[Psudo]

Globe and Mail wrote:

MONTREAL — The great swine-flu scare of 1976 is remembered in the United States as a costly public-health fiasco during which more people died from vaccinations than the dreaded influenza.

In Canada, it's hardly remembered at all, though it remains vivid to Marc Lalonde, who as federal health minister in 1976 ordered some 10 million doses of vaccine.

“Ah, mon Dieu, that was the time I threw away $10-million,” Mr. Lalonde said in an interview yesterday.

In 1976, the United States panicked after a US soldier died and several of his buddies were hospitalized from Swine Flu. The government sponsored a massive vaccination initiative, with 40 million vaccinations administered. By the end of the year, only that one person had died from Swine Flu but 25 people had died from a rare disorder caused by the vaccination.

Anyway, back to the story.

Globe and Mail wrote:

As it turned out, there was no flu pandemic. Only 800,000 Canadians, mostly in Ontario, bothered to get the flu shot. The next year, Canada's nine million unused doses of vaccine expired and were eventually flushed.

If you've been watching the current news about Swine Flu (a new strain since 1976, just as the 1976 strain was new in it's time), try to keep the '76 wasteful and dangerous overreaction in mind. To stay healthy does not always mean to take extreme preventative measures.

[Proculation]

It's a media flu.

[DerbyX]

While the media is making a big deal of this lets understand a few things. Like SARS, this virus gets special mention for a few very good reasons. Unlike regular influenza it can kill healthy people and that is a very big deal. Sure lots more people die of regular flu by they are usually immunocompromised.

The other factor is that it is a actively mutating virus that can jump species. The potential harm is great.

Part of my job is identifying bacteria and viruses and their specific strain then conducting tests to determine effective treatment.

When should we be concerned? When the death toll hits 1 million? The spanish fluwhich was the same H1N1 subtype killed 20 and 100 million people.

Thats million.

[Proculation]

Maybe if the virus mutates but at the moment, the death rate is very very low. From what I've read, usually, the more killer the virus is, the less it is contagious. So, if it mutates to a more killer form, it will mostly be less contagious.

[DerbyX]

as shown, 1918.

[mtbr]

New virus lacks killer genes of 1918 flu
People over 60 may have some immunity, CDC says


http://www.healthzone.ca/health/article/627653

[ridenrain]

Something like 7 people a day in the US die from the regular flue.
I'd bet more people die mowing their lawns.
.. maybe if they could get the Gorical to say that this was caused by global warming..

[DerbyX]

A flu that can cross species and kill millions and can potentially evolve beyond our current ability to treat should not concern you?

Does it occur to you that the reason we don't see millions being killed is because our health care response is far better then before?

Viruses that can jump species should be a concern. Strains that can infect and kill millions should be a concern.

What about all those that are not healthy adults? Even if healthy people only get sick they mat be spreading death to elderly wards and such.

[DerbyX]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Influenza_ ... btype_H1N1

Why is that? As a healthy adult you are a low risk but what if you carry it to others?

[ridenrain]

Derby: I could agree if we were seeing a huge number of dead in Mexico but that's not happening. We could all congradulate ourselves that we can wash hands and are not unwashed, smelly pesants like they are in mexico.. but their not dying either.

It has potential to be bad but it's clear that it's not.

[Kerozine]

Mad_Bomber wrote:

The only difference is that virus is supposed to come from pigs, there is no evidence that this strain is more potent than your common flu. Hence it doesnt concern me.

It managed to kill those considered to be least at risk. (i.e. healthy adults)

[Proculation]

maybe we should inoculate everyone and let Darwin decide.

[Psudo]

Mad_Bomber wrote:

The WHO still says the offical death count is 8, if that jumps to say 500 in the next day or two I might rethink my position. I dont see it happening though.

I agree that it would take a three digit number of US deaths before I started to consider it might be a threat. I can understand experts in the field being interested and dedicating themselves to preventing it from becoming an emergency, and to some extent we're all expecting them to do a great job at that. But the media doesn't have any reason (besides scare-mongering or obscure science reporting) to headline with it until it IS an outbreak instead of merely being a radically unlikely potential outbreak.

You hear about meteors that have a 0.01% chance of hitting the earth and killing millions, but not in front-page headlines. Why do diseases deserve more reporting?

[ridenrain]

They mentioned that the dead in Mexico are often young men so I wonder if all those dead thay are counting have side effects like bullet holes.
Remember they were in the middle of a very bloody drug gang war at the time.

[Psudo]

The infant who died was the only death in the USA, but there are something like 7 others in Mexico.

The infant was also a native of Mexico City.