Egypt: Health denies wounding a German tourist in Hurghada swine flu

Tuesday, May 26, 2009 - 18:16

نفى الدكتور عبد الرحمن شاهين المتحدث الرسمى لوزارة الصحة، ما تردد عن إصابة سائح ألمانى بالغردقة بأنفلونزا الخنازير حيث أثبتت نتائج التحليل خلوه من المرض.

Denied, Dr. Abdel-Rahman Shahin said the official of the Ministry of Health, reports that a German tourist in Hurghada, where swine flu has shown the results of the analysis is free of the disease.

يأتى هذا فى الوقت الذى ارتفع فيه عدد الحالات التى تم احتجازها للاشتباه فى إصابتها بمرض أنفلونزا الخنازير فى مصر إلى 99 حالة، كان آخرها 6 حالات بمستشفى حميات العباسية، منهم ثلاثة كانوا قادمين من نيويورك وهم: مريم محمد الحسانين (3 سنوات ونصف) وشقيقها عبد الرحمن (5 سنوات)، وسها محمد رمضان (31 سنة)، إضافة إلى ثلاثة قادمين من الكويت وهم زياد عمرو حلمى (3 سنوات) ويوسف عمرو حلمى (8 سنوات)، وشيرين عصام خلف(28 سنة).

This comes at a time when the increased number of cases that have been detained on suspicion of being infected with swine flu in Egypt to 99 cases, 6 cases of the last of which was admitted Abbasiya hospital, three of whom were from New York who are: Mariam Mohammed Al_husanin (3 and a half years) and her brother Abdul Rahman (5 years), and Suha Ramadan Mohammed (31 years), in addition to three who are coming from Kuwait, Ziad Amr Helmy (3 years) and Yousef Amr Helmy (8 years), Shirin Essam Khalaf (28 years).

أما مستشفى الأقصر الدولى فحجز به كل من كارلوس تيمنون نو (27 سنة) قادما من أسبانيا، والطفلة أوليفيا جين اليس جارث (11 سنة)، قادمة من إنجلترا إضافة إلى حجز حالة واحدة فى مستشفى شرم الشيخ الدولى لسيدة من إنجلترا تدعى، جاكلين انجاميلى (50 سنة)، وحالة بحميات بنها لعامل من محافظة القليوبية يدعى محمد مصطفى أحمد يبلغ من العمر (27 سنة)، وبذلك يصل عدد الحالات المشتبهة فيها اليوم، الثلاثاء، 10 حالات..

The Luxor International Hospital Vhdz by both Carlos Timnon Nu (27 years) from Spain, the girl Olivia Jane Ellis, Garth (11 years), arriving from England in addition to the custody of one case at a hospital in Sharm el-Sheikh International called the woman from England, Jacqueline Aenjamily ( 50 years), and the status of milk Bhmyat factor Qaliubiya province named Mohammed Mustafa Ahmed-old (27 years), bringing the number of suspected cases today, Tuesday, 10 cases .. مشيرا إلى أنه تم أخذ عينات لتحليلها للتأكد من خلوها من المرض.

He pointed out that the samples were taken for analysis to ensure that they are free of the disease.

وأكد المتحدث الرسمى أنه لا توجد أى حالات إصابة مؤكدة بالفيروس فى مصر حتى الآن، مشيرا إلى أن الخط الساخن تلقى أمس، الاثنين، 1133 اتصالا ما بين استفسارات وبلاغات، وبذلك يصل إجمالى الاتصالات منذ أول مايو وحتى أمس إلى 50409 اتصالا، فيما تم مناظرة 15940 راكبا على 131 طائرة و11 سفينة أمس من القادمين من الدول الموبوءة بجميع منافذ الحجر الصحى على مستوى الجمهورية، وبذلك يصل عدد من تم مناظرتهم من أول مايو الجارى حتى أمس إلى 373970 شخصا، وتم عمل كروت مراقبة صحية لهم لمتابعتهم فى أماكن إقامتهم فى مصر، وذلك بالتنسيق مع وزارة الداخلية والسياحة، وعلى المستوى العالمى وصل عدد الدول التى انتشر بها المرض إلى 46 دولة تأكد فيها 12951 حالة، توفى منهم 80 حالة فى المكسيك و10 حالات فى الولايات المتحدة الأمريكية وحالة وفاة واحدة فى كل من كندا وكوستاريكا.

