Pediatric H1N1 deaths up in U.S. - Free To Air TV Forum, FTA Keys and Downloads, Dish Network, Nagravision 3

patrick1966 · #1 (**permalink**) 16th October 2009, 06:16 AM

ATLANTA (UPI) -- Doctors reported 19 H1N1 flu virus deaths among US. children and teenagers in the past week, the largest pediatric toll in a single week, officials said Friday.

The virus strain, commonly known as swine flu, has killed at least 76 victims under the age of 18 since last spring when the pandemic began, The Washington Post reported.

"These pediatric deaths seem to be increasing substantially," said Anne

Schuchat, head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases.

Schuchat said the number of deaths leveled off in the summer after rising sharply in April, May and June, but have begun increasing again. She described 20 percent to 30 percent of the victims as healthy with no underlying condition like muscular dystrophy or asthma to make them more vulnerable.

Seven of the reported deaths were in Texas, two in Maryland and one each in Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Florida, North Carolina, Oklahoma and Wisconsin.

A massive campaign to vaccinate against the H1N1 strain is just getting under way.

Copyright 2009 by United Press International

patrick1966 · #2 (**permalink**) 19th October 2009, 08:57 AM

This is an related updated post on this thread:
SWIFTWATER, Pa. (UPI) -- U.S. clinical trials of the new H1N1 swine flu vaccine indicates that two doses may be needed to protect children under 10, its maker said Wednesday.

Sanofi Pasteur of Swiftwater, Pa., said in a release that interim analysis of data from clinical trials of the vaccine in children showed that while one dose may protect many children, two doses of vaccine will be required for optimal protection of children under the age of 10 years.

The company, which produces approximately 40 percent of the influenza vaccines distributed worldwide, said clinical trials are ongoing to evaluate safety in children following two doses of vaccine.

"According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention young children are among those of highest priority for immunization with the Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccine, given the relatively high disease incidence and potential for transmission in this population," Sanofi Pasteur president Wayne Pisano said.

Copyright 2009 by United Press International

patrick1966 · #3 (**permalink**) 23rd October 2009, 11:16 AM

This is an updated post on the H1N1 status:
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (UPI) -- An effective way to boost H1N1 flu control options is through surveillance of travelers, a U.S. researcher says.

Dr. David Freedman of the University of Alabama at Birmingham and co-director of GeoSentinel -- a global online network of 48 travel and tropical medicine clinics on several continents -- says GeoSentinel is showing where travelers and mobile populations are getting the flu.

GeoSentinel tracks which countries and places have intense enough transmission that they are exporting flu and potentially seeding other countries with the virus.

"Being able to track disease outbreaks in real time enables you to know, in real-time, what works and what doesn't work in terms of treatment," Freedman said in a statement.

Tracking and understanding the patterns of H1N1 influenza spread remains crucial as more dots show up on the GeoSentinel map, Freedman says.

"Although the H1N1 virus is fairly mild compared to a lot of other novel flu viruses, it is very contagious," Freedman says. "With the speed of modern travel, and the fact that our countries draw visitors from a lot of different nationalities, the ingredients for a pandemic were there. Americans were top of the list for exporting this disease."

Copyright 2009 by United Press International

patrick1966 · #4 (**permalink**) 25th October 2009, 07:06 AM

This report provides an update to the international situation as of October 23, 2009. The World Health Organization (WHO) continues to report laboratory-confirmed 2009 H1N1 flu cases and deaths on its Web page. These laboratory-confirmed cases represent a substantial underestimation of total cases in the world, as many countries focus surveillance and laboratory testing only on people with severe illness. The 2009 H1N1 influenza virus continues to be the dominant influenza virus in circulation in the world. Since April 19, 2009, over half of all influenza positive specimens reported to WHO were 2009 H1N1. In temperate regions of the Southern Hemisphere, disease due to 2009 H1N1 has returned to below baseline. In tropical regions of the Americas and Asia, influenza activity due to 2009 H1N1 remains variable. In temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere, influenza-like illness (ILI) activity due to 2009 H1N1 is above baseline in many areas, including parts of Western Europe, most of the United States, and parts of Mexico and Canada.

patrick1966 · #5 (**permalink**) 27th October 2009, 10:20 AM

This is an updated post on the H1N1 virus:
WASHINGTON (UPI) -- Americans are increasingly alarmed about the global swine flu pandemic, but most say they won't get vaccinated against the disease, a national poll indicated.

