http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/flu/ en-us Sun, 19 May 2013 21:38:48 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3021423/posts Local researchers show online data transfer could lead to safer response in days rather than months Flu pandemic vaccine manufacturing could begin in days, not months, potentially saving a great numbers of lives in case of a severe outbreak, according to a study published Wednesday in Science Translational Medicine. Starting with digitized viral genomes, researchers led by San Diego geneticist J. Craig Venter along with Rino Rappuoli of Novartis, reproduced, or “rescued” flu viruses in just four days and four hours. Traditional methods take about four months. “To date, we have not encountered any influenza virus strain that cannot be... San Diego Union-Tribune http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3021423/posts#comment Sun, 19 May 2013 21:38:48 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3011807/posts AFP - Taiwan on Wednesday reported the first case of the H7N9 bird flu outside of mainland China. The 53-year-old man, who had been working in the eastern Chinese city of Suzhou, showed symptoms three days after returning to Taiwan via Shanghai, the Centers for Disease Control said, adding that he had been hospitalised since April 16 and was in a critical condition. A passenger (right) has her temperature checked by a Centers for Disease Control staff member at the entrance of Sungshan Airport in Taipei on April 4, 2013. Taiwan on Wednesday reported the first case of the H7N9... France24 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3011807/posts#comment Wed, 24 Apr 2013 16:28:20 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3007837/posts Around the world, scientists are now beginning to examine samples of the virus with a significant question in mind: Could this strain of the disease cause a global pandemic? This international network of scientists keeps constant watch for good reason. In 1918 and 1919, a flu pandemic killed between 20 million and 40 million people, more than the total death toll of World War I, more in a year than the Black Death of 1347 to 1351. More recently, an H1N1 swine flu pandemic was blamed for more than 284,500 human deaths worldwide between April 2009 and August 2010. So... NBC News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3007837/posts#comment Sun, 14 Apr 2013 23:41:05 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3005192/posts MAKING A MONSTER? The scientific work that can answer key risk questions is known as "gain of function" or GOF research. Its aim is to identify combinations of genetic changes, or mutations, that allow an animal virus to jump to humans. By finding the mutations needed, researchers and ultimately health authorities are better prepared to assess how likely it is that a new virus could become dangerous and if so how soon they should begin developing drugs, vaccines and other scientific defenses. Yet such work is highly controversial. When two teams of scientists announced in late 2011 they had found... yahoo http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3005192/posts#comment Sun, 7 Apr 2013 22:59:14 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/3004435/posts While everyone is fascinated by the unraveling slow-motion North Korean theatrical trainwreck, which is nothing but a desperate attempt by a broke "leader" to get paid some "nuisance" cash by the west just so he goes away, the real Asian story has been the latest outbreak of birdflu in China which has not only claimed six lives already (and many more coming), but is starting to have major spillover effects on the broader economy, such as mass slaughter of poultry at local markets - a move which will have certain inflationary effects to an economy already on the cusp of... Zero Hedge http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/3004435/posts#comment Fri, 5 Apr 2013 12:40:02 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3000419/posts Experts are puzzled by a new study in which influenza vaccination seemed to provide little or no protection against flu in the 2010-11 season—and in which the only participants who seemed to benefit from the vaccine were those who hadn't been vaccinated the season before. The investigators recruited 328 households in Michigan before the flu season started and followed them through the season. Overall, they found that the infection risk was nearly the same in vaccinated and unvaccinated participants, indicating no significant vaccine-induced protection, according to their report in Clinical Infectious Diseases. That contrasted sharply with several other observational studies... Center for Infectious Disease Research & Policy http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3000419/posts#comment Mon, 25 Mar 2013 05:30:10 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1741401/posts On New Year’s Day in 1988, Abdullah Ali, an Iraqi businessman who had been living in London for eight years, joined three compatriots for dinner at a restaurant called Cleopatra in Notting Hill.The next morning, he was taken ill with flu-like symptoms and was admitted to hospital. There his condition rapidly deteriorated — his hair fell out, he developed excruciating skin and joint pain, and paralysis and respiratory failure began to set in. Fifteen days later he was dead — but not before he had begun to wonder whether something had been added to his vodka. He was right: the... The Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1741401/posts#comment Mon, 20 Nov 2006 07:31:47 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2989980/posts ATLANTA (AP) — It turns out this year's flu shot is doing a startlingly dismal job of protecting older people, the most vulnerable age group. The vaccine is proving