The spokesman stressed that there are no confirmed cases of the virus in Egypt so far, pointing out that the hotline received yesterday, Monday, 1133 contact between the queries and reports, bringing the total since the first communication of May and until yesterday to contact 50,409, while 15,940 had been corresponding passengers on 131 aircraft and 11 vessels yesterday from countries affected by the quarantine of all outlets at the level of the Republic, bringing the number of Mnazerthm of the first of May until yesterday to 373,970 people, was the work of health cards to monitor for them to follow up in their places of residence in Egypt, and in coordination with the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Tourism, at the global level, the number of countries that the disease has spread to 46 countries confirmed the case of 12951, of whom 80 died in the case of Mexico and 10 cases in the United States and the state of one death in Canada and Costa Rica

Egypt: Swine flu vaccine to the market in October

Tuesday, May 26, 2009 - 15:44

أعلن الدكتور نصر السيد، مساعد وزير الصحة للرعاية الأساسية والطب الوقائى وتنظيم الأسرة، أن جميع عينات الاشتباه التى تم تسجيلها خلال الفترة الماضية لكل من أنفلونزا الخنازير والطيور، جاءت سلبية، حيث وصل عددها إلى 32 حالة، لافتا إلى أن العقار الجديد المعالج لأنفلونزا الخنازير لن يكون متاحا إلا مع بداية أكتوبر القادم، مشيرا إلى أن أصعب فترة ستكون فترة تجريبية على المتطوعين لمعرفة تأثير اللقاح، وتقييمه، ثم يدخل فى مرحلة التصنيع الطبية، منوهاً إلى أن منظمة الصحة العالمية أبدت حسن نيتها بإعطاء حق إنتاجه إلى إحدى شركات الدواء الهندية الجديدة، لتبعد تحيزها الدائم لشركة "روش" السويسرية للأدوية.

Dr. Nasr El Sayed, Assistant Minister for Health-care and preventive medicine, family planning, all the samples of the suspect, which was recorded during the last period of each of avian and swine influenza were negative, with the number 32 to the case, pointing out that real estate new processor will not be for the swine flu be available only at the beginning of next October, noting that the most difficult period will be a trial on volunteers to determine the impact of the vaccine, and evaluation, and then enter into the medical manufacturing, noting that the World Health Organization has made good faith to give the right of production to a new Indian drug companies, the impartiality of some of the company "Roche" Swiss drugmaker.

جاء ذك خلال الندوة التى عقدتها غرفة مقدمى خدمات الرعاية الصحية باتحاد الصناعات اليوم، الثلاثاء، تحت عنوان "الأنفلونزا الوبائية ومكافحة المرض"، تحت رعاية الدكتور حاتم الجبلى وزير الصحة وجلال الزوربة رئيس اتحاد الصناعات المصرية، والتى استعرض خلالها السيد، خطة وزارة الصحة فى محاصرة المرض بالاستمرار فى حملات التوعية والمطبوعات وتوزيعها فى كافة الأماكن العامة، كما حدث فى المواصلات مؤخرا، لافتا إلى أن مخزون الوزارة من التاميفلو وصل إلى 2.5 مليون جرعة، وجارى مضاعفتها فى الفترة القادمة، بالإضافة إلى توصيل مخزون الأقنعة إلى 100 مليون قناع واقى.

Was recalled during the symposium held by Chamber of health care providers today, the Federation of Industries, on Tuesday, under the title "Influenza epidemic and disease control", under the auspices of Dr. Hatem el-Gabali, Health Minister, and Jalal Zorbp Chairman of the Federation of Egyptian Industries, which was reviewed during the master plan of the Ministry of Health in the trapped disease continue to awareness campaigns, publications and distribution in all public places, as happened recently in the communications, pointing out that stocks of Tamiflu, the ministry came to 2.5 million doses, and Gary doubling in the coming period, in addition to the delivery of stock to 100 million masks and the mask was.

أما الدكتور عادل خطاب مستشار وزير الصحة للأمراض الصدرية، فأكد أن الخطر الفعلى فى مصر حاليا يكمن فى أنفلونزا الطيور الموجودة بالفعل، لا فى أنفلونزا الخنازير التى نحاول منع دخولها، لافتا إلى أنه تم تسجيل 74 حالة إيجابية من أنفلونزا الطيور، توفى منهم 36% حتى الآن فى مصر، لتصل إلى المرتبة الثالثة عالميا بعد إندونسيا وفيتنام، وأولى الدول فى خفض نسبة الوفيات، مطالبا بضرورة الوقاية من كافة أنواع الأنفلونزا التى تصل إلى 500 ألف حالة سنويا على مستوى العالم.

The letter of Dr. Adel Adviser to the Minister of Health for chest diseases, he stressed that the real danger lies in Egypt of bird flu that already exist, not in the swine flu that we are trying to prevent the entry, he said, adding that it was recorded 74 positive of avian influenza, 36% of them died even now in Egypt, to place third in the world after Indonesia and Vietnam, the first countries in the reduction of mortality rate, calling for the prevention of all types of influenza A up to 500 cases annually in the world.

