Posted on 01/10/2009 8:06:53 AM PST by BGHater
Virtually all the flu in the United States this season is resistant to the leading antiviral drug Tamiflu, and scientists and health officials are trying to figure out why.
The problem is not yet a public health crisis because this has been a below-average flu season so far and the chief strain circulating is still susceptible to other drugs — but infectious disease specialists are worried nonetheless.
Last winter, about 11 percent of the throat swabs from patients with the most common type of flu that were sent to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for genetic typing showed a Tamiflu-resistant strain. This season, 99 percent do.
"It's quite shocking," said Dr. Kent Sepkowitz, director of infection control at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York. "We've never lost an antimicrobial this fast. It blew me away."
The single mutation that creates Tamiflu resistance appears to be spontaneous, and not a reaction to overuse of the drug. It may have occurred in Asia, and it was widespread in Europe last year.
In response, the CDC issued new guidelines two weeks ago. They urged doctors to test suspected flu cases as quickly as possible to see if they are influenza A or influenza B, and if they are A, whether they are H1 or H3 viruses.
The only Tamiflu-resistant strain is an H1N1. Its resistance mutation could fade out, a CDC scientist said, or a different flu strain could overtake H1N1 in importance, but right now it causes almost all flu cases in the country, except in a few mountain states, where H3N2 is prevalent.
(Excerpt) Read more at iht.com ...
one theory on the “low flu” season is that winter started “so early” - forcing many people inside before the main onslaught started. Not sure how much credibility I give this idea...
What? No Honey Bee connection?
My neighbor told me about this yesterday: he came down with the flu and was given Tamiflu, but it didn’t do any good. The medical community has apparently known about this for a while.
1918?
Man, does history really repeat itself?
I always get a flu shot. I hope the main strain circulating this year is in the vaccine.
The whole family got it this year, and I have been curious as well as to whether the vaccine got it this year or not.
do you mean your whole family got the flu or the shot?
On an Ohio radio show, a doctor stated 'If you have taken the flu shot more than 8 times in the last 10 years you have an 80% chance of getting Alzheimers'. Since aspartame is escalating Alzheimers anyway, and memory loss is so prevalent with aspartame its like #9 on the FDA list of 92 symptoms, people won't have a chance. Ingri Cassel, President Vaccination Liberation
Since I am allergic to antibiotics, if I get the flu, I have a good chance (I am 68) of it going into pneumonia. I think an even higher percentage of elderly people die of pneumonia. So what is a (old) girl to do?
The whole family got the shot, so I am hoping it works.
What makes the flu change from year to year?
I have taken a flu shot every year for a number of years and it has ALWAYS worked. Whereas years ago (before a killed virus was used in the shot) when we didn’t take it, we always got sick. I know there are strains out there not covered by the vaccine but so far we have been lucky.
Mutations.
This does not bode well for the inevitable flu pandemic.....
Reality: This artificial sweetener, marketed under such brand names as Nutrasweet and Equal, was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use in all foods and beverages in 1996. Since approval, concerns about aspartame's health effects have been raised.
According to the FDA, as of May 2006, the agency had not been presented with any scientific evidence that would lead to change its conclusions on the safety of aspartame for most people. The agency says its conclusions are based on more than 100 laboratory and clinical studies. Read the May 2006 FDA statement about aspartame.
Reality: A theory linking flu shots to a greatly increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease has been proposed by a U.S. doctor whose license was suspended by the South Carolina Board of Medical Examiners. Several mainstream studies link flu shots and other vaccinations to a reduced risk of Alzheimer's disease and overall better health.
Info about what’s covered by this year’s flu shots:
The 2008—09 trivalent vaccine virus strains are A/Brisbane/59/2007 (H1N1)-like, A/Brisbane/10/2007 (H3N2)-like, and B/Florida/4/2006-like antigens.
There are three types of influenza viruses: A, B and C. Influenza A and B viruses cause seasonal epidemics of disease almost every winter in the United States. Influenza type C infections cause a mild respiratory illness and are not thought to cause epidemics.
Influenza A viruses are divided into subtypes based on two proteins on the surface of the virus: the hemagglutinin (H) and the neuraminidase (N). There are 16 different hemagglutinin subtypes and 9 different neuraminidase subtypes, Influenza A viruses can be further broken down into different strains. The current subtypes of influenza A viruses found in people are A (H1N1) and A (H3N2).
Influenza B viruses are not divided into subtypes. Influenza B viruses also can be further broken down into different strains.
Influenza A (H1N1), A (H3N2), and influenza B strains are included in each year’s influenza vaccine. Getting a flu vaccine can protect against influenza A and B viruses. The flu vaccine does not protect against influenza C viruses.
http://coldflu.about.com/od/fluvaccinequestions/a/07-08flushot.htm
Flu shots take many months to make and manufacture, so the formula for the vaccine is developed during the previous year’s flu season. Three different strains of the influenza virus are chosen to be included in the vaccine to (hopefully) provide as much protection to as many people as possible. Researchers look at the strains of influenza that are circulating and how they have been mutating to try to determine the strains that are most likely to be causing illness during the following flu season.
The flu vaccine takes at least six months to make, so it is no small feat to get it prepared for the beginning of flu season each year.
Typically each year, one or two of the viruses in the flu shot are updated to anticipate mutations. However, if a major “shift” occurs, or the virus mutates to a different form than what researchers anticipated, the shot may not cover some of the circulating viruses. If there are viruses circulating that are not covered by the flu shot, you may still get the flu even if you had a flu shot.
The PFI website has very good background info about all things flu including the whys and wherefors of Tamiflu resistance. I’ll post one link below but there is an assciated blog so anyone wgo is interested in how flus mutate etc can read up. I’m still trying to learn.
btw Joe - now they’re admitting Niman is right!
http://www.singtomeohmuse.com/viewforum.php?f=1&sid=85204babc39fd7141d287c918a2f143c
Oops - here’s the link. Be aware there are rabid leftists on this site, some conservatives have been disgusted and lurk. There are good updates as well as background. I have learned whose comments to read and whose not to.
Ping... (Tamiflu resistance) Thanks, lj, for the ping!
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