Swine Flu, H1N1 Finally Kills in Idaho

Thanks but no thanks. The only people that need this vaccine are the really young and the really old and/or those with weak immune systems. And what’s up with the results from the human tests on this vaccine? Have they even come out yet? If so, can you provide us with the results Wendyjo?
What’s interesting is how many 10s of thousands of people that have had the H1N1 virus and have had no different symptoms than the regular flu and have gone on with their healthy happy lives. I guess the news doesn’t report that because there’s no sensationalism involved.

Thats the kind of response I expected from you Wendjo! Sheesh! Who said anything about asthma? I thought we were talking about the H1N1 FLU here, which have basically the same symptoms as the regular seasonal flu just a different strain.
Can we get back on topic here? Where are the results of the H1N1 vaccine tests? And what about all the people that have had this strain of flu and have gotten better within a week or two? Bleeding lungs do not occur in every person that gets this strain of flu.

This post is getting ridiculous! If you end up looking like this http://www.snopes.com/photos/medical/swineflu.asp
don’t go to work!

Seriously though, it appears Wendy is attempting to cause panic here and really should stop. The swine flu in our country is much more mild than in Mexico where it’s been reported to be much more severe. It’s been reported regular flu vaccines like Tamiflu and Relenza have shown to be effective against most strains of swine flu in this country.
Health experts answer the top 20 swine flu related questions in this link and I suggest everyone refer to this as opposed to Wendys paranoia. It also notes you can’t catch it from pigs.
http://blogs.discovery.com/news_animal/2009/04/health-experts-answer-swine-flu-questions.html

We have to remember that on average the regular flu kills 35,000 people a year and the reason for the medias overexposure to the H1N1 is because its new. (it’s a mutated strain of the swine and avian (bird flu) viruses)
The point is, most healthy children and adults have nothing to worry about and will recover just fine if they happen to catch this strain.
The best thing we can do to prevent spreading and catching any version of flu this season is to keep our hands washed and if you feel flu symptoms coming on, stay home to prevent spreading it to co-workers.

I’m sad that people are getting so spun up about this and the vaccine isn’t even available to the general public here yet.

When it is available, will there be enough for everyone?

I realize this is important, and I’m not downplaying that, but getting everyone stressed about it with the vaccine being dangled like a carrot is adding undue pressure to everyone.

I do hope that when the vaccine is actually available that people do get it, but in the meantime there are many, many other ways to die out there, so let’s calm down a bit and just make sure that when the vaccine comes that everyone is informed.

Do what you can to stay healthy, try not to get sick, and don’t walk out in front of a car.

It’s natures way of thinning the herd so to speak. If everyone remained healthy and lived until they were 120, the world would be one over populated resource depleted place.

Never trust salsa made in New Yawk City, or certain seminars. They just boggle your mind.

Guest too,

You didn’t even read your own link! There are only seven “myths” there, not ten. Pitiful.

Furthermore, AT LEAST four of the seven of the “myths” in that article are those I never heard of before. The others apply to the flu in general as well – not swine flu in particular.

I mean, how many people do you know that believe the following ‘myth’: “It’s better to get the flu than get vaccinated” ? Most people don’t get vaccinated because they are playing the odds that they won’t get the flu. It’s obvious the author started with a catchy headline to get attention and struggled to come up with the rest.

One of the ‘myths’ that actually may belong on the list are those that support or don’t even contradict what WendyJo’s post and comments say: “Young, healthy people shouldn’t worry”

The biggest myth here is that those are myths! The other myth is that you actually read the reference you’re pointing to.

The only non-myth TRUTH here is that you should follow your own advice: “Learn the facts about this virus instead of taking some anonymous poster on the internets word for it.”

Or better yet, stop being that anonymous fact-challenged poster yourself.

Finally, someone found a legitimate concern! Unfortunately, you’re citing the concern from a conspiracy website that based everything on just enough truth to sell the rest on uneducated scared people who are just trying to make sense of the world. That site is promoting mentally ill scamming whackos like Alex Jones and David Icke that just get rich selling conspiracy videos. So that part wasn’t too smart – at least take the time to find the many more legitimate credible sources that exist about the thimer.

Your silly source aside, There is certainly legitimate concern about thirmerosal – which is about 50% mercury. Conclusive evidence does not yet exist (often stalled by organizations/industries that have liability), but it’s pretty clear that there is at least some link between thirmerosal and several mental neurological disorders (Autism may be one). As for Autism, everything I read pointed more toward the likelihood of a correlational relationship to Autism rather than a causal relationship (which is still a reason to avoid it).

