More swine flu answers

Whether or not this virus becomes 'the big one', we have to realize that the way we process animals like cannon fodder in factory farms is the ideal breeding ground for mutations, and sooner or later, it will result in the 'big one.' And it will be all our own fault.

Factory farms must go, and go now. They exist purely for the financial gain of a few, destroy water, land and air resources, are totally un-sustainable, and are nightmares of extreme cruelty and disrespect for life. It's ironic that our own greed, stupidity and cruelty will most likely end up killing most of us unless we wake up and act now. Don't say you haven't been forewarned!

The US needs to lock down it's southern borders and stop the flow from Mexico

Could the flu have been genetically altered????

Could this have been the severe influenza that already hit our area this winter? Many of us (including me) contracted a disease that sounds very much like this one. I had it in January. Others had it starting in November, and the last cases were last month. Many students had it (I work at a university). Symptoms were: high fever (102-103) for 2-5 days, severe cough, lung congestion, fatigue, loss of appetite, weight-loss. It reminds me of a severe flu that I had in second grade (season of 1960-61) that caused pneumonia and a collapsed lung. In my reading on the web, it appears that this was a swine flu, also. By the way, we study the effects of freezing on influenza A in my research lab. This virus is very well preserved by cold temperatures and freezing. Also, it appears that locking any borders at this point will have little effect on the spread of this disease.

No more farm factories??? Close the borders??? You people are insane and over-reacting. There has been less than 200 deaths from this on the planet! The number of people who died from smoking last week was over 100,000. Cancer?? Car accidents? The media should be held responsible for inciting panic and fear. You think swine flu from Mexico is hazardous to your health? Try Juarez flu from Mexico. Over 2000 died last month in that city alone fromgun violence. Get a grip.

Now is the time to lock the borders.

an_hope: While I share your perspective on farm factories and closing the borders, do you actually believe it will stay at less than 200 deaths? I turn it back to you to get a grip... you're naive if you think it will end soon. When this thing gets cranking (which it likely will, considering disregard many folks have for proper sanitary practices), it will multiply exponentially. Cancer and gun fights don't have that characteristic. Also, containment is no longer being considered as an effective strategy by the CDC.

In the next few months you will see vaccines introduced to the general populace,as wave after wave of swine flu emerges. What ever you do, do not take any! It appears that in the 1918 pandemic the needed two hits to cause deep respiratory illness and death. The vaccine acts as a substitute for the first hit. Beware!

I agree with an_hope. The hype over this flu bug is ridiculous. The only reason it showed up was because it was a slow news day and there was nothing entertaining in the world of politics. The news media should be ashamed for causing a panic over nothing.

This Is why we should close the border with that filthy, low life country! This and many other reasons. Job steal in the US, and Jobs s sent there to escape US rules. I believe we should only do business with countries with equal health and environmental as well as pay levels. this is the only fair way to conduct our countries business.

I have been a sufferer of Swine Flu for over 3 days now and I want express how tired I am of public discrimination. I want to speak out for all the other bearers of SF. We deserve equal rights!

Physicians not only need to stress individuals washing their hands, but they need to tell the public to wash their hands with semi hot water, use soap and scrub their hands, fingernails thoroughly.

Too many times I've seen individuals use the bathroom, either wash their hands with just water or they don't wash them at all. This is not only unsanitary and nasty, but it spreads germs.

If an idividual uses the bathroom and doesn't use the semi hot water and soap, an alarm should sound, the door should lock and their name should appear in neon lights.

How one can use the bathroom, wipe their behind and not use water and soap is beyond me.

But than again, this comes from home training.

Thank you Dr. Gupta, for reassuring the public. PLease could you also stress how important it is not to put one's fingers into one's mouth. I am travelling this week in Eastern USA and you would not believe how many travellers are putting their fingers into their mouths, biting their nails, touching their teeth, etc. just by habit. Children are nearly as bad as the adults and are not being told by their parents not to do this, especially at this time. Thank you.

As long as animals are fed strong antibiotics, the various strains of virus and bacteria will continue to adapt and become more resistant.
For some unknown reason Americans, especially, have become "anti-bacterial" crusaders, and it's only hurting our children and our world. If you're never exposed to anything dirty, you never develop immunities.

