Indonesia," he added.
Officials could not immediately confirm how many Indonesians were on board nor if any passengers continued onto Indonesia.
Kong said Malaysia's alert level would remain the same despite its first confirmed H1N1 flu case as the country was already at its highest state of preparedness since the World Health Organisation raised its flu alert to phase five out of six.
more details here: http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_asiapacific/view/429421/1/.html
"I can confirm (that it) is the first case in Malaysia," health ministry director general Ismail Merican told AFP.
Acting health minister Kong Cho Ha, who addressed a hastily-convened press conference later, said the patient was a 21-year-old male student who arrived on a flight from the United States on May 13, giving no further details on his identity.
He said the patient came down with fever, sore throat and body aches the next day and was admitted to the Sungai Buloh quarantine facility in central Selangor state on the same evening and is now in stable condition.
He said five family members who live with the patient have been placed under home quarantine in order to monitor their condition.
The government has urged all passengers who travelled on Malaysian Airlines flight MH091 from Newark in the United States to Kuala Lumpur, that landed at 7.15am on May 13 to contact the ministry for further instructions.
"No passengers have been quarantined, we are still trying to trace them," Kong said of the 199 passengers and crew onboard the flight. "We will segregate them (when located). If they have no signs (of the disease) they can go after a certain number of days," he added.
However, he said there was a fear that some of those exposed to the infected patient may have gone on to Indonesia.
"We mention Indonesia because that flight is a code share with (Indonesian carrier) Garuda so the assumption is that there could be some passengers going to Indonesia," he added.
Officials could not immediately confirm how many Indonesians were on board nor if any passengers continued onto Indonesia.
Kong said Malaysia's alert level would remain the same despite its first confirmed H1N1 flu case as the country was already at its highest state of preparedness since the World Health Organisation raised its flu alert to phase five out of six.
more details here: http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_asiapacific/view/429421/1/.html
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Swine Flu FAQ
Swine Flu
Last Updated 29 April 2009
The human swine flu outbreak situation continues to evolve rapidly.
As of 28 April 2009, seven countries have officially reported cases of swine flu A (H1N1) infection. This includes the United States Government, which has reported 64 laboratory confirmed human cases, with no deaths. Mexico has reported 26 confirmed human cases of infection including seven deaths.
As of 28 April 09, there are no known cases of human swine flu in Singapore. 17 cases that were referred for further medical assessment have all tested negative.
Health Alert
On 27 April 2009, the World Health Organization (WHO) raised the level of flu pandemic alert to phase 4. A phase 4 alert is characterised by confirmed person-to-person spread of a new flu virus able to cause “community-level” outbreaks. The change to a higher phase of pandemic alert indicates that the likelihood of a pandemic has increased, but not that a pandemic is inevitable.
In line with this, Singapore’s Ministry of Health has elevated our alert level from green to yellow. This is to better brace ourselves to handle situations where there may be isolated imported cases but no sustained local transmission.
Travel Advisory
Members of the public are advised to postpone or avoid non-essential travel to Mexico. In the event that travel to Mexico is unavoidable, the public is advised to take precautionary measures such as avoiding crowded areas and maintaining high standards of personal hygiene at all times.
Upon returning from the affected area (i.e. Mexico and the state of New York, California, Texas and Kansas of the United States), members of the public should continue to maintain high standards of personal hygiene and to monitor their own health.
Members of the public who have travelled to affected places and who develop respiratory illness with fever (Temperature > 38°C) within seven days after their return should put on a surgical mask and seek medical consultation immediately. They should also disclose their travel histories to their doctors.
As part of national level measures, the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) has already implemented precautionary measures at Singapore Changi Airport on 26 April. Thermal scanners have been deployed at all the Arrival Halls, as well as at the Budget Terminal, the Seletar Airport and arrival halls of major ferry terminals.
Click here to view the press releases.
Click here to view FAQs on swine flu.
Related links to Swine Flu
U.S. CDC
World Health Organization & Pandemic Influenza Phases
Singapore Flu Alert System
Ministry of Health, Singapore
Source: http://www.crisis.gov.sg/flu/
Last Updated 29 April 2009
The human swine flu outbreak situation continues to evolve rapidly.
As of 28 April 2009, seven countries have officially reported cases of swine flu A (H1N1) infection. This includes the United States Government, which has reported 64 laboratory confirmed human cases, with no deaths. Mexico has reported 26 confirmed human cases of infection including seven deaths.