Thirmerosal used to be used much more than it is now. It is now removed from most all vaccines except flu shots. For this particular HIN1 vaccine the restriction on the use of thirmerosal has been lifted for 6 months to speed up production. Some thirmerosal-free HIN1 vaccines exist but it’s probably not very many – so this is why I haven’t planned to get this vaccine either.

This goes for ALL vaccines – especially those given to children since the amount of mercury in a thirmerosal vaccine is much safer for an adult – but is many times the maximum recommended toxicity level for children. Infants don’t have the same ability to eliminate mercury from their systems as adults do.

Therefore, for ALL vaccines (again, especially for children), always insist on getting thirmerosal-free versions. ALWAYS check the label of the vaccine yourself to make sure it does not contain thirmerosal. Never take the Nurse’s / Doctor’s word for it either since there have been many documented reports of them either lying about it (with good intentions since they may believe there is no reason for the concern), or just assuming that they don’t carry vaccinations with a poison like mercury in it.

Important: This does NOT mean people should not get their vaccinations. It does mean that you should be sure you’re not getting anything with thirmerosal in it though. Mercury is highly toxic/poisonous and it’s certainly not unreasonable to refuse to have that injected in yourself and especially your child.

You don’t have to wait until conclusive evidence is available to know that you shouldn’t inject mercury directly into your blood stream (much more potent than just eating fish with mercury in it every meal!) when there are ALWAYS thirmerosal-free versions available on the market.

Do not let any doctor or nurse convince you that thirmerosal is safe (ESPECIALLY if they are very certain of this) – there are reasons they believe that which has more to do with the source of their training than an honest look at all the evidence on the subject. The ONLY fair-minded conclusion on this topic so far is “no one knows for sure”. So when no one knows for sure, I go with the common sense of not injecting a neurotoxin like mercury in my child and knowing that there are a lot of well-financed industries that could COLLAPSE if there were sufficiently funded studies that could conclude one way or another.

Get your vaccinations!! But always PERSONALLY check the label of vaccinations yourself to ensure they do not contain thirmerosal.

A very good and well documented book on this subject (which ultimately only concludes that more research is needed) is “Evidence of Harm”
http://www.evidenceofharm.com/introduction.htm

FDA:
http://www.fda.gov/BiologicsBloodVaccines/SafetyAvailability/VaccineSafety/UCM096228
Excerpt: “Several cases of acute mercury poisoning from thimerosal-containing products were found in the medical literature with total doses of thimerosal ranging from approximately 3 mg/kg to several hundred mg/kg. “

October 6, 2009 ( UPDATED October 7, 2009 ) — On the second day of nationwide vaccination for the influenza A (H1N1) virus, the director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reiterated that the vaccine is safe in an effort to assuage public misgivings.

“The vaccine is the best tool to protect against the flu,” CDC Director Thomas Frieden, MD, said today during a press briefing. “My children will get it.”

As of Monday, some 2.2 million doses of FluMist, the intranasal formulation of the H1N1 vaccine, had been ordered by all 50 states, the cities of Chicago, New York, Philadelphia, and Washington, DC; and 3 overseas public-health jurisdictions. This figure represents 92% of available stock. Next week, the first doses of the injectable H1N1 vaccine will become available for administration, said Dr. Frieden. The CDC will begin taking orders for this vaccine formulation tomorrow.

Despite many physicians reporting that patients have tied up their phones asking to be vaccinated immediately, one poll suggests that a large swathe of the public is reluctant to get vaccinated, in large measure because of safety concerns. A survey conducted in mid-September by the Harvard School of Public Health found that 53% of adults intended to get the H1N1 vaccine for themselves, but only 40% of adults were “absolutely certain” they would. Of the adults who did not intend to get the vaccine, or who were otherwise uncertain, 30% cited possible adverse effects as the reason, while 20% worried about contracting influenza from the vaccine.

Likewise, only 51% of parents were “absolutely certain” that they will have their children vaccinated, and of the remaining parents, 38% cited adverse effects, and 33% were concerned their child might contract another major illness from the vaccine.

Dr. Frieden repeated earlier CDC assertions that the new vaccine is safe. “It’s made in the same way that seasonal vaccine is made each year by the same manufacturers using the same methods in the same facilities.” And the safety track record of the seasonal flu vaccine, he said, is excellent.

He also addressed a misconception that H1N1 influenza is a benign illness that does not necessarily require vaccination. “The flu isn’t always mild,” said Dr. Frieden. “It can kill you.”