Fifty-two percent said they were "a great deal" or "somewhat" worried they or someone in their household would become infected, up from 39 percent of those polled in August, the Washington Post-ABC News poll suggested.

Fears are growing fastest among young adults, among the most vulnerable to the flu, with 47 percent of those ages 18 to 29 worried, up from 26 percent in August, the poll said.

But more than six in 10 said they wouldn't get vaccinated.

Barely 52 percent of parents said they'd have their children vaccinated, another high-risk group, even though parents tend to be more worried about the flu than the population at large, the survey indicated.

The H1N1 flu -- different from seasonal flu and declared a global pandemic June 11 -- has infected more than a million people in the United States and caused more than 600 deaths and more than 6,000 hospitalizations.

Two-thirds of those polled said they were confident the vaccine was safe, but only 22 percent said they were "very" confident it was.

Federal health officials warned doctors this week not to rely on flu tests to make decisions about whether to treat sick patients with anti-flu drugs.

"The time it will take to get the lab test back shouldn't be waited for," said Dr. Anne Schuchat, director of immunization and respiratory disease for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"If you have a person who is severely ill or a person with risk factors like pregnancy, asthma, diabetes, children under 2, and you suspect flu, we recommend any antiviral medicines be given promptly," she said.

Copyright 2009 by United Press International

patrick1966 · #6 (**permalink**) 29th October 2009, 06:58 AM

This is another related post:
WASHINGTON (UPI) -- The intravenous flu drug peramivir has received emergency approval for some hospitalized adults and children with H1N1, U.S. federal regulators said.

Peramivir, developed by BioCryst Pharmaceuticals of Birmingham, Ala., is the only flu drug made to be used intravenously.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said in a release it granted emergency approval Friday at the request of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.

The drug is to be use in hospitalized adults and children who can't take or aren't responding to other flu medications, such as Tamiflu or Relenza, which are made to be swallowed or inhaled, the FDA said.

"The FDA has reviewed the available scientific data and has concluded that the criteria for authorizing the emergency use of IV peramivir have been met," the agency said.

In 2007, BioCryst received $102.6 million under a four-year contract to pursue development of the flu drug, which has yet to clear full regulatory approval, the FDA said.

Copyright 2009 by United Press International

patrick1966 · #7 (**permalink**) 30th October 2009, 08:35 AM

This is another updated H1N1 report:
NEW YORK (UPI) -- There are additional challenges for cardiopulmonary transplant recipients and donors if they catch H1N1 flu, U.S. researchers say.

Physicians representing the International Society for Heart & Lung Transplantation Infectious Disease Council issued an advisory for all programs in cardiothoracic transplantation that aggressive diagnosis and early treatment need be paired with active preventative measures to stem the impact of infection in the transplant population.

Since transplant recipients are treated with anti-rejection drugs, the advisory provides clear directions for specific dosing of anti-viral drugs and management of the background immunosuppression. Specific guidelines for evaluation and management of post-surgical transplant patients are also given, as well as recommendations for how and when to administer vaccines.

On the donor side, the advisory provides guidelines for how to evaluate and treat donors so that organs can be safely used and not wasted. Finally, it provides specific guidelines for the healthcare teams managing such patients.

"Nowhere is the threat of H1N1 (flu) more real than in cardiopulmonary transplantation," Mandeep R. Mehra, editor-in-chief of the Journal of Heart and Lung Transplantation, says in a statement.

"The ISHLT's Infectious Disease Council has developed what is assuredly the most comprehensive and clinically relevant direction for prevention and management of H1N1 flu in donors, recipients, care providers and family members."

The guidelines are published online in the Journal of Heart and Lung Transplantation.

Copyright 2009 by United Press International

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