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Might want to fix a typo: "He had been directly exposed to swine but a caretaker had been in direct contact with swine in the weeks before the boy became ill."
Assuming you meant he HADN'T
LOL
Whatever happened to that old West Nile virus that was tracked so diligently across the U.S. Is this going to be "the" disease-of-the-year?
You are wrong sir. The flu virus lives in the gut of waterfowl. The pigs mingle with the water fowl when they are drinking or feeding and get infected. The pigs then infect people. That is how a virus works.
This is what I read in the statement!
He had not been directly exposed to swine but a caretaker had been in direct contact with swine in the weeks before the boy became ill.
This is what I read in the statement!
He had not been directly exposed to swine but a caretaker had been in direct contact with swine in the weeks before the boy became ill.
Maybe proofreading should be done before commenting.
jrae
West Nile is alive and well in the Desert Southwest. It is seasonal, carried by mosquitoes.
A Messenger - you need to do some research yourself - read the following passages - if you can explain them - no one will consider you a "half" eduated fool.
Temin observed that the replication strategy of HIV-1 suggests a form of primitive sexual reproduction (4), which is apparently genderless but sexual in that 1) two parental gametes must fuse into a single progeny, 2) the genetic information of the parental strains is recombined, and 3) subsequent offspring carry genetic information from both parents.
The possibility that HIV-1 strains might recombine in nature was proposed early in the epidemic (11). However, the first compelling evidence for lentivirus recombination in nature was the discovery that isolates from sabeus monkeys in western Africa were chimeras between the simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) of African green monkeys and the SIV of sooty mangabeys (12). The sabeus monkey SIV was shown to be a recombinant resulting from at least two interstrand crossovers between genomes of the green monkey and mangabey viruses.
Viral recombination happens all the time, naturally. A virus generally has a combination of replication factors and defense processes, and in the course of producing more copies, mutations occur. One virus may gain a gene from another strain, often through a bacterial vector of some sort. This could create a human-bird-swine recombinant DNA. Of course this could be done in a lab too, and while I myself am not all too fond of "Big Pharma", it seems to be a quite the stretch.
If it was created by man this would be another reason capitalism is bad for the
American citizen!!!
Greed outweighs common sense.
No "typo" you might try reading it again.
Messenger.............
It's called evolution and it's been happening long before "geneticists" could manipulate anything. Nature at work....not your paranoia!
"Viral recombination happens all the time, naturally. A virus generally has a combination of replication factors and defense processes, and in the course of producing more copies, mutations occur. One virus may gain a gene from another strain, often through a bacterial vector of some sort. This could create a human-bird-swine recombinant DNA. Of course this could be done in a lab too, and while I myself am not all too fond of "Big Pharma", it seems to be a quite the stretch"
This = SMACK DOWN!!!! TKO and down for the count!
SH123 just laid the smack down on "A Messenger's" odd conclusions! Science meets fiction with a twist of strange and science blows it out of water!
Science 1 ParanoidSchizo's (like "A Messenger") 0
Science only knows what it knows after the fact and is usually proven incorrect when new information arises. Did Science 'predict" a NEW strain of the H1N1 virus this year? No. They just predict it now because they Found it. Will there be another NEW strain next year? Who knows. Science certainly can't tell you.
And for the record, viral recombination does not happen "all the time". If that were the case, we would have been wiped off the face of this planet long before now. Aids would combine with H1N1 and become easily transmitted with coughs. Has that happened yet? Since apparently according to some of you, this happens all the time (You do know HIV is a virus, right). I suspect some inadvertent playing of immunizations and exposure of the H1N1 virus to some inactive immune serum, which prompts these viruses to figure out ways around them to become even more resistant to our current medical treatments.
And can't the CDC or whomever just locate the source of the fair and the participants and get rid of the pigs??? Is this a difficult task for them? Thats the first thing I would probably focus on.
1. Influenza does recombine frequently and there are strains that infect birds, swine, and humans. That's why you get different H and N numbers with different strains. Different H and N numbers are able to infect different species based on the cellular receptor the attach to. Some, like H1 and H3, are able to infect swine, waterfowl, and humans. Since swine are able to be infected with both bird and human influenza A strains, they are able to serve as recombination sites for the virus where you may then get a recombined virus able to newly infect either birds, humans, or both. This article says there is no evidence of sustained human-human transmission, which indicates that this particular strain is probably poorly adapted for transmission among humans. For that reason, there is little chance of this particular strain leading to a pandemic outbreak; however, those who interact with swine or those who work with swine may occasionally be infected.