Egypt: Recruits of the symposium to raise awareness of avian and swine influenza airport

Tuesday, May 26, 2009 - 21:28

Police Department has established Cairo Airport Cairo International Airport, on Monday, a symposium to educate recruits to raise awareness of disease, swine flu, birds, which was attended by airport security chief and head of the Health Education Department in the cruise, medical as well as the number of doctors from the Departments of Veterinary and quarantine at Cairo International Airport.

وتناولت الندوة طرق انتقال العدوى بمرض أنفلونزا الخنازير والطيور، وكذلك الأعراض التى تظهر على المصاب بالفيروس وأعراض الأنفلونزا العادية والفرق بينهما، كما تم تحذيرهم من تربية الدواجن والخنازير وكذلك طرق الوقاية من المرض واكتشافه. The symposium addressed the ways of transmission of avian disease, pigs and birds, as well as the symptoms that appear on the virus, and influenza symptoms, the regular and the difference between them, have also been warned of poultry and pigs, as well as methods of prevention and detection of the disease.

CDC Telebriefing on Investigation of Human Cases of H1N1 Flu May 26, 2009, 1 pm ET

Press Briefing Transcripts
Audio recording (MP3)

Excerpt:
Anne Schuchat: Good afternoon. We're roughly a month into our emergency response to this new virus, and I think it's a good time to stop and take stock. Confirmed cases continue to rise here in the U.S. and around the world, and we've had this initial focus on cases and responding to illness and understanding this very new virus and how it behaves in our population. I think we're at a transition point where we're entering an area of new focus and new priorities. We really are on a fast track over the next eight to ten weeks to learn as much as we can as this virus heads to the southern hemisphere and to strengthen our planning for this surge of illness that we expect to experience here in the fall. Today, the World Health Organization is announcing that the global case count is 12,954 cases in 46 countries. And, of course, here in the United States, we are contributing very much to that world case count. Our count today is 6,764 probable and confirmed cases in 48 states and the District of Columbia. There have been more than 300 hospitalizations, and we have ten deaths reported on our website although you may have heard some reports from additional sites that haven’tyet made our system. In this period of transition, we continue to update guidance to make sure that information is available. Over the weekend, we've posted updated guidance on safe mask and respirator use and also on addressing this novel virus in correctional and detention facilities. This guidance, like our earlier interim guidance, is based on what we know now and the best science available as well as the situation on the ground. There are many areas where we wish we had more science available and we're continuing to really try to fill some of those gaps. In terms of the weeks ahead, there are a couple of areas that will be under intense pressure. Understanding what this virus does in populations that are just entering the influenza season, the winter months in the southern hemisphere will be very important, our different populations at risk of illness, will the virus change and become more resistant or more severe or transmissible. What will be experienced in populations that don't have a strong health infrastructure as we do here in the United States. A second area of focus is preparing for the fall. Based on what we've learned from our surveillance experience, the laboratory testing and surge that the health care system and public health system has gone through, how can we best prepare to handle an influenza season that's normal and a potential for this new virus to cause illness or problems on top of the regular seasonal flu problems. We'll also be working across government in the early steps of development of a vaccine, and as you heard on Friday, Secretary Sebelius announced a commitment for a vaccine and pandemic stockpile of that vaccine. So there’ll be quite a bit of planning will be around the potential development of a vaccine for use and if it were to be used, what sorts of steps would be needed to actually manage an immunization campaign. Those are the kinds of things we'll be turning our attention to while we continue to support the state and local areas around the countries for whom this problem has not yet ended. In the country as a whole, the influenza-like illness patterns are starting to decrease. There are still focal areas where ongoing cases and new hospital consolidations are a daily problem but in many parts of the country influenza-like illness is returning back down to the levels that we would expect for this time of year. We need to stay ready. There may be new clusters or new communities that haven't seen the virus yet this spring, which may have problems, but much of our attention is focusing on your hemisphere and the preparations for very intense experience in the fall. So with that, I would be happy to answer questions.
-snip-

Hazardous WHO Phase Daze

Commentary



Recombinomics Commentary 17:54
May 26, 2009

The W.H.O., starting in April, quickly raised its alert level to 4 and then 5 as the virus spread in North America. But even as the virus infected people in Britain, Spain and Japan, the agency did not go to Level 6, which signifies spread to a new continent. Dr. Fukuda argued that there was still no proof of "community spread," meaning beyond travelers, schools and contacts.

The above comment, as well as similar remarks by WHO officials and other government agencies, range from delusional to deliberate distortions with regard to the current phase 6 pandemic. The constant rewriting of the phase system to avoid calling a phase 6 pandemic a phase 6 pandemic does significant harm in the monitoring of the pandemic, as well as raising public awareness of the seriousness of the evolution and spread of swine H1N1.

