Remove this Banner Ad

Swine Flu

  • Thread starter Thread starter dmc333
  • Start date Start date
  • Tagged users Tagged users None

🥰 Love BigFooty? Join now for free.

An interesting explanation of why this mild swine flu is of concern

Get ready for the SECOND WAVE of A-N1H1, When Pigs Really Fly
by RichardfromHB

Sat May 23, 2009 at 09:12:16 PM PDT

Mexico hasn’t had a new swine flu case in a week and is lowering its threat level. Oh boy, now we can forget about that cocktail of pig, bird and human genes and concentrate on Ms. California’s homophobic boobs. But, few of us lived through the 1918 pandemic where millions died in the second wave of the Spanish Flu virus. See, it comes on during the first flu season and then subsides, only to come back again the next year with full throttled vengeance. The history and issues, after the jump.

* RichardfromHB's diary :: ::
*

Flu’s genetic material is made up of just eight strands and only about 30 genes. Flu RNA is sub microscopic and much smaller than DNA or bacteria. It’s kind of like a half-step between a mere chemical compound (not alive?) and the 25000 genes in each of our cells (alive?). These flu genes invade the much larger cell and contain the instructions for making the virus’s simple components, including the capsule and surface markers, which our cells copy. The surface markers are what give the influenza its labels. The subtype for swine flu is H1N1. H stands for Haemagglutinin and N for Neuraminidase. This is the same subtype as the deadly Spanish flu of 1918.

Things worked more slowly in the early 20th century. It took about 15 years for researchers to understand what exactly had killed millions in 1918. The influenza A virus was first isolated in 1931 from swine and in 1933 from humans. The close relationship between the 1918 flu and today’s virus was reconfirmed recently by the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology (AFIP) in Maryland, from two sources: first, from stored specimens of 70 human autopsy cases of the 1918 flu pandemic and secondly, from a preserved bird from the 1915-1918 era stored at the Smithsonian. However, because the Smithsonian’s 1918 bird virus was genetically different than the 1930's human and pig viruses, the AFIP believes that the 1918 virus was probably circulated among swine and/or humans for some period, undergoing genetic "drift", before leading to widespread illness in 1918's second seasonal disease wave. 1918 virus is likely to have reassorted, or mixed genetically for years in an
intermediate host.

The same "mixing" for a decade is likely to have occurred with the current swine flu. Pigs have receptors for both human and bird flu viruses, which makes them ideal "mixing vessels" for new viral combinations. Bird flu is easily transmitted to pigs via their droppings. If a pig catches two kinds of flu at once, a new hybrid can emerge with genes from both viruses.

According to Dr. Raul Rabadan, a professor of computational biology at Columbia University, six of the eight genetic segments are purely swine flu and the other two segments are bird and human, but have lived in swine for the past decade. Four of the six swine segments are North American, while one each of the remaining swine gene segments are from Asia and Europe. This was confirmed by the CDC....
Click to expand...

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2...e-SECOND-WAVE-of-A-N1H1,-When-Pigs-Really-Fly
 
Numbers of infections appear to be underestimated - probably we have a few hundred here

UK swine flu toll is really 30,000, says leading scientist

True extent of the outbreak is claimed to be 300 times worse than government agency admits

By Geoffrey Lean, Environment Editor

Sunday, 24 May 2009

Thirty thousand people in Britain are likely to have been already infected by swine flu, one of the country's leading authorities has told The Independent on Sunday. This would mean that the virus is 300 times more widespread than the Health Protection Agency (HPA) admits.

The startling estimate by top virologist Professor John Oxford comes as leading scientists are warning that the agency's announcements on the spread of the disease are "meaningless" and hiding its true extent. And it tallies with official estimates made in the United States.

Yet the World Health Organisation (WHO) late last week changed its rules in order to avoid declaring that the flu has become a pandemic after pleas from governments, led by Britain.