As of 28 April 09, there are no known cases of human swine flu in Singapore. 17 cases that were referred for further medical assessment have all tested negative.
Health Alert
On 27 April 2009, the World Health Organization (WHO) raised the level of flu pandemic alert to phase 4. A phase 4 alert is characterised by confirmed person-to-person spread of a new flu virus able to cause “community-level” outbreaks. The change to a higher phase of pandemic alert indicates that the likelihood of a pandemic has increased, but not that a pandemic is inevitable.
In line with this, Singapore’s Ministry of Health has elevated our alert level from green to yellow. This is to better brace ourselves to handle situations where there may be isolated imported cases but no sustained local transmission.
Travel Advisory
Members of the public are advised to postpone or avoid non-essential travel to Mexico. In the event that travel to Mexico is unavoidable, the public is advised to take precautionary measures such as avoiding crowded areas and maintaining high standards of personal hygiene at all times.
Upon returning from the affected area (i.e. Mexico and the state of New York, California, Texas and Kansas of the United States), members of the public should continue to maintain high standards of personal hygiene and to monitor their own health.
Members of the public who have travelled to affected places and who develop respiratory illness with fever (Temperature > 38°C) within seven days after their return should put on a surgical mask and seek medical consultation immediately. They should also disclose their travel histories to their doctors.
As part of national level measures, the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) has already implemented precautionary measures at Singapore Changi Airport on 26 April. Thermal scanners have been deployed at all the Arrival Halls, as well as at the Budget Terminal, the Seletar Airport and arrival halls of major ferry terminals.
Click here to view the press releases.
Click here to view FAQs on swine flu.
Related links to Swine Flu
U.S. CDC
World Health Organization & Pandemic Influenza Phases
Singapore Flu Alert System
Ministry of Health, Singapore
Source: http://www.crisis.gov.sg/flu/
Swine Flu One Step Closer to Pandemic - WHO up their level to phase 5 (SG level is consider Red)
Received this from email...
From WebMD Health News
Swine Flu One Step Closer to Pandemic
from WebMD — a health information Web site for patients
Miranda Hitti
Information from Industry
For chronic hepatitis B
Learn how achieving seroconversion in chronic HBeAg-positive patients can lead to improved virologic outcomes. Learn more about this treatment option
April 29, 2009 — Swine flu has pushed the World Health Organization to raise its pandemic alert level to phase 5, which means that a pandemic is imminent.
It's the second time in a week that the World Health Organization (WHO) has raised its pandemic alert level, which ranges from phase 1 (low risk of a pandemic) to phase 6 (a full-blown pandemic is under way).
"The biggest question is, how severe will the pandemic be?" WHO Director-General Margaret Chan said today in a news conference in Geneva. "We do not have all the answers right now, but we will get them."
Chan said the swine flu situation is changing rapidly and the swine flu virus is still "poorly understood."
Chan called on all governments around the world to "immediately activate their pandemic preparedness plan," noting that each country is free to make its own pandemic plans -- and that many countries have been working on pandemic preparedness for years, thanks to concerns about bird flu ( avian flu). "The world is better prepared for an influenza pandemic than at any time in history."
Earlier today, CDC Acting Director Richard Besser, MD, said that the U.S. is at a "pre-pandemic" level and that it matters less what the situation is called than what's being done about it, and that the U.S. is taking "aggressive" action to limit swine flu's impact on human health.
WHO Pandemic Levels
Here is a quick look at the WHO's pandemic alert phases:
Phase 1: A virus in animals has caused no known infections in humans.
Phase 2: An animal flu virus has caused infection in humans.
Phase 3: Sporadic cases or small clusters of disease occur in humans. Human-to-human transmission, if any, is insufficient to cause community-level outbreaks.
Phase 4: The risk for a pandemic is greatly increased but not certain. The disease-causing virus is able to cause community-level outbreaks.
Phase 5: Still not a pandemic, but spread of disease between humans is occurring in more than one country of one WHO region.
Phase 6: This is the pandemic level. Community-level outbreaks are in at least one additional country in a different WHO region from phase 5. A global pandemic is under way.
Note that all of those phases are about how the virus is (or isn't) spreading -- they're not about the severity of the disease.
