There is a story that is told in medical history about a milk delivery maid who was dubbed 'Typhoid Mary' because she single handed contributed to the biggest typhoid epidemic in England. An interesting story often told to very green medical students as an introduction to the term "carrier".
A patient of mine came in recently with the Swine Flu H1N1) he was very sick and was still wearing his Fedex uniform. I advised him that the type of work he was doing and his exposure to the elements would only make him sicker, needless to say I put him out of work for a week.
As I looked at this poor person with bloodshot eyes, sweating and coughing up a storm, I had cause to rethink our (the Health Establishment's) definition of 'High Risk' patients i.e those who are eligible to recieve the H1N1 vaccine. Surely the delivery man innocently delivering packages from one establishment to the next and potentially picking up infection at one and depositing it at the next, is at high risk. Not only that, he (or she) presents a risk to the community at large as he proffers his pen with a grin and the instruction to 'sign your name!' before darting off to the next densely populated building.
In my office we have been lucky enough to have had the H1N1 shot throughout the 'shortage' and we have religiously followed the Health departments instructions to limit its use to high risk individuals; children ages 6 months to 24 years, healthcare workers and pregnant women. As of this week I have opened it up to many more people that I consider high risk such as teachers and metro workers.
I have been struggling with the idea from the beginning that students need to be vaccinated but not those who teach them. Maybe I am more sypathetic because my husband is a professor or just because I have NEVER seen my 17 year old son as sick as he was with the Swine Flu. He rarely gets sick but this bug made him as sick as a dog! (He came down with it 3 days before I recieved my supply of vaccines ...........).
Anyway to cut a long story short, come on and get your H1N1 vaccine, lets curb this epidemic. It takes 2 weeks to develop a good immunity so hurry in, next week is Thanksgiving and yes, if you drive a UPS truck ................ you are welcome too!
Showing posts with label Prevention of Swine Flu. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Prevention of Swine Flu. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Sunday, May 3, 2009
PANDEMIC , HERE???!!! WHOA, JUST A MINUTE!
As a proud alum of both Harvard and Johns Hopkins Schools of Public Health, I think I have been taught by the best to think information and issues through while not deserting 'common' sense.
The current level of alarm in the general population regarding the Swine Flu colloquially known as H1N1 seems unwarranted at the very least. Why?
A little research into influenza in the United States reveals that there are 200,000 hospitalizations and 36,000 Americans die annually from Influenza related complications. If that is the case and according to the CDC it is, 20 times more people died in the US this flu season than have died in Mexico during this 'epidemic'.
Also the people who have died in Mexico have been a small percentage of the people who actually contracted the virus down there. In fact so many people got the virus that there is increasing immunity there and the numbers of new cases are decreasing.
Initially, as I understand it from a top official from the CDC, it was only the cases that were hospitalized that got tested. As a result it looked as if everyone who had it was dying. whereas in truth it was only the sickest of the sick who were in hospital.
When you add to this, the fact that most people in Mexico do not get vaccinated against any flu viruses and that the nutritional status of the average Mexican is not as good as that of the average American one starts to wonder if the label 'Pandemic' might not have been a little hasty.
And then there's this new nomenclature for Swine Flu: 'H1N1' which sounds more high tech and
sci-fi than Porcine Influenza but actually the predominant Influenza A strain in this country during the 2006 -2007 season was a H1N1 virus just a different strain.
I could continue on with the science but I wont except to point out one more fact and that is that a person who contracts influenza A is most contagious for the first 4 days, lasting at most for a week after they develop symptoms. Do not be afraid of people who were in Mexico at Easter!
A group of 27 high school students in Colorado were apparently asked not to attend their high school graduation because they had been on a senior trip to Mexico. None of them were sick!
The point of this blog is the following:
let's not generate panic and deflect resources where they are not needed.
The strain of Influenza isolated so far is no more virulent than the strain that circulated here this winter. This is good news. We can anticipate far less morbidity and mortality from this Flu than we have in the average Flu season yet we don't close entire schools every time a student comes down with the Flu.