Other individuals, said Dr. Frieden, have contended that it’s too late during the H1N1 pandemic to administer the vaccine. “It’s too soon to say it’s too late,” countered Dr. Frieden, noting that the flu season traditionally extends into May. “We don’t know what the rest of the season will bring. And even in places where the flu has been widespread, affecting 5% to 10% of the population, 90% to 95% are still susceptible.”

Dr. Frieden acknowledged that public-health messages about the H1N1 virus are hard for Americans to balance, especially when it comes to knowing when to go to the hospital emergency department. Infected patients who become seriously ill or have underlying medical problems need to seek care promptly, he said. Otherwise, patients with a mild infection can see a physician or care for themselves at home.

ATLANTA (AP) — Health officials said Friday that 76 U.S. children have died of swine flu, including 19 new reports in the past week — more evidence the new virus is unusually dangerous for the young.

The regular flu kills between 46 and 88 children a year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That suggests deaths from the new H1N1 virus could dramatically outpace children’s deaths from seasonal flu, if swine flu continues to spread as it has.

H1N1 Critcal Illness Mostly Affects Young Patients And Is Often Fatal

October 12, 2009 — H1N1 critical illness mostly affects young patients and is often fatal, according to the results of a Canadian and Mexican study and an editorial published online October 12 in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).

“Between March and July 2009, the largest number of confirmed cases of 2009 influenza A(H1N1) infection occurred in North America,” write Anand Kumar, MD, from the Health Sciences Centre and St. Boniface Hospital in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, and colleagues with the Canadian Critical Care Trials Group H1N1 Collaborative.

The goal of this prospective observational study was to evaluate clinical characteristics, treatment, and outcomes of critically ill patients who had 2009 influenza A (H1N1) infection in Canada. Between April 16 and August 12, 2009, 168 critically ill patients with 2009 influenza A (H1N1) infection in 38 adult and pediatric intensive care units (ICUs) in Canada were followed up for 28-day and 90-day mortality. Secondary study endpoints included frequency and duration of mechanical ventilation and duration of ICU stay.

Of 215 patients with critical illness, 162 had confirmed, 6 had probable, and 47 had suspected community-acquired 2009 influenza A (H1N1) infection. Mean age was 32.3 ± 21.4 years in the 168 patients with confirmed or probable 2009 influenza A (H1N1); 113 patients (67.3%) were women and girls, 50 patients (29.8%) were children, and 43 patients (25.6%) were aboriginal Canadians.

Among critically ill patients, overall 28-day mortality was 14.3% (95% confidence interval [CI], 9.5% – 20.7%), and shock and nonpulmonary acute organ dysfunction were common (sequential organ failure assessment mean score 6.8 ± 3.6 on day 1). At 90 days, overall mortality was 17.3% (95% CI, 12.0% – 24.0%; n = 29).

At ICU admission, all patients were severely hypoxemic (mean ratio of partial pressure of oxygen in arterial blood [PaO2] to fraction of inspired oxygen [FIO2] of 147 ± 128 mm Hg). Median time from symptom onset to hospital admission was 4 days (interquartile range [IQR], 2 – 7 days) and from hospitalization to ICU admission was 1 day (IQR, 0 – 2 days).

Most critically ill patients received neuraminidase inhibitors (n = 152 [90.5%]) and mechanical ventilation (n = 136 [81.0%]). Median duration of ventilation was 12 days (IQR, 6 – 20 days) and of ICU stay was 12 days (IQR, 5 – 20 days). Some patients also required lung rescue therapies, including neuromuscular blockade in 28% of patients, inhaled nitric oxide in 13.7%, high-frequency oscillatory ventilation in 11.9%, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation in 4.2%, and prone positioning ventilation in 3.0%.

“Critical illness due to 2009 influenza A(H1N1) in Canada occurred rapidly after hospital admission, often in young adults, and was associated with severe hypoxemia, multisystem organ failure, a requirement for prolonged mechanical ventilation, and the frequent use of rescue therapies,” the study authors write. “Our data suggest that severe disease and mortality in the current outbreak is concentrated in relatively healthy adolescents and adults between the ages of 10 and 60 years, a pattern reminiscent of the W-shaped curve previously seen only during the 1918 H1N1 Spanish pandemic.”

Limitations of this study include focus on severe disease requiring ICU admission, possible late deaths occurring after the observation period, and possible overrepresentation or underrepresentation of certain comorbidities and clinical features.

“We have demonstrated that 2009 influenza A(H1N1) infection–related critical illness predominantly affects young patients with few major comorbidities and is associated with severe hypoxemic respiratory failure, often requiring prolonged mechanical ventilation and rescue therapies,” the study authors conclude. “With such therapy, we found that most patients can be supported through their critical illness.”