91 Cases in U.S.
At least 91 people in 10 U.S. states have swine flu, and there has been one death of a swine flu patient in the U.S., according to the CDC.
The patient who died was a 22-month-old boy from Mexico who died at a hospital in the Houston area. He had several underlying health problems, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services.
Here is the CDC's latest tally of lab-confirmed swine flu cases:
New York: 51 cases
Texas: 16 cases
California: 14 cases
Kansas: 2 cases
Massachusetts: 2 cases
Michigan: 2 cases
Arizona: 1 case
Indiana: 1 case
Nevada: 1 case
Ohio: 1 case
But the situation is changing so quickly that "these numbers are almost out of date by the time I say them," Besser said today at a press conference.
Besser noted that health officials expect to see a "spectrum" of disease severity in the U.S. "Unfortunately, I anticipate that we will see more deaths."
Swine Flu Numbers Changing Constantly
The CDC and the World Health Organization (WHO) only report lab-confirmed cases -- not probable or suspected cases -- and they only do it once a day. So there may be a lag time before cases confirmed at the state or local level make it into the official tally.
The WHO today reported 114 lab-confirmed swine flu cases worldwide, but that figure is based on yesterday's CDC numbers and doesn't include three cases reported in Germany, one in Austria, and additional cases in New Zealand.
"It is clear that the virus is spreading; we don't see any evidence that it's slowing," Keiji Fukuda, MD, the WHO's assistant director-general for health security and environment, said at a news conference in Geneva earlier today.
Swine Flu Vaccine Work Under Way
Scientists are already working on creating a vaccine against the new swine flu virus.
"We're in full gear; the process is more speedy than [it's] ever been before, " Kathleen Sebelius, the new Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), said today at a joint news conference with the HHS, CDC, FDA, and the National Institutes of Health.
A swine flu vaccine may be created by early fall, but that doesn't mean it will be ready for distribution by then, health officials noted at the news conference.
Developing a vaccine means conducting clinical trials to see if the vaccine is safe, if it works, and what dose is needed, Anthony Fauci, MD, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said at the news conference.
Fauci predicted that clinical trials of a vaccine against the new flu virus -- which he calls the H1N1 virus -- will "probably begin within a couple of months" and take several months.
'Serious Virus'
During today's joint news conference, a reporter asked why officials are so concerned about the new flu virus, given the fact that normal seasonal flu kills an average of 36,000 people in the U.S. during a typical flu season.
The reason is that it's a new, unpredictable virus that "has pandemic potential," Fauci replied. "It really is something different."
"This is a serious virus, this is a serious outbreak," Besser agreed.
"You don't know if it's going to fizzle out in a couple weeks or become more or less virulent or severe in the diseases it causes," Besser said. "If we could see into the future, that would be wonderful. But that's not the case. That's why we're being aggressive."
SOURCES:
Margaret Chan, director-general, World Health Organization.
WebMD Health News: "CDC Confirms First U.S. Swine Flu Death."
Richard Besser, MD, acting director, CDC.
Keiji Fukuda, MD, assistant director-general, health security and environment, World Health Organization.
Kathleen Sebelius, secretary, Department of Health and Human Services.
Anthony Fauci, MD, director, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
From WebMD Health News
Swine Flu One Step Closer to Pandemic
from WebMD — a health information Web site for patients
Miranda Hitti
Information from Industry
For chronic hepatitis B
Learn how achieving seroconversion in chronic HBeAg-positive patients can lead to improved virologic outcomes. Learn more about this treatment option
April 29, 2009 — Swine flu has pushed the World Health Organization to raise its pandemic alert level to phase 5, which means that a pandemic is imminent.
It's the second time in a week that the World Health Organization (WHO) has raised its pandemic alert level, which ranges from phase 1 (low risk of a pandemic) to phase 6 (a full-blown pandemic is under way).
"The biggest question is, how severe will the pandemic be?" WHO Director-General Margaret Chan said today in a news conference in Geneva. "We do not have all the answers right now, but we will get them."
Chan said the swine flu situation is changing rapidly and the swine flu virus is still "poorly understood."
Chan called on all governments around the world to "immediately activate their pandemic preparedness plan," noting that each country is free to make its own pandemic plans -- and that many countries have been working on pandemic preparedness for years, thanks to concerns about bird flu ( avian flu). "The world is better prepared for an influenza pandemic than at any time in history."
