Posted on 10/01/2009 4:14:16 PM PDT by nickcarraway
In a reminder that the new strain of H1N1 influenza may not be as benign as originally thought, federal health officials reported Thursday that 100 pregnant women infected with the virus were hospitalized in intensive care units in the first four months of the outbreak, and 28 have died.
"What we are seeing is quite striking," said Anne Schuchat, a physician at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta who is helping direct the government's response to the pandemic.
"The obstetric caregivers here, and the ones that we're speaking with [around the country] have rarely seen this kind of thing in practice," she told reporters at a weekly press briefing. The 28 deaths occurred between the emergence of the new strain in late April and the end of August.
Until this outbreak, hospitals were not required to report to public health authorities deaths from influenza, except in children. As a consequence, the "expected" mortality of pregnant women who become ill with seasonal flu strains isn't known.
However, pregnant women have been among the victims of the novel H1N1 strain since the first cases were found in California and Mexico.
"Whether this is more common or people are just noticing it because we're attending to this H1N1 virus, it's difficult to say," Schuchat said. However, she added, anecdotal reports are that "doctors around the country . . . have never seen this kind of thing before."
Most previous influenza pandemics have also had what appeared to be unusually high death rates in pregnant women.
In one series of 1,350 flu cases in pregnant women in the "Spanish flu" of 1918, 27 percent were fatal. In the "Asian flu" of 1957,
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
uh oh! Time to be forced to get a shot through the imperial wizard of oz chief of all that roam the earth wizard and commander of wee wee.
That’s a 28 percent death rate. Can that be true or are they combining all flu cases.
Notice that entire article comes with the caveat “but we just don’t know.” That is the kind of alarmist chit that depreciates “the news” and means that when it really is time to inform the public about critical stuff, no one will listen.
“Spanish flu” of 1918,”
Poor comparison - little plumbing, war going on and o yea no antibiodics invented yet.
Not enough info. 28% of those cases moved to ICU but what percentage of cases is that? 1%, 10%, 50%, .001%? They’re not saying.
They did say 100 women and 28 died.
Yes, they did.
officials reported Thursday that 100 pregnant women infected with the virus were hospitalized in intensive care units in the first four months of the outbreak, and 28 have diedbut that is 100 out of ????? 5,000 pregnant women having the flu? 10,000? 50,000? 100,000? without knowing that, the 28% statistic is meaningless.
Please, I don't mean to minimize the personal tragedy for any of those families, but what this article and the variants springing up like mushrooms are doing is ratcheting up the FUD factor, not informing.
Yes, I agree
According to this source
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,559062,00.html
Out of 700 pregnant women known to have gotten the H1N1 flu. Not likely the true number but its what we have to work with because health care facilities are being told not to try to identify the strain at this time. So 4% or maybe less.
A very dark & disturbing movie.
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