2. Virologists do NOT create new virus strains and release them into the environment in order to increase sales of vaccines. If you believe this, you are seriously delusional. The yearly influenza vaccine is predicted each year based on evidence scientists have at the time. It usually works pretty well, but occasionally a strain that was not expected to circulate widely does just that. The whole process of designing and producing a vaccine in only a few months is a pretty amazing task in itself.
3. Doctors recommend a flu vaccine for people because though it kills mostly older, younger, and immunocompromised individuals, there are certain strains that target healthy young and middle aged people (like the 1918 influenza pandemic). Between 3,000 and 49,000 people die each year in the U.S. because of influenza, so it is a precaution. Feel free to ignore getting the vaccine if you think it is all a drug company conspiracy.
4. You can't get rid of all the pigs with this strain. If it was found in different areas, it is likely circulating in swine. Yes, it would be hard and extremely expensive to test all swine for influenza stains and then eliminate the ones with the particular strain of interest.
5. Influenza is an RNA virus, not a DNA virus. There is a big difference.
6. Different viruses (Influenza A and HIV) do not recombine to form a supervirus because the have completely different replication strategies, cellular receptors, target tissues, target species, and genetic make-ups. However, different influenza A strains can readily recombine because they are similar enough to each other.
What else are you going to do to distract the people? Report on every case of adenovirus, coronavirus, parainfluenza types I II and III, meta-pneumovirus?
Can it be bacterial so it's more credible?
What????
Do you not remember a significant number of people in Mexico City died from this? We were quite lucky that there was something unique about it there and it fizzled in the rest of the world.
the 'other' swine flu:
http://virus.stanford.edu/uda/
"The influenza pandemic of 1918-1919 killed more people than the Great War, known today as World War I (WWI), at somewhere between 20 and 40 million people"
"In the two years that this scourge ravaged the earth, a fifth of the world's population was infected. "
ONE in FIVE got it, imagine that in the cities of today
Well why don't we ignore that nasty little virus called avian flu, aka H5N1. When it comes down and wipes out half of humanity, you'd be singing a different tune
H1N1 was a very nasty flu. It gave me a 104 Degree fever for 2 days, I lost a lot of hair, and I missed 2 weeks of work. I am a healthy person, and hadn't had the flu for almost 40 years. I didn't even know what hit me until I started feeling like I was freezing. It was a herculean effort to get back to where I could take care of myself without help. If it were not for being normally healthy and strong I think I would have died.
What else are you going to do to distract the people?
Well you could get people focus on gay marriage - wait - that is already in progress.
Get your vitamin D folks. It's one of the best things you can do to keep your immune system strong. Get some sun. Keep in mind that your body does not store Vitamin D so get a little even on the cold days. It's also free.
Rob, WWI had several things that helped the flu. Bad weather so people stayed inside and exposed others at the same time. The war was in full swing so add poor food, and terrible living conditions. Last but not least, add poor sanitation and you have a recipe that all the vaccines in the world will not stop.
CiCi-1984856, You were lucky. I hadn't been sick in YEARS either, but I caught the last Swine Flu in Sept. 09. I was hospitalized four times, had two surgeries and spent a combined total of 9 months either being sick or recuperating.
I agree, if I hadn't been otherwise healthy and physically strong, I know I would have died.
I don't care what anyone else's opinions are, I just hope I'm immune to any other outbreaks. I don't ever want to go through that type of sickness again.
Rob, 19 people died in Mexico of that, not Mexico city alone, Mexico. They initially reported hundreds because they are liars and wanted to cause widespread panic and most likely, also wanted free stuff to come flowing in, so for once they wouldn't have to illegally enter the US to get it. Plenty of people freaked out due to those reports and flu shots were harder to come by for people who actually needed them, same with Tamiflu to supposedly help the people who actually had the flu. It didn't fizzle in Mexico, it went around the world killing approximately the same percentage it did in Mexico, other countries don't tend to lie as much though. As for the influenza pandemic of 1918-1919. People were a lot less likely to be healthy to begin with back then. People actually thought smoking was healthy and forget a balanced diet. There were less overweight people because a lot more people were starving back then too.