Earlier today, CDC Acting Director Richard Besser, MD, said that the U.S. is at a "pre-pandemic" level and that it matters less what the situation is called than what's being done about it, and that the U.S. is taking "aggressive" action to limit swine flu's impact on human health.
WHO Pandemic Levels
Here is a quick look at the WHO's pandemic alert phases:
Phase 1: A virus in animals has caused no known infections in humans.
Phase 2: An animal flu virus has caused infection in humans.
Phase 3: Sporadic cases or small clusters of disease occur in humans. Human-to-human transmission, if any, is insufficient to cause community-level outbreaks.
Phase 4: The risk for a pandemic is greatly increased but not certain. The disease-causing virus is able to cause community-level outbreaks.
Phase 5: Still not a pandemic, but spread of disease between humans is occurring in more than one country of one WHO region.
Phase 6: This is the pandemic level. Community-level outbreaks are in at least one additional country in a different WHO region from phase 5. A global pandemic is under way.
Note that all of those phases are about how the virus is (or isn't) spreading -- they're not about the severity of the disease.
91 Cases in U.S.
At least 91 people in 10 U.S. states have swine flu, and there has been one death of a swine flu patient in the U.S., according to the CDC.
The patient who died was a 22-month-old boy from Mexico who died at a hospital in the Houston area. He had several underlying health problems, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services.
Here is the CDC's latest tally of lab-confirmed swine flu cases:
New York: 51 cases
Texas: 16 cases
California: 14 cases
Kansas: 2 cases
Massachusetts: 2 cases
Michigan: 2 cases
Arizona: 1 case
Indiana: 1 case
Nevada: 1 case
Ohio: 1 case
But the situation is changing so quickly that "these numbers are almost out of date by the time I say them," Besser said today at a press conference.
Besser noted that health officials expect to see a "spectrum" of disease severity in the U.S. "Unfortunately, I anticipate that we will see more deaths."
Swine Flu Numbers Changing Constantly
The CDC and the World Health Organization (WHO) only report lab-confirmed cases -- not probable or suspected cases -- and they only do it once a day. So there may be a lag time before cases confirmed at the state or local level make it into the official tally.
The WHO today reported 114 lab-confirmed swine flu cases worldwide, but that figure is based on yesterday's CDC numbers and doesn't include three cases reported in Germany, one in Austria, and additional cases in New Zealand.
"It is clear that the virus is spreading; we don't see any evidence that it's slowing," Keiji Fukuda, MD, the WHO's assistant director-general for health security and environment, said at a news conference in Geneva earlier today.
Swine Flu Vaccine Work Under Way
Scientists are already working on creating a vaccine against the new swine flu virus.
"We're in full gear; the process is more speedy than [it's] ever been before, " Kathleen Sebelius, the new Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), said today at a joint news conference with the HHS, CDC, FDA, and the National Institutes of Health.
A swine flu vaccine may be created by early fall, but that doesn't mean it will be ready for distribution by then, health officials noted at the news conference.
Developing a vaccine means conducting clinical trials to see if the vaccine is safe, if it works, and what dose is needed, Anthony Fauci, MD, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said at the news conference.
Fauci predicted that clinical trials of a vaccine against the new flu virus -- which he calls the H1N1 virus -- will "probably begin within a couple of months" and take several months.
'Serious Virus'
During today's joint news conference, a reporter asked why officials are so concerned about the new flu virus, given the fact that normal seasonal flu kills an average of 36,000 people in the U.S. during a typical flu season.
The reason is that it's a new, unpredictable virus that "has pandemic potential," Fauci replied. "It really is something different."
"This is a serious virus, this is a serious outbreak," Besser agreed.
"You don't know if it's going to fizzle out in a couple weeks or become more or less virulent or severe in the diseases it causes," Besser said. "If we could see into the future, that would be wonderful. But that's not the case. That's why we're being aggressive."
SOURCES:
Margaret Chan, director-general, World Health Organization.
WebMD Health News: "CDC Confirms First U.S. Swine Flu Death."
Richard Besser, MD, acting director, CDC.
Keiji Fukuda, MD, assistant director-general, health security and environment, World Health Organization.
Kathleen Sebelius, secretary, Department of Health and Human Services.
Anthony Fauci, MD, director, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
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