The swine flu epidemic in mainland France that has killed hundreds has ended, a monitoring group of doctors said Wednesday. The doctors recommended continuing the vaccination programme, however, to avoid a resurgence of the epidemic. [...more]
Pushing Americans to receive swine flu vaccinations, the Obama administration on Monday released a new slate of television and radio ads to counter an illness that already has infected millions. [...more]
ATLANTA - The proportion of deaths from pneumonia and Swine Flu continue to remain above the epidemic threshold in the US with an additional 17 pediatric. [...more]
A frenzy for care in Ukraine has drawn attention from experts bracing for the epidemic to hit Europe, and especially the flimsy health care systems of countries of the former Soviet Union. (source: New York Times) - News widgets and RSS feeds on Feedzilla.com [...more]
A frenzy for care in Ukraine has drawn attention from experts bracing for the epidemic to hit Europe, and especially the flimsy health care systems of countries of the former Soviet Union. (Source: NYT > Health) MedWorm Message: Get the very latest Swine Flu news via the MedWorm Swine Flu RSS news feed - updated hourly from thousands of authoritative health and news sources. [...more]
A top international HIV/Aids expert tells the BBC the epidemic in Russia is now out of control. (source: BBC) - RSS and News widget on Feedzilla.com [...more]
World Health Org. Says Toll From Swine Flu Epidemic Is Underestimated (source: CBS News) - News widgets and RSS feeds on Feedzilla.com [...more]
AFP - Children should be among the first people to be vaccinated against swine flu if health officials hope to temper the severity of the epidemic, a study published Thursday has found. [...more]
Two cabin-mates at a North Carolina summer camp developed drug-resistant pandemic H1N1 influenza this summer despite antiviral prophylaxis, the CDC said. [...more]
Routine operations being cancelled to free up staff as traditional flu season approaches The NHS is preparing to double its intensive care capacity to cope with the predicted surge in swine flu cases in the autumn, the chief medical officer said today. Routine operations will be cancelled so theatre staff and equipment can be redeployed on flu patients, and new ventilators will be bought, Sir Liam Donaldson said. He also launched a consultation on allowing one doctor rather than two to section a mentally ill person and send them to hospital, in the event that the second wave of swine flu drastically reduces numbers of NHS staff able to work. The announcements came as the government's chief scientist, Professor John Beddington, said it was "virtually impossible" that Britain would be spared an autumn outbreak coinciding with the traditional flu season. It could be with us in less than a month, he said. "It's hard to imagine there won't be a second wave, in fact it's virtually impossible, but whether it comes early in October at a high level, or in more moderate waves late in the year is not possible to predict," said Beddington at the British Science Association festival in Guildford. At the Department of Health in London, Ian Dalton, national director of NHS flu resilience, said it had been decided to carry on with contingency plans originally devised to cope with bird flu, even though the government's expert advisory committee now believes that only 1% of patients, instead of 2%, will be hospitalised. "But that's still the basis on which we are planning – which we think is the prudent place to be," said Dalton. Donaldson denied that doubling critical care beds was a political decision. Last week the Tories claimed the NHS might not have enough intensive care beds to cope with a second wave. "I don't think it is political," said Donaldson. "I think we're tantalisingly close to being able to win the battle against this pandemic virus. [...more]