It is just the media/CDC drumming up a incident so they can justify the new & improved flu vaccine...
you'd sing a different tune if the 1918 type of pandemic broke out again.
then it would be "the cdc is incompetent, they're killers!"
It would not had made any difference. It's a respiratory virus. There's thousands of those in the environment. You can't make a vaccine for each one of them. The approach at that time would be the same one as today, rest, vitamin c, decongestants. If it became worse, now there is invasive ventilatory support which people in 1918 did not have. Only if you are immunosupressed is that this is big deal.
IF this flu was so deadly then why go over the trouble of digging it out from ice and resurrect it as described in the article in Nature in 2005 by Andreas
von Bubnoff (The 1918 flu virus is resurrected)
The new mutant strain of H5N1, called H5N1-2.3.2.11 it currently has a mortality rate of 100% in humans and there is NO vaccine...
The earlier reported victims had a mortality rate around 50% and was effecting healthy people. Not the usual flu victims; people with prior diseases, old people, or children...
The older H5N1 bird flue was never contained in Vietnam, Laos, China, Cambodia, etc... They did not cull their flocks and they did not change their farming methods to restrict free range chickens/ducks...
While the chickens die relatively quickly, which restricts the spread of the disease. The ducks, migratory geese, and other animals can have the disease and still live. This is what has enabled the disease to spread around the world.
Unless the WORLD farming methods are CHANGED and free ranging fowl/animals are restricted from mixing with animals for human food supplies, this disease will be very hard to control...
Sounds like someone has been playing in the lab again, so some drug company can make billions more off new improved vaccine to fight something they probably created.
agreed Doggiemom. so sad that they have to create diseases to create a cure to profit off of it.
Sounds more like someone needs to look into microbiology and the processes of how viruses evolve and exchange genes...
That's just a suggestion of course, people can continue perpetuating ignormatic statements in an attempt to bring down corporate America. Come on Dark Ages round two!
I agree. Also learn about how the CDC determines the most likely flu scenario, and does what it can to prepare. It isn't an exact science, but what is?
paranoid much doggiemom....or are you are die hard conspiracy theorist by default?
It's called evolution....not back yard labs gone wild.
Ignorance is bliss. You probably didn't have your children vaccinated because Jenny McCarthy says it causes autism. So sad so many people die every year around the world from preventable diseases and we have people in this country who won't take advantage of such basic health care. I hope you open a science book, your eyes, and your mind to learn some basic biology.
The seriousness of this type of outbreak cannot be overstated. When you look at the avian outbreak and this could easily ravage a country without remorse.
Complain if you will about these news bytes but i much prefer NOT to deal with these outbreaks.
If these news runs are the only way to KNOCK the heads of the segment of society that does not react to this as if it were a major issue then run it on the news every day.
you've got it right.
@imrightnotyou - If the media DIDN'T make such a sensation out of every little sniffle and bug bite that comes along, maybe people would take headlines like this seriously...ever heard of the 'boy who cried wolf'? That's what stories like this have become.
Simply reporting the existence of a new strain of virus (or other disease) is not an attempt by the media to create a sensation out of every little sniffle and bug. It is merely new information that may result in a parent being better informed to keep his/her children safe.
"That's what stories like this have become." --- only in your own mind - for the rest of us - it is only another source of information that may or may not be useful.
jrae
for as bombarded as we are with the bugs and cold and flu season dribble. Many people in our society need to be informed each year about the detail of our world.
Do you notice for example every year.
We talk about back to school safety AND
Packing a nutritious lunch for our kids AND
Being aware of school buses AND
The summer Driving season AND
The airline baggage process AND
The correct way to cook a turkey for Thanksgiving AND
How to clean your A/C filters AND
Why and how to paint your home AND
How to save money AND
A thousand other things that happen to us every year that are brought to our attention ( again ) Not so much for people like you and me that have heard them for years and years and years.
But for those in our society that have really never paid attention or were too young as to not be affected and were never exposed to the things that regularly make our system here work from how to rent an apartment to getting your FLU SHOT.
IT IS FOR THE BENEFIT OF THOSE THAT NEVER PAID ATTENTION BEFORE. They all need to be brought up to speed.
Just a thought
jrae-1215199, the newest pandemic won't announce itself to scientists; only after the toothpaste is out of the tube will we know what's happening. I'd rather know when a new bug is discovered and is spreading. Why? Because some people have the ability to digest information and will make an informed decision. The others...well, Darwin will sort them out quick enough when the real pandemic hits.