My mom had swine flu in 1918, and she survived it along with her entire family of 8 kids. And yes – they raised pigs, among other things on their NC farm. I don't know if it had a lasting effect on her health, because in her elder years she had chronic respiratory problems, but I think the media "runs with" every story with low impact and scares the pudding out of people just so they can have a "shocking story". Talk about making a mountain out of a molehill – that's the media's claim to fame.

I think it's way overblown and creates unnecessary anxiety. Only those who are "at risk" need to be warned; we don't need to create panic where there isn't any.

I didn't see anything here about just how deadly this virus is.

Interestingly enough the disease appears far more virulent in Mexico than other locations. It also impacts the "worker bee" population more than the traditionally vulnerable group of very young and very old. Could it be Mexico City's horrible air quality makes residents more vulnerable to respiratory disease, especially those individuals from the uncontrolled industrial sites operating w/o any environmental controls? A person with lungs covered in sludge might prove unable to expell the virus, creating a window of opportunity for pneumonia etc., – a common cause of death from flu.

I wonder if people can be carriers of the virus and appear fine without being sick themselves. This I would think would make the situation even worse.

I have heard a few stories in my area about people who went to Mexico for Spring Break and couldn't talk about their trip enough. All of a sudden now they don't even want to admit they were down there.

However, I agree we can't panic about this but practice everyday precautions. As far as my house goes I will make sure we have some extra supplies on hand for the just in case.

With hand sanitizer at every step, and every sniffler demanding a z-pac, no wonder the germs continue to evolve.

The upside is that a pandemic will just make it easier for an alien invasion.

From the various reports that I have heard, I remain aware but not worried. We, as well as everybody else in the world should take greater care of our health.

Do we know if this novel reassortant H1N1 influenza virus has been identified in domestic or feral pigs in Mexico or the southern US? Although the the current epidemic does not seem to have a zoonotic component; I wonder if pigs in the US and elsewhere might become infected and act as a reservoir for this virus until the next flu season. Interestingly, in the US Midwest where the majority of pigs are, many farms are employing large numbers of migrant workers from Mexico. If these people are traveling between Mexico and the farms they work on they could transmit this virus to large scale pig operations in the US. Do we know if commercial influenza vaccines labeled for use in pigs are cross protective for this virus? Although this outbreak will likely wane in the next few weeks we still need to think about what will happen in the fall.

I had what was called a swine flu vaccine back in the late '70s. It was being given out on a mass scale, as I recall. It made me quite ill, but I suppose the actual flu would have been worse. I'm wondering if that vaccine will provide me with any resistance to this outbreak.

I have not heard if anyone recovered in Mexico, after being sick?? All we hear is that people keep dying down there, but no one ever said anything about someone recovering.

does our goverment think the US population is stupid?? look how many mexicans walk across our boaders everyday legally to work here in the US..and then walk back over..just to repeat it the next day...not counting how many is slipping across our boaders illegal. there is no way to contain the swine flu if there is a pandemic

how is it that two frequently asked questions aren't:
1) How contagious is it?
2) How fatal is it?

I realize that we may not know these answers, but come on – at least do your best? Personally, if I found out that it was SUPER contagious and 95% fatal, where it came from and whether or not Fido was going to live or die wouldn't be questions that occur to me.

Basics, please.

Is this thing for real or is it another media hype?..... Thanks for the SARRS scare and Bird Flu scare CNN

I think we can assume it is highly contagious and has a low case mortality because it is influenza. In order to quantify those values epidemiological data must be available; this takes time.

I think it is very important if 'Fido' can get it or not. If we fail to understand that a disease has a zoonotic component we cannot appropriately assess the risk to the human population. In such a case we could waste great resources trying to reduces human to human transmission when a significant part of the viral transmission happens at the human animal interface.

Last I heard there were approximately 200-300 cases world wide.

Can't those people just stay home and get better?

Melissa off, Lemon Balm has demonstrated anti-viral effects against herpes virus and HIV! It hasn't been tested on flu but I find clinically that it is most helpful.

Melissa is a lemon flavored mint, generally recognized as safe, easy to grow in a pot or in the garden and good to eat or drink as a tea

Maybe the people in Mexico are dying because they have poor health care and less access.

