Swine Flu
Swine Flu? You don’t think of pigs as dangerous creatures. In Charlotte’s Web, Wilber, the friendly pig, was “Some Pig”. His spider friend did everything to save Wilber from becoming bacon. But as of April 27, 2009, the pig has a flu virus that is killing people.
The World Health Organization has not announced swine flu to be pandemic (meaning infecting people across the world) but it is already spreading to a few states in the USA as well as other countries. Mexico has been hit hardest with dozens of folks who have died.
What is even more amazing, and SCARY, is that the swine influenza infected people who have died were not senior citizens nor infants. The folks who died of swine flu were young adults, who normally suffer but make it through the flu.
When does a bird virus become a human virus? When pigs fly…well, sort of. It appears that pigs can be infected with both human influenza and Avian influenza viruses, which can lead to a new, mutated influenza virus. In Asia, a lot of people live near pigs and poultry like that song from Oklahoma, “Chicks and ducks and geese better scurry”…especially when a pig comes by.
Avian influenza is a public health crisis because we are pecking precariously close to the next pandemic (a furious widespread infection, e.g. The Plague). If Whoopi Goldberg said it to us, as she did in Ghost, she would look us straight in the eyes and say, “Girl, you’s all in trouble!”
Avian influenza is nothing new-unfortunately. In the 20th Century, three influenza pandemics were due to viruses with an avian component (in 1918, 1957, and 1968). The pandemic of 1918 killed more people in one year than the Bubonic Plague. When Avian influenza H5N1 was first identified in Hong Kong in 1997, 18 people were infected, half of whom ended up in the intensive care unit, and six of them died.
In 2004-2005, over 88 humans were infected with Avian influenza H5N1 virus, and 51 of them died. Avian influenza H5N1 tends to infect children and young adults, and young people tend to be healthy and strong, so this death toll shows how mean-spirited this virus is.
I know some people are considered to be pigs, but there is evidence recently of human-to-human transmission of the Avian influenza H5N1: Thailand, the Netherlands, British Columbia, Egypt. …Turkey. (We should have seen that coming!) The virus becomes airborne when someone coughs or sneezes, and nearby people inhale it. Bingo…they’re infected!
One hundred percent of people with Avian influenza will have a high fever. Most people will have upper respiratory tract symptoms (sore throat, stuffy runny nose, ear congestion). Over half of people with Avian influenza develop pneumonia-one of the main reasons this flu is so deadly. Also, half of the people get nausea, abdominal discomfort, and liver enzymes elevations. Sixteen percent have been reported to have bone marrow suppression, which means the immune system stops working, anemia occurs, and bleeding develops. Shelley Duvall had a better time in The Shining.
There’s no easy way to make a true diagnosis of Avian influenza…it’s kind of like trying to figure out if someone’s Louis Vuitton bag is a knock-off. Unless we know there’s an outbreak of Avian influenza, most people will be diagnosed with traditional flu, a cold, or even SARS. The best test is a nasal swab that needs to be put in a special medium to detect swine flu.
Tamiflu and Relenza are the only medicine that appears to treat this Swine influenza, but the virus can mutate faster than Madonna’s style.
Prevention? Stay away from anyone who has the swine flu! It is spread in the air, so as you can see on the news, a lot of people are wearing masks…in particular Mexico. (And I’m sure it is HOT down there so how uncomfortable!) Washing hands to prevent the spread is a good thing. Folks should not sneeze or cough out into the open. Ms. Manners of disease strongly disapproves of this.
(c) Dr John Hong, Inc. 4/27/09