If this strain was not created in a lab and/or these two children are the only two infected, what are the odds that this is because of the swine flu shot they already received but reacted/mutated in their systems because of their bodies reacting to contact to this "new strain?"
Baxter had a lab 10 miles from where the first outbreak took place. Go figure.
That is EXTREMELY possible. It was a vaccine concocted rather quickly against a new virus and all the ingredients are there for its rapid mutation.
It's odd that both the kids had been vaccinated. Most people did not get the H1N1 shot. Too many vaccines without any real scientific study on the long term outcomes of getting/giving them.
Since the chicken pox vaccine started shingles cases are through the roof!
Exactly, Lee Bbb. I too was thinking How strange that both kids were vaccinated last year. My very suspicious mind tells me that this is probably why they came down with it this year. I do not trust vaccines.
I generally don't believe in vaccines, except for the childhood ones. I didn't get the H1N1 vaccine, and I got the H1N1 flu. Who knows if the vaccine would have prevented it? One thing that I am certain of is that I got the flu from one of my 8th grade students. If I still worked in public education I would probably get the vaccine.
I had the same feelings CiCi...my kids are vaccinated, but we never got flu shots because we never got the flu. Then last year we all got the flu...my children and my husband had it mildly but for some reason I ended up very, very ill. I am young and healthy, but that virus kicked my butt for 2 weeks...I was crying at the end of it because I was so miserable.
This year, we are all getting flu shots.
all I can say is, if we continue to disinfect our kids every time they sniffle, not allow exposure to the outdoors and domesticated farm animals, or let them be kids which are supposed to be in contact with their environment including the dirty parts--we are going to continue seeing kids whose resistance to common infections and viruses is zero or worse. This is ridiculous. My kids were exposed to chickens (can't get filtier than that), cattle, horses AND pigs, not to mention often having pet reptiles in the house, and none of them ever caught anything. My germophobe friends' kids can't get rained on without getting sick and getting rushed to the doctor. And if they felt like getting chicken pox so be it--oddly enough, they both had strong enough immune systems (as do I) that they were never infected in spite of mutiple exposures. I think part of this is people trying to keep themselves in a sterile bubble--go out and get dirty, ride a horse, get fresh air, and for God's sake let them have a pet turtle!! You may end up wasting less money on vaccines etc that aren't even effective for half the crud out there.
I totally agree with your whole approach to letting kids be kids and exposing them to their environment including the dirty parts. I grew up on a farm, my grandparents (both sets) had farms, and I still managed to survive childhood without my parents taking me or my brother to the Dr. everytime we took a deep breath. My theory is there is a reason the good Lord invented soap and water, and that is so we could clean ourselves/surroundings when we got dirty. Not so we could try to live in a germfree environment and never get sick/hurt. Who the heck wants to live like that...I don't cause then life would'nt be any fun.
New diseases are constantly evolving from the old ones - flu is particularly good at that - so even if your kid has had thousands of diseases he/she will still be able to get the new diseases. And - many of the old diseases are making a comeback. Also - keep in mind the germs in a well in Virginia are different from those in a well in Ohio. Move from Virginia (where you have resistance to the well water diseases there) and you can get "the runs" from drinking well water in Ohio.
Barbara, you obviously missed the polio epidemics of the late '40's and early '50's. If you had had a relative in an iron lung (as I did) you might appreciate immunization a bit more!
Barbara...........
The good lord didn't invent soap and water.....
science did!
Adela's point - in general - is a good one even if it does not readily apply to a newly formed influenza mutation. Antibiotics in food; prophylactic antibiotics from a doctor; sanitizing our hands every 30 seconds; disinfectant wipes for the kitchen counters and appliances. Our immune systems need to be stressed so that it's library of threats can grow and protect us. Kids today are being raised to be physically - and mentally - weak.
Adela - it makes no difference. Viruses aren't like bacteria. A new unrecognized and virulent enough virus will knock you flat long before even the healthiest immune system can react.
This is why the last swine flu was killing young healthy people - they were in fact dying from an overactive immune system.
It is only a matter of time and statistics before the right strain of human friendly fast spreading commonplace flu picks up some virulent genes from an animal flu that take that flu and turn it into a deadly virus.
If that happens the results can range anywhere from a nasty and scary winter to full blown global pandemic depending on a million factors.