Actually, South Korea reported a suspected case of the swine flu today... Should have more in the region that it is said here... Actually, most influenza strains that circle the globe every year are originating from China... Somehow, this one is different, maybe a result of the civil disorder in Mexico of the last few months, but this thing doesn't smell right...

Perhaps those sqealing loudest over panic inducing media and affected countries would talk a different talk were they stricken with this deadly virus. I hope all countries continue to update the media and the media keep all informed.

MTech Systems in Atlanta (home of the CDC) has been developing traceability and containment software programs for such an occurrence with the poultry and swine industries for 5 years now. It's kind of funny to me that when 'scares' like this one break out, the media is quick to turn it into more pandemonium than pandemic.
At the last bird flu "outbreak" we had every news organization on the globe wanting to know more about MTech's developments and why industry and government alike hadn't invested more attention to this for the next and eminent outbreak...and sure enough....here we go again.
How many billions are being sent to banking and/or auto industries that are beyond recovery??? How much is going to R&D of systems in containment and medicine for prevention.

WOW, you people over react. Close farm factories because "They exist purely for the financial gain of a few, destroy water, land and air resources, are totally un-sustainable, and are nightmares of extreme cruelty and disrespect for life." A handful of people have died, how many people have not died because of the way we develop food? Not to mention everyone has a financial gain due to food production. It is impossible to say any action you do has a 100% positive or negative reaction.

The reason why the virus is stronger in Mexico than here is because it has been going through cycles and evolving. In Mexico, 7% of the people infected have died. In 1918, 2.5 people who were infected died... This virus will probably spread faster and become more dangerous.

Do some research on swine flu in 1976, under Gerald Ford. Back then there was the same hysteria the is today, and ONE person died. 25 people died from the vaccines(i dont know what Dr Gupta is talking about syaing there's no vaccines)...but dont worry, a pharmaceutical company near you is working diligently to get forced vaccinations for everyone!

Tom Vilsak of the USDA is currently saying that there is no evidence of this novel H1N1 virus being present in US pig populations. Although that is true, what he is saying is that we haven't tested any pigs for this virus therefore it is not present. An epidemiologically well designed surveillance programme in domestic animals needs to exist in order to claim that a disease is absent from a population.

If this flu is such a big deal, why are we allowing 9 Continental flights from Mexico City to Houston today? Also why are we allowing thousands to walk from Mexico into Texas and California? Hard to panic or even care much with this kind of mixed message. Just another "sky is Falling"! Bill MD

so what is going on at county usc medical center??
allot of medical staff are sick–

This is a scam folks. As Bush used 9/11 to push his mid east agenda. Obama is using the swine flu to push his healthcare agenda. Remember SARS? Avian Flu? Color coded terror alerts? Remember the "buy duct tape"? CVS has had a giant increase in flu medicine sales from people being afraid. This is all just one more load of nonsense from a federal government intent on controlling the masses. Don't be lemmings people. Tell Obama NO.

To an_hope and the rest of you self-righteous skeptics,

Although the media may have overblown the situation at this time, the facotry farms will be the breeding grounds for pandemics, and it's only a matter of time....mark my words!

I saw Dr. Gupta's report where he entered a hospital in Mexico City to film. I was shocked that he showed patients and their families on film without disclosing that he had obtained their consent to show their faces on television. He should be ashamed of himself both as a physician and as a journalist. If he did this in my hospital without permission or consent I would have charges brought against him for trespassing and report him to his licensing body to have his privelages revoked. What he did was not only unethical but a violation of patient privacy and confidentiality. He should know better and I hope he refrains from doing this type of thing in the future.

"Why is it more deadly in Mexico than anywhere else it’s surfaced? " Could it be the air quality issues of Mexico City? Asthma, COPD suffers, etc. would be numerous in the bad air of Mexico City. One could assume a predisposition of increasd cytokine generation in folks who suffer under such conditions, so could that do put them at increased risk from H1N1 that produces death from hyper immune responses such as excessive cytokine activity? If folks in their "prime years" are more likely to have a more robust immune response resulting in large amounts of cytokine, and pronouce symptoms more strongly (and liklihood of death), would not, say a 20 to 40 year old otherwise healthy asthma sufferer be at greater risk?