Professor Oxford, of Queen Mary, University of London, believes that thousands of people have caught the virus and suffered only the most minor symptoms, or none at all, over the past weeks, as the new strain of H1N1 has spread nationwide – welcome testimony to the mildness of the epidemic to date.

He also thinks that some 100,000 people will have been infected in the US – the same number as is being privately estimated by experts at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention – and another 30,000 in Japan, where swine flu was spreading rapidly last week.

This contrasts with the number of officially tested and confirmed cases recorded by the WHO, which now stands at 11,168 in 42 countries on every continent except Africa. So far just 86 deaths have been ascribed to the disease, all of them in North and Central America, including 75 in Mexico.

Britain has the most official cases in Europe, at 122, with another 169 under investigation. But the figure, put out by the HPA, is increasingly coming to be seen as unrealistic. And it is certainly rising extraordinarily slowly, merely increasing from 82 a week ago and 39 the week before that, while normally the numbers affected by an infectious disease multiply rapidly.

In Japan – which now has the most confirmed cases outside North America – the official numbers have shot up from four to 294 in a week.

Professor Andrew Pekosz, of John Hopkins University in Baltimore, in the US, told the Associated Press late last week: "It's odd that we have not seen more cases in Britain," adding that after the first ones "a relatively wide outbreak" would be expected.

"The numbers in Britain are not really telling the story," added Professor Michael Osterholm, one of the world's top flu experts and an adviser to the US government. He called the official figures "meaningless" and said that, while the authorities were not hiding cases, they were not hunting very hard for H1N1....
Click to expand...

http://www.independent.co.uk/life-s...lly-30000-says-leading-scientist-1690130.html
 

Log in to remove this Banner Ad

"The startling estimate by top virologist Professor John Oxford comes as leading scientists are warning that the agency's announcements on the spread of the disease are "meaningless" and hiding its true extent. And it tallies with official estimates made in the United States."

You mean this Professor John do you?

http://www.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/331/7527/1277?etoc

"Like most other drug companies, its marketing department uses opinion leaders—usually professors or senior doctors from medical schools who can provide the credibility that company representatives cannot. In the case of oseltamivir, it is Professor John Oxford of Queen Mary College, London, who has led the drug's endorsement.

He routinely provides the media with positive comments about Tamiflu and has even appeared in promotional videos for the drug. However, his ties to Roche are rarely if ever mentioned in the mainstream press. He is also the scientific director of and a share owner in Retroscreen Virology, which has had contracts with Roche."

Bit of disclosure wouldn't go amiss would it?
 
Dry Rot said:
So agents of Roche and GSK are travelling around the world poisoning our water supplies with swine flu virus? Maybe you think it is connected with Roswell or the group of international jewish bankers and CIA guys that blew up the World Trade Centre towers?
Click to expand...

GSK have offices in most major cities (including Melbourne). They wouldn't have to travel ;)
 
There was a specialist on the Today show this morning, who put it in perspective. He said to treat it like any Flu, if you feel sick, go to the Doctors & get treated, if it is the Flu, any kind of Flu, stay home from work & school, so you don't infect others. He also said that on average, about 40,000 people a year get hospitalised for Flu in Australia every Flu season.

So sorry DR, this isn't your saviour that is going to cull the human race. ;)
 
mantis said:
There was a specialist on the Today show this morning, who put it in perspective. He said to treat it like any Flu, if you feel sick, go to the Doctors & get treated, if it is the Flu, any kind of Flu, stay home from work & school, so you don't infect others. He also said that on average, about 40,000 people a year get hospitalised for Flu in Australia every Flu season.

So sorry DR, this isn't your saviour that is going to cull the human race. ;)
Click to expand...