only 9 percent effective in those 65 and older against the harsh strain of the flu that is predominant this season, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday. Health officials are baffled as to why this is so. But the findings help explain why so many older people have been hospitalized with the flu this year. AP - via Yahoo http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2989980/posts#comment Fri, 22 Feb 2013 03:57:24 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2982540/posts In an average year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 21 million Americans get the norovirus, with classic stomach flu symptoms such as vomiting and diarrhea. Eight hundred die. Symptoms come on very suddenly, within hours after a person has been exposed to it. Because no one has immunity to this new strain, more Americans — perhaps 50 percent more, the CDC says — could become violently ill. While the flu is spread mostly in the air by sneezes and coughs and a person needs to breathe in as many as 1,000 virus particles to get... abc http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2982540/posts#comment Mon, 28 Jan 2013 02:37:39 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2981967/posts (CNN) -- Actor Burt Reynolds is in intensive care in a Florida hospital, where he went for treatment of flu symptoms, one of his representatives said Friday. Reynolds was dehydrated when he went to the hospital, and was eventually transferred to its intensive care unit, his representative Erik Kritzer told CNN. Kritzer declined to divulge what hospital the actor was in, saying, "He would like that (kept) private." "He is doing better at this time," Kritzer said late Friday afternoon of the 76-year-old actor. "We expect, as soon as he gets more fluids, he will be back in a regular... CNN http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2981967/posts#comment Sat, 26 Jan 2013 00:14:23 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2981581/posts …After receiving his very first flu shot live on air from vaccine advocate Dr. Oz in attempt to showcase the ‘safety and effectiveness of the shot’, Piers Morgan has now developed flu-like symptoms that even he and his guest have attributed to the reception of the shot. In the January 23 interview with country music celebrity Dwight Yoakam, Piers and Dwight discuss the connection between the recent shot and his new sickness. In the interview, which can be seen below, Piers asks “…As you can tell, things are deteriorating. Is there any advice you can give me?” Yoakam replies with... natural society http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2981581/posts#comment Fri, 25 Jan 2013 00:26:37 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2980845/posts Emelie is plagued by hallucinations and nightmares. When she wakes up, she's often paralyzed, unable to breathe properly or call for help. During the day she can barely stay awake, and often misses school or having fun with friends. She is only 14, but at times she has wondered if her life is worth living. Emelie is one of around 800 children in Sweden and elsewhere in Europe who developed narcolepsy, an incurable sleep disorder, after being immunized with the Pandemrix H1N1 swine flu vaccine made by British drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline in 2009. Yahoo! Health http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2980845/posts#comment Wed, 23 Jan 2013 00:11:51 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2979529/posts (CNN) - The flu hasn't hit Europe as hard as it has the United States, health officials say, but when and if it does, don't expect a call for vaccination of the entire population. Only the U.S. and Canada actually encourage everyone older than 6 months to get the flu vaccine. Apparently, not a single country in Europe asks the general population to seek that same kind of protection, according to Robb Butler, the World Health Organization technical officer in vaccine preventable diseases and immunizations in the organization's Europe office in the Netherlands. That's because global health experts say the... CNN http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2979529/posts#comment Fri, 18 Jan 2013 18:27:23 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2978850/posts Google http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2978850/posts#comment Wed, 16 Jan 2013 22:43:28 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2978170/posts Asking listeners to put aside his political orientation for a moment, talk-radio host Michael Savage questioned the federal government’s recommendation that citizens get a flu shot. “Did Harry Reid take a flu shot? Did Barack Obama take a flu shot? Did Barack Obama’s lovely family take a flu shot? Did Joe Biden take a flu shot?” Savage asked. “Which of the mandarins took the flu shot?” He explained that he was talking specifically about vaccines and was not advocating the avoidance of all pharmaceuticals. Known for his many books on herbal medicines, Savage acknowledged he has benefited from “an awful... World Net Daily http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2978170/posts#comment Tue, 15 Jan 2013 03:09:47 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2975307/posts The U.S. has been hit with a particularly aggressive early flu season this year with widespread reports of the illness across the country, hospitalizing 2,257 people and leaving 18 children dead before the end of 2012. And health officials say the numbers haven't even peaked yet. 