I would like to know where in Pennsylvania does the girl live ?
Maybe Audubon, Birdsboro or Bird-in-Hand?
Maybe Blackhawk, Eagle or Eagle Rock?
I'm very interested in this article. While I agree in theory to the idea that immune systems should be able to react and respond naturally, I think we need to acknowledge that not everyone has a healthy immune system all the time. I was grieving terribly at the death of a loved one with cross country travel, little sleep and stress when I was knocked flat by H1N1 - there were times I literally could not breathe. So, for those who think this type of news is not relevant, don't read it. I, for one, am glad that the media is letting us know when and where new outbreaks are happening.
Yea, I got the swine flu. NO JOKE! That damn thing knocked me out for 5 days. Literally thought I was going to die! And yes I went to the ER and they confirmed H1N1.
Well....quit hanging out with swine................
I got mine from hanging out with my 8th grade students:d
OOOOPSSS!!!. Somebody needs to make money, and will infect citizens to sell the vaccine AGAIN!!!!!. Wake up America!.
Can't I just drink the mercury out of a thermometer and be done with it?
The public has grown weary and indifferent to the word "swine" flu. I suggest we rename the virus Bachmann. Think about it. If you thought you might catch Bachmann flu, wouldn't you seek immediate medical help?
It's a wonder any of us farm kids survived childhood! My husbands family had a hog farm and my Dad raised a couple dozen hogs for our 4-H projects. None of us had ever gotten sick because we were near the hogs. What other excuse will the CDC come up with for the reason people are getting sick.
IT BEGINS!!!! Thank Vishnu the viruses are not listening to the republicans and continuing their reign of terror.
and in 10 years we will have H12N10. where you have strange growths and your nipples will leak, no one will be safe. lets scare americans to get a flu shot.
The parents of these children should be charge with child endngerment for the exposure to the swine ......>>>..think of the children ....what about the children
100% of the purpose of this article release is for propaganda. Create fear and create doubt. This article is not an end unto itself it's just one little jab for the chicken littles to run in circles about.
Normally I agree with you, but not on this. Best to be informed and cautious. Identifying the most likely strain of flu to hit each year isn't an exact science. It's based on early warning signs.
Yea lets keep packing hogs and chicken by the 1000's into small contained areas where viruses can jump from animal to animal to animal giving it the most chance to mutate into something that can effect people.
We'll pay very dearly for our greed and cruelty someday
Amen to that!
How do you treat a patientwith swine-flu, vrs. one that has bird-flu? The patientthat has swine-flu needs treated with an "Oinkment," and the patient that has bird-flu need treated with a "Tweetment!" If a pandemic hits, everyone will know without the early notification by the CDC, our hospitals, and health care professional will be inundatedwith patients! Until that happens, I take the same precautions that I already take to avoid contagions. I really laughed when surgical masks were issued to the public in the effected areas during the bird-flu epidemic a few years ago - that was nothing more than a placebo to keep the public from panicking - nothing more! {:-(}
If anyone is interested in how this "recipe" for fear and vaccine uptake using tax dollars is perpetrated on the taxpayer then read this slide presentation from the CDC.
http://www.ama-assn.org/ama1/pub/upload/mm/36/2004_flu_nowak.pdf
http://www.ama-assn.org/ama1/pub/upload/mm/36/2004_flu_nowak02.pdf
This is a formula to get you to uptake unnecessary vaccine. Everyone doesn't need vaccines. And for the ones who do, the vaccines don't work.
Maybe we should call the avian flu the chicken flu, like we call H1N1 the swine flu.
Maybe people who don't have a scientific background or education shouldn't comment on this report. If I had a very sick child I wouldn't take it so lightly.
"Scientists found no specific link between the two cases."
5 sentences earlier...."The two children had received flu vaccines in September 2010, which protected against H1N1, but wouldn't protect against the new strain."
No specific link...?!? Really??
In understand what you are saying, but I'm not sure that is a "link". Millions and millions got the vaccine last year. If you recall, the H1N1 vaccine was incorporated into the standard flu vaccine so of all the people who got flu shots these two have come down with this disease. I think a link would be have travelled to the same place, been in contact with the same person/ people, gone to the same school, ridden on the bus or flown on the same plane, etc. etc etc.
Gosh whitneys don't try to confuse idiots with facts or logic!