Did he explain about why the CDC among others in the northern hemisphere are so worried about this? And about waves of pandemics?
 
or paid leave :p

True story, on the train home tonight, the guy next to me was coughing, his phone rang and he answered, I'm assuming it was his wife. Went on to say how he felt a bit flu like and was told to go home.... **** **** **** **** **** I'M GOING TO DIE!!!!
 
rickyp said:
or paid leave :p

True story, on the train home tonight, the guy next to me was coughing, his phone rang and he answered, I'm assuming it was his wife. Went on to say how he felt a bit flu like and was told to go home.... **** **** **** **** **** I'M GOING TO DIE!!!!
Click to expand...

Condolences mate you're screwed, you are going to join the mammoth list of about 19 people who have died from Swine Flu worldwide.

The Tamiflu owners are laughing all the way to the bank.
 

Remove this Banner Ad

haha so I went to the doctor about my flu like symptoms but he said its just a virus (and hence he can't do much for me). He also mentioned that they were treating a number of people from that Ferry that got quarantined AT THE SAME TIME I WAS THERE!!!! AHHHH IM GUNNA GET SWINE FLU!!!! PANIC! PANIC!

haha but yeah, he said the health department were being dicks about the ferry people, and doctors have just been told to treat them as if they had the swine flue regardless of symptoms (I was pretty out of it on painkillers and cold and flu meds at this point so don't quote me)
 
Agree.

What is this nonsense about 4 million Australia's getting it. Alarmism at its best.

I see now they've issued an advertisement; because there is not enough media coverage on the issue as it is. :rolleyes:
 
Magpie said:
Agree.

What is this nonsense about 4 million Australia's getting it. Alarmism at its best.

I see now they've issued an advertisement; because there is not enough media coverage on the issue as it is. :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

There is an upside to this scaremongering, if you get on a packed train & want a seat, just stand next to a seat & start coughing, the people quickly get up & go to the other end of the carriage, you get a seat. :thumbsu:
 
What's even worse about this shit is my school is hiding the very high possibility that Swine Flu may have spread all across the year level.

Not even cancelling school. (or postponing exams. (there are two gap weeks))
How can you study in fear of Swine Flu? (exams soon)

Absolutely disgraceful :thumbsd:
 

🥰 Love BigFooty? Join now for free.

AndyLesPaul said:
but i dont think anyone can study in fear of swine flu
Click to expand...

If you survive your bout of SF to get into uni or work, you are going to have to do a hell of a lot more things with similar 'threats' hanging over you. Just think of it as training for those times.

BTW I remember well the stress of exams. But believe me when I say that they are not the end of the world. They just seem like it at the time.
 
On Tamiflu: I was recently in NZ. Whilst there I noticed that the pharmacies tended to have a notice concerning Taamiflu in their windows. The notice said that the pharmacist could not give out Tamiflu to customers without a presctiption unless the customer exhibited clear symptoms of a flu. Coincidentally, these notices were usually placed under advertisements for Tamiflu, which stated that you don't need a prescription to get it.

Would I be wrong in assuming that the notices I saw are a reaction to people seeking to stockpile Tamiflu? Are there similar notices here?
 
MrMeaner said:
On Tamiflu: I was recently in NZ. Whilst there I noticed that the pharmacies tended to have a notice concerning Taamiflu in their windows. The notice said that the pharmacist could not give out Tamiflu to customers without a presctiption unless the customer exhibited clear symptoms of a flu. Coincidentally, these notices were usually placed under advertisements for Tamiflu, which stated that you don't need a prescription to get it.

Would I be wrong in assuming that the notices I saw are a reaction to people seeking to stockpile Tamiflu? Are there similar notices here?
Click to expand...

I don't think that is happening here now, but may happen in the near future. If it gets out of hand, they may even suspend dispensing it to preserve stocks for proven seriously ill folk, essential services etc

There's also Relenza but it's tricky to take (inhaler system).

Re Tamiflu, it is quite possible that here swine flu will get mixed up with Tamiflu resistant seasonal flu, and the resultant mutant flu will be Tamiflu resistant.
 

Remove this Banner Ad

Remove this Banner Ad

🥰 Love BigFooty? Join now for free.

Back
Top Bottom