Hand washing and the other preventive measures I mentioned in my prior Blogs should make us all feel a lot safer. Its amazing how often the best solution is a low tech one with all due respect to my esteemed colleagues.
I would be interested to read your comments
As Always Stay Healthy.
Add years to your life and life to your years!
Dr Tuakli
The current level of alarm in the general population regarding the Swine Flu colloquially known as H1N1 seems unwarranted at the very least. Why?
A little research into influenza in the United States reveals that there are 200,000 hospitalizations and 36,000 Americans die annually from Influenza related complications. If that is the case and according to the CDC it is, 20 times more people died in the US this flu season than have died in Mexico during this 'epidemic'.
Also the people who have died in Mexico have been a small percentage of the people who actually contracted the virus down there. In fact so many people got the virus that there is increasing immunity there and the numbers of new cases are decreasing.
Initially, as I understand it from a top official from the CDC, it was only the cases that were hospitalized that got tested. As a result it looked as if everyone who had it was dying. whereas in truth it was only the sickest of the sick who were in hospital.
When you add to this, the fact that most people in Mexico do not get vaccinated against any flu viruses and that the nutritional status of the average Mexican is not as good as that of the average American one starts to wonder if the label 'Pandemic' might not have been a little hasty.
And then there's this new nomenclature for Swine Flu: 'H1N1' which sounds more high tech and
sci-fi than Porcine Influenza but actually the predominant Influenza A strain in this country during the 2006 -2007 season was a H1N1 virus just a different strain.
I could continue on with the science but I wont except to point out one more fact and that is that a person who contracts influenza A is most contagious for the first 4 days, lasting at most for a week after they develop symptoms. Do not be afraid of people who were in Mexico at Easter!
A group of 27 high school students in Colorado were apparently asked not to attend their high school graduation because they had been on a senior trip to Mexico. None of them were sick!
The point of this blog is the following:
let's not generate panic and deflect resources where they are not needed.
The strain of Influenza isolated so far is no more virulent than the strain that circulated here this winter. This is good news. We can anticipate far less morbidity and mortality from this Flu than we have in the average Flu season yet we don't close entire schools every time a student comes down with the Flu.
Hand washing and the other preventive measures I mentioned in my prior Blogs should make us all feel a lot safer. Its amazing how often the best solution is a low tech one with all due respect to my esteemed colleagues.
I would be interested to read your comments
As Always Stay Healthy.
Add years to your life and life to your years!
Dr Tuakli
Friday, May 1, 2009
Don't drink from that cup!
The latest (as of this morning) confirmed figure of cases of H1N1 (swine flu) in Maryland is 9, I have no doubt that it will be higher by this evening.
Try not to take young children into crowded places, this is not the best time to go to the ball game with them. Avoid crowded malls and shows.
If you are Catholic you should skip communion, it is not a good idea right now to drink from a common cup!
Remember hand washing is your best defense. Children cannot help touching everything, so keep them safe!
Be healthy
Dr Tuakli
Try not to take young children into crowded places, this is not the best time to go to the ball game with them. Avoid crowded malls and shows.
If you are Catholic you should skip communion, it is not a good idea right now to drink from a common cup!
Remember hand washing is your best defense. Children cannot help touching everything, so keep them safe!
Be healthy
Dr Tuakli
Monday, April 27, 2009
SWINE FLU, A Public Health Care Emergency !!!
Tonight I am going to talk about a potential health problem called the Swine Flu. Although the initial symptoms of Swine Flu are pretty similar to the Flu we are all used to it can rapidly get out of hand because humans don't have any immunity to it. It is called Swine flu because it is usually found in pigs.
Even when a person does not get a Flu shot, because of years of exposure to human Flu strains they have a certain ability to withstand the worst symptoms of the flu but with Swine flu there is no innate protection. This is why the World Health Organization has announced the possibility of a pandemic.