My son was feeling sick on Wednesday, so I took him to his doc Wednesday morning. He was diagnosed with “influenza A”. Doc says that he could also test for swine flu, but that 97% of the people that have been diagnosed as positive for “influenza A” have come up positive for Swine Flu. They didn’t give the swine flu test because Doc says it’s expensive, but he treated it as he would have treated swine flu, with a 5 day course of Tamiflu and the basic ‘take it easy and take vitamins’ program.

My son feels fine now (it’s Friday), his fever has been gone for the necessary 24 hours (without fever reducing drugs). He was excused from school and work through today, but it will be life-as-usual tomorrow.

Did he really have swine flu? We’ll probably never know, and I kind of doubt it. Either he was one of the lucky 3% that only had “influenza A” or his immune system won over the other virus, and that was that.

Either way, I’m wondering if the numbers of “confirmed swine flu victims” are skewed by the fact that doctors aren’t giving this further testing due to the expense? I’m not saying that they need to give unnecessary testing by any means. As long as people are getting better, I don’t think that is necessary. The further testing could be given if symptoms are continuing. i just wonder if the stats may be a bit inflated because of this, or if statisticians are not using the numbers of people who are only diagnosed for influenza A without further testing. Either way it could really skew the count to one side or the other.

One more reason I don’t really trust statistics anyway.

the sky is falling wendy, better watch out.

It’s my understanding that if a person with swine flu dies from something else that the swine flu aggravated (such as a heart or a respiratory problem), the cause of death isn’t listed as swine flu. So there may indeed be more deaths occurring related to this flu than some of you realize. While I wouldn’t say the sky is falling, I wouldn’t underestimate the seriousness of it, either. (But feel free to correct me if I’ve misunderstood that.)

that teenager did not die from the swine flu WendyJo. Stop posting what you believe to be fact without having all the information.
Thank you.

Um she mentioned 3 cases and one of them turned out to be false. The way you say “It is being reported..” is misleading since those sources were reporting that they got it wrong too. Therefore, you are referring to the same sources that WendyJo and the rest of us are hearing from. The only difference is that you are slower and use your slowness to attack someone who was actually ahead of the curve on this particular issue. WendyJo might write some crazy posts and comments from time to time and maybe she’s erring too much on the side of safety who knows (it’s impossible to get it exactly right), but she was much more accurate on this issue than anyone else. I’m not sure why some people get so hostile just because they were wrong about something.

People should take a break from the local news and it’s daily reports on this topic. And posts like the ones Wendy has been putting up only spread more fear and hysteria in our community and should be taken with a grain of salt. The fact is “flu like symptoms” can and do arise from a thousand and one different ailments and just because someone has flu like symptoms doesn’t mean he or she has the swine flu.

It said in the paper this morning that he didn’t… which one is right?

according to Ch. 8’s site this morning “Hillcrest High Student Did Not Die from H1N1″ and, “Septic shock is a serious condition that is the result of an infection. Very rarely do viruses cause this condition.”
Maybe you should re-read that part Wendyjo, “very rarely do viruses cause septic shock”.
Everyones a doctor on the internet!

Septic shock is caused by bacterial infections. The young man had H1N1 flu, confirmed by the test results now back from the CDC.

The bacterial infection, Septic shock, can be a secondary infection caused by the primary infection of a viral infection like H1N1 flu: In the example we are discussing, just like the young man who just died of septic shock.

Yes, the child did have H1N1 flu. His death certificate states the cause of death as septic shock. The septic shock would not have occured had not the child been already ill.

Dear reader, why is Bannock County doing what? Compared to Bingham and Bonneville Counties doing… what?

Since Otter is recovering from left shoulder rotator cuff surgical repair today and will then be home for a few days, it might take a while to get to the emergency resolution request.

http://healthandwelfare.idaho.gov/Portals/0/Health/PanFlu/map%20for%20panflu%20site%2020091019.jpg

By County case counts of swine flu, Bannock has 10 cases, Bingham has 6 cases and Bonneville has 18 cases. That doesn’t appear to be an emergency requiring big money in Bannock or any S.E. County. Ada County has 140 cases and there are 341 cases through out Idaho.

We certainly need to be vigilant, follow all necessary and available precautions including being vaccinated when able. I don’t see how the Bannock County Commissioners think throwing more money at the flu will help contain it or where they think the State of Idaho will come up with the money.

It’s not free idiot…we the people paid for it.

Not testing them, I mean, but treating them.

Words always get in the way of my mouth and fingers.