Influenza A (H1N1) Blog

Archive for the ‘Pandemic’ Category

1. December 15, 2010

   The H1N1 pandemic is over. What does it mean?

   WHO Pandemic Warning Phases.Source [pdf].

   What is a pandemic?

   The World Health Organization (WHO) Emergency Committee declared on August 10 that we left the pandemic phase of the H1N1 virus. “The world is no longer in phase 6 of influenza pandemic alert. We are now moving into the post-pandemic period. The new H1N1 virus has largely run [...]

2. October 14, 2010

   Influenza A H1N1: current state

   A year has passed since the first cases of Influenza A H1N1 in Mexico, we had over 18000 deaths confirmed by lab diagnosis and reported to WHO. Surely an underestimate of the total number of cases.
   The average mortality was of 0.5% of the confirmed cases, close to the seasonal flu. The mortality values varied a [...]

3. June 22, 2010

   Pigs are reservoirs of Influenza

   Why were the older people less affected by the new flu?

   ©be_khe

   The elderly, especially those older than 65 years, that is, born before 1944, constitute the part of the population less affected by H1N1. It was suggested and later confirmed by CDC that it is about the prior immunity to the virus. These people probably have [...]

4. June 6, 2010

   H5N1, the bird flu: the virus

   In the last text, it was discussed the capacity of H5N1 of infecting a number of hosts and causing very harsh symptoms, causing deaths in over 50% of the recorded human cases. Despite this, its transmission from person to person seems to be well limited. Now we will see its characteristics that contribute to this.
   As [...]

5. February 16, 2010

   Pandemic Influenza: the role of pigs

   Birds are important in the natural history of Influenza and flu, but there is another character besides us humans. The pigs.

   Our knowledge of Influenza in pig dates back to at least 1918 when it was observed that they could also catch the flu during a time when the human flu caused an uneven pandemic. In [...]

6. February 9, 2010

   Diversity of the Influenza and the reassortment

   One of the most important characteristics to be considered about the Influenza, in the preparation for pandemics, is the reassortment. A mixture of genes of two or more different viruses is able to generate a new variety. Such as the new Influenza A (H1N1).
   Although the mutations have an important role in the diversity of the [...]

7. November 12, 2009

   H5N1, the bird flu: the hosts

   In 1997, a lineage of H5N1 bird flu was transmitted to a child in Hong Kong who died of respiratory problems. This was the first of a number of recorded cases of transmission of this virus from poultry to humans.
   Since then, the world follows the circulation of this virus with concern. Although we associate it [...]