A pandemic is worse than an epidemic in the sense that it involves a much wider area of the globe and many more people and thus can take a lot longer to get under control.
There have been 40 confirmed cases of Swine Flu in the US so far. 7 in California, 2 in Kansas, 28 in New York City, 1 in Ohio and 2 in Texas. As you can see there is no defined geographic distribution of the spread and it is assumed that most cases are from travel or contact with a traveller, in these days where thousands of people fly from A to B daily it could just be a couple of days before we are in the throes of an epidemic. Currently this Swine Flu Outbreak is defined as a Public Health Emergency .
PREVENTION is always better than cure!
Wash your hands frequently, avoid sick people. Try to stay in good health, take vitamin C, get plenty of sleep. Drink plenty of fluids and eat nutritious food.
If you have an 'Flu-like" illness be seen quickly. Symptoms may include high fever, chills, sore throat , sweats, body aches and cough.
If you get sick antiviral medication can make the illness milder so you can feel better faster. They can also prevent the more serious complications. The problem is that if you don't start the medication within 48 hours it may not be effective. Because of this we will most often treat a patient 'empirically' before the culture result is obtained. It is important to avoid all aspirin products including peptobismol when you have the flu especially in children under 18.
The medicines that treat the Swine Flu, Tamiflu and Relenza are 70 to 90 percent effective at preventing the Swine Flu.
A person is contagious for 7 to 10 days with the Swine Flu.
In children, according to the CDC emergency warning signs are:
Fast breathing
Bluish skin color
Not drinking enough fluids
Lethargy
irritability
Fever with a rash
Seeming to get better and then return of fever and worsening cough
In adults, emergency signs requiring urgent medical attention include:
Chest pain
Shortness of breath
Sudden Dizziness
Confusion
Persistent vomiting
I hope this information is helpful. Please feel free to call our office for any further assistance you may need.
Dr Tuakli
Even when a person does not get a Flu shot, because of years of exposure to human Flu strains they have a certain ability to withstand the worst symptoms of the flu but with Swine flu there is no innate protection. This is why the World Health Organization has announced the possibility of a pandemic.
A pandemic is worse than an epidemic in the sense that it involves a much wider area of the globe and many more people and thus can take a lot longer to get under control.
There have been 40 confirmed cases of Swine Flu in the US so far. 7 in California, 2 in Kansas, 28 in New York City, 1 in Ohio and 2 in Texas. As you can see there is no defined geographic distribution of the spread and it is assumed that most cases are from travel or contact with a traveller, in these days where thousands of people fly from A to B daily it could just be a couple of days before we are in the throes of an epidemic. Currently this Swine Flu Outbreak is defined as a Public Health Emergency .
PREVENTION is always better than cure!
Wash your hands frequently, avoid sick people. Try to stay in good health, take vitamin C, get plenty of sleep. Drink plenty of fluids and eat nutritious food.
If you have an 'Flu-like" illness be seen quickly. Symptoms may include high fever, chills, sore throat , sweats, body aches and cough.
If you get sick antiviral medication can make the illness milder so you can feel better faster. They can also prevent the more serious complications. The problem is that if you don't start the medication within 48 hours it may not be effective. Because of this we will most often treat a patient 'empirically' before the culture result is obtained. It is important to avoid all aspirin products including peptobismol when you have the flu especially in children under 18.
The medicines that treat the Swine Flu, Tamiflu and Relenza are 70 to 90 percent effective at preventing the Swine Flu.
A person is contagious for 7 to 10 days with the Swine Flu.
In children, according to the CDC emergency warning signs are:
Fast breathing
Bluish skin color
Not drinking enough fluids
Lethargy
irritability
Fever with a rash
Seeming to get better and then return of fever and worsening cough
In adults, emergency signs requiring urgent medical attention include:
Chest pain
Shortness of breath
Sudden Dizziness
Confusion
Persistent vomiting
I hope this information is helpful. Please feel free to call our office for any further assistance you may need.
Dr Tuakli
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