'I think we're still accelerating,' Tom Skinner, a Center for Disease Control and Prevention spokesman, told reporters. The Daily Mail http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2975307/posts#comment Sun, 6 Jan 2013 00:31:04 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2976403/posts Hospitals across the country are being stretched for service as this year’s flu season looks to be the most intense in nearly a decade, with facilities beginning to turn patients away because of the danger that it could spread through their staffs. Thirty-nine states and New York City have reported significant levels of influenza-like-illnesses as medical professionals are reminded of the 2003-2004 season when more than 40,000 people died because the predominant strain was so dissimilar from the vaccine that year, reported Fox News. Hospital officials have described the season so far as “chaotic.” Doctors are telling patients to begin... Newsmax http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2976403/posts#comment Wed, 9 Jan 2013 16:16:30 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2976385/posts The Massachusetts Department of Public Health is reporting that 18 Bay Staters have died from the flu so far this season. At least four of these people were from Boston, the Boston Public Health Commission’s Nick Martin told the Herald. “We’re seeing a significant increase in sickness and severity,” Martin said. Boston Herald http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2976385/posts#comment Wed, 9 Jan 2013 15:38:01 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2976114/posts <p>Seven Chicago-area hospitals have had to send ambulances elsewhere this morning as they deal with an influx of patients with flu-like symptoms.</p> <p>As of 9:45 a.m., the hospitals remained on bypass status, which means their emergency rooms are at capacity and non-critical patients are being re-routed to other hospitals, said Melaney Arnold, spokeswoman for the Illinois Department of Public Health...</p> Chicago Tribune http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2976114/posts#comment Tue, 8 Jan 2013 19:21:58 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2975309/posts Flu infections sweep America hospitalizing thousands leaving 18 children dead .... daily mail.co.uk http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2975309/posts#comment Sun, 6 Jan 2013 00:31:43 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2973960/posts We have the flu. I don't know if this particular strain has an official name, but if it does, it must be something like "Martian Death Flu." You may have had it yourself. The main symptom is that you wish you had another setting on your electric blanket, up past "High", that said: "Electrocution". Another symptom is that you cease brushing your teeth because [a] your teeth hurt and [b] you lack the strength. Midway through the brushingprocess, you'd have to lie down in front of the sink to rest for a couple of hours, and rivulets of toothpaste foam... Philly.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2973960/posts#comment Tue, 1 Jan 2013 18:58:13 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2965684/posts All Signs Indicate That This Flu Season Is Going To Be Brutal Jennifer WelshDec. 4, 2012, 6:53 PMThe flu season could be especially bad this year, and is one of the earliest-starting flu seasons in a decade, said Thomas Frieden, Director of the Centers for Disease Control. "This is the earliest regular flu season we've had in nearly a decade, since the 2003-2004 flu season. That was an early and severe flu year," CDC director Thomas Frieden said in a teleconference yesterday Dec. 3. That season was very severe, especially for children, they said. This is much different than we... TBI http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2965684/posts#comment Wed, 5 Dec 2012 02:10:52 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2965341/posts Enlarge Image Risky science. The U.S. government is proposing special reviews for experiments that might increase the risk posed by the H5N1 avian influenza virus (brown). Credit: Wikimedia Researchers are giving mixed reviews to a draft U.S. government plan to subject some grant requests for studies involving the H5N1 avian influenza virus to special reviews—and perhaps even require the work to be kept secret. Elements of the plan have been "very controversial within [the] U.S. government" committee that developed it, Amy Patterson, associate director for science policy at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, Maryland, told a... ScienceInsider http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2965341/posts#comment Tue, 4 Dec 2012 02:33:35 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2941904/posts For years historians, epidemiologists, and virologists have been attempting to peel back the cobwebs of time in order to analyze the deadliest pandemic in human history; the 1918 Spanish Flu Pandemic. John Barry’s The Great Influenza: The Epic Story of the Greatest Plague in History, has probably done more to reawaken memories of that awful time than any other source, but many gaps in our knowledge remain. Jeffrey K. Taubenberger and David Morens - both researchers at NIAID – have added considerably to our understanding of the H1N1 virus and the events surrounding its emergence. Taubenberger was the first to... Avian Flu Diary http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2941904/posts#comment Mon, 8 Oct 2012 19:00:43 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2909480/posts Severe influenza doubles the odds that a person will develop Parkinson's disease later in life, according to University of British Columbia researchers. However, the opposite is true for people who contracted a typical case of red measles as children – they are 35 per cent less likely to develop Parkinson's. Read more at: http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-07-severe-flu-parkinson.html#jCp Physorg http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2909480/posts#comment Mon, 23 Jul 2012 03:18:59 GMT