In 1918 the flu pandemic hit this country as soldiers returned from WWI battlefields. It spread like wildfire. My mother, still here and now 94, caught the flu from family members and nearly died but luckily survived. She has never had flu since. Before these people die out, why not use antibodies from those survivors and make a vaccine?

Would you people please smarten up and stop calling it swine flu?

This is a hybrid virus with genetic material from avain, human and swine serotypes. Why don't we call it "people flu" or "bird flu"?

This mis-naming and all the associated histeria is unjustly causing America's farmers large and small to loose millions of dollars on pork and grain.

Be fair. Call it H1N1 or North American flu. But please stop calling it swine flu!!!

Wasn't swine flu a big deal in 1976? In the end, 1 American died from the swine flu, and 25 died plus 500 were paralyzed by the vaccine that was rushed to market. Google the 1976 youtube ads encouraging people to get the vaccine for swine flu, it's pretty funny

Nice tip – but in Los Angeles, as of today, it appears all pharmacies are out of Relenza and Tamilfu (and the virus is immune to Amantadine).
If this is how 'prepared' we are, I am scared when we really need the medications.
Pharmacies will tell you they have no idea when they get stock back.

I just hope we don't have to wear the masks here in Washington state. If swine flu does hit here.

Can someone tell me statistically or biologically what makes swine flu more deadly than the typical strain of the virus? I've heard the "we're not as immune to it" argument, but every time the flu mutates (each year) we're just as vulnerable as we are to swine flu...

So now Mexico is reporting only 7 'confirmed' deaths from Swine Flu and 19 'comfirmed' Swine Flu patients who recovered? Maybe they should have confirmed the 152 reported deaths before reporting them as swine flu? Sounds like alot of intentional panic starting misinformation from all sides.. words like pandemic. Of course now we'll every panicy person/parent will be running to the doctors office so everyone can share their illness in one big room of germ infested magazines and children toys at the first sign of a cough or low grade temp.

I do also agree with the factory farming comments.. filthy dirty places breeding nothing but more disease and inhumane conditions. You wouldn't eat a steak you dropped on the floor, or scrape up fresh road kill for supper would you? We are very irresponsible with our food and water sources.

I really am surprised on how this is completely blown out of proportion. During the regular flu seasons with the typical good ol' American flu, people die daily from the viruses and nothing is ever in the news about those instances. Why do you think the flu vaccine is in existance??? Because the flu can kill the young, the old, the immuno-comprimised and a few unluck healthy people. The young child in Texas is one of those unlucky in the above catagory. Their immune systems just aren't strong enough to fight it. They get more dehydrated quickly and before you know it they're in critical condition. There was a horrible virus that just came through here in February where there was vomiting and diarreha for 7 days and the Children's hospital didn't have a single bed open. Same with nursing homes and visits to the clinics. We should just calm down, wash our hands and go lay on a beach and relax in Mexico.

Dear Sir,
A small suggetion from me.
I think this flu can be controlled atleast 50%
by closing all the schools in US for atleast 2-3 weeks
& the lost classes can be conduct ed during vaccation time
or can be decided by educationalist.As all know schools are
the epicentres of most flu type illness.

Link to CDC Brochure on swine flu in pigs & related vaccines for herds:
http://www.cdc.gov/swineflu/pdf/brochure.pdf

I was in the Dr.s office yesterday. I was in the waiting room and waited about 40 minutes. A girl and her mother came out and sat directly across from me. This was a small area, as the office is a converted trailer. The girl was coughing up her lung, so I told the receptionist I was going outside to wait. I looked at the mother and told her it was nothing personal, I have a 5 month old granddaughter at home and I have an autoimmune problem. The mother told me I needed to go outside, b/c her daughter has the H1N1!!! Not only was the girl not covering her mouth with a tissue, the Dr. didn't worry about giving her a mask OR keeping her away from the waiting room AFTER diagnosing her!!! As well, there was a Mom and NEWBORN that had waited with me in the waiting room!! I asked the Dr. about it, and she just said it wasn't a problem unless I had an autoimmune disorder..DUH..

Questions: What are the chances I have been infected? Is there a good possibility I have brought this home to my daughter (29) and 5 month old Granddaughter? How long should I isolate to be sure they don't come down with this virus in the event I have contracted it?