Symptoms of Swine Flu

Looks to be another issue arising with the formerly highly recommended swine flu vaccine- wait, did I say formerly? No, I didn’t mean it or maybe that’s personal bias coming through. Yup that’s what it is!

The European Medicines Agency has begun a review and investigation into Pandemrix which is the fancy smancy name for the swine flu vaccine. Looks to be causing some good ol’ fashioned side effects, which happen to be serious.  Nope sure isn’t frequent urinating or even rashes. How about sleeping! Perhaps this could be the next wave of sleeping pills.

Okay, wise ass comments aside Europe is finding that perhaps the latest version of swine flu might be bringing on Narcolepsy which is a condition where a person randomly and suddenly FALLS ASLEEP! Yes, could be driving and falls asleep, could be walking the family dog and falls asleep, along with a variety of other activities.

Sweden also has begun investigation when reports are many young people were developing symptoms consistent narcolepsy after getting shot.

A British pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline produces these vaccines about thirty point eight billion people have gotten the vaccine.

Reports are also saying that Australia is banning the vaccine for children five years and younger. Across the globe there are some pull backs. Yet many countries, even those that have opened investigations with the vaccine are still encouraging folks to get the swine flu vaccine along with the common flu vaccine.

India is producing its first indigenous swine flu vaccine that should be ready for use by early May. The H1N1 vaccine is being produced by Zydus Cadila first and other companies soon after.

The vaccine will probably be a single dose unlike some of the earlier vaccines produced in other countries and should cost Rs 150-200.

To date India has had 29,710 swine flu cases and 1,376 deaths related to H1N1 flu.

You can find the story here.

The 2010 flu vaccine will be including protection against three strains of flu, including the H1N1 virus according to a recommendation from the WHO.

After meeting for four days the experts have decided that the drugmakers can use the massive stockpile of H1N1 vaccine that they still hold as part of the mix for this year’s seasonal flu.
There was a fairly substantial over supply of the vaccine as many countries cut back on orders as people were not getting the injection.
According to Keiji Fukuda, WHO’s expert in H1N1, “The inclusion of the H1N1 pandemic virus in the influenza vaccine does not signal that the pandemic is over. This virus is expected to be a significant threat to people as we go into the fall and winter period.”

WHO is meeting again on February 23 to evaluate the current H1N1 conditions, but they still feel that the H1N1 virus will continue to be a threat all through the 2010-11 flu season. Still those with the greatest risk are those with any type of a chronic medical condition, women who are pregnant, and the elderly.
For the full story go to alertnet.org

In this story reported by CNN as many as 80 million Americans became ill with H1N1 (Swine) Flu between April and December of 2009. The CDC is also claiming 16,000 deaths due to H1N1.

These are the high end estimates, even the CDC believes that the actual number could be closer to 39 million people sick and 8,00o deaths.

Exact counts are difficult to obtain because many people with the flu don’t seek medical care and only a small number who do are tested.

The H1N1 virus is still circulating and causing illness, hospitalization and death, according to the CDC, which recently made another call for vaccination. About 61 million Americans have been vaccinated.

Vaccines are widely available, with more than 130 million doses produced and 160 million people at high priority for getting the vaccine.

According to an article in the USA Today, Hundreds of thousands of children are missing out on their second H1N1 vaccine shot. According to medical professionals children need the second vaccination to be completely protected from the H1N1 virus. Apparently up to 80 percent of children in several states that were polled have not received their second vaccination yet, and many parents have no plans to send the child in for that.

“My fears are people have truly lost interest in H1N1,” said Frank Welch, medical director for pandemic preparedness in Louisiana, where the registry shows just 18% of 97,778 children have received the booster, 25% are overdue, and the rest are coming due.

In all states that were polled for the article at least 25 percent of youths have never received their complete vaccine series.