An earlier revision moved the definition of sustained transmission from phase 6 to phase 4. Since sustained transmission will quickly spread worldwide, the revision simply delayed the inevitable, by defining phase 5 as sustained transmission in a region and phase 6 as worldwide sustained transmission.

However, it was clear when the first swine H1N1 cases in California were confirmed, that the escalation to a phase 6 definition would happen in the near term. The first two cases were over 100 miles apart and had no linkage, indicating sustained transmission was happening in southern California, and the associated reports of H1N1 in Mexico further supported the view that phase six was inevitable and near term.

Expanded testing in the US identified cases throughout the country, which was also found in Canada and Mexico (see updated map). The sequences of these isolates were virtually identical, which again supported sustained worldwide transmission. This view was further supported by the detection of similar cases identified at airport checks worldwide, couple with community spread discovered in association with tracing of airport cases. These cases of community transmission in Europe and Asia left no doubt that the pandemic was spreading worldwide (see updated map), but most countries continue to focus on airport checks, even though H1N1 was clearly spreading in the community.

The WHO position and phase 5 designation continues to focus efforts away from the real problem of community spread, and hopeless programs focused on international travelers. Although the airport checks can help identify countries which are spreading the virus, such as those in North America, including countries denying infections, such as the Dominican Republic.

These denials of cases, or cases in the community, allow the virus to silently spread and evolve.

The spread of a swine H1N1 in a human population at the current levels ahs not been reported since the 1918 pandemic. Since the swine virus is now efficiently transmitted in a human host, it will continue to adapt and will likely cause significantly more fatal cases, as was seen in 1918. However, this evolution is being largely ignored because countries are focusing efforts on airport checks, while ignoring/denying community spread. However, the community spread will lead to the emergence of new variants, which will be largely missed because of the misplaced emphasis.

When the new variants are identified, they will have established a strong foothold and will spread rapidly, once again avoiding belated containment efforts. The establishment will speed the spread, which will also impact vaccine efforts, because the identification of the emergent strain will happen well after the spread has accelerated.

Thus, the efforts of WHO to deny phase 6, and misplaced surveillance efforts which target international travel, will accelerate the emergence of variants, which will increase the likelihood that containment and vaccine efforts will fail.

Two more deaths in NYC linked to swine flu

BY DANIEL EDWARD ROSEN Special to Newsday

4:59 PM EDT, May 26, 2009

A 34-year-old man from Brooklyn and a 41-year-old woman from Queens appear to be the latest victims of swine flu, according to the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

Health Commissioner Thomas Frieden said the two had "culture confirmed" cases of H1N1 flu but that autopsies were being performed to determine the exact cause of death.

Twenty private and public schools reopened in the city Tuesday, Frieden said, leaving 17 still closed. PS 811, a special education school in Queens, closed its doors Tuesday because of swine flu.

Frieden, speaking Tuesday at a news conference at the health department, said people coming to city emergency rooms complaining of flulike symptoms remained high, especially in Queens and in the Bronx.

Also Tuesday, IS 238 reopened its doors, nine days after the Hollis, Queens, middle school lost assistant principal Mitchell Wiener to swine flu.

School staff threw away the flowers and put away the candles and balloons left in Wiener's remembrance by the school's entrance and sign.

"We just want to move on and move forward the way Mr. Wiener would want us to," principal Joseph Gates said.

Some parents and students expressed concern about the school's safety from the illness as they continued to mourn Wiener, the city's first swine flu fatality.

"It's not going to be the same without him," said an eighth-grader, who recently received a flu shot in response to the outbreak. "I still think there are more people going to be sick at the school."

Darlene Brown, 43, said her son Michael, an eighth-grader, was still feeling sad about Wiener's death and was nervous about returning to school.

"I don't know how much of it is in the air, or how much the school's been cleaned," said Brown, a paralegal for a law firm in Great Neck.

Kassandra Armstead, 31, has two sons at the school - sixth-grader John, 13, and seventh-grader Melvin, 14.

Armstead dropped off John at school Tuesday morning but not Melvin.

"It's really crazy. John says he just wants school to be over with, while my other son won't even go back," Armstead said.

Shirmin Jahan, 35, was resigned to sending her son back to the school.

"It's all over Queens so you can't protect him," Jahan said. "These kids are going to be in the library, they're going to be in the park, they're going to be shopping. So we'll see what happens and pray to God that nothing does."

Students have returned to more than two dozen New York City public schools that were closed because of swine flu.

PS 19 in Corona was among the schools to reopen Tuesday. Schools Chancellor Joel Klein welcomed the children back.

Scientists warn of animal-derived flu viruses

Australian Broadcasting Corporation

Broadcast: 26/05/2009

Reporter: Ticky Fullerton

In the last 10 years three animal-derived flu viruses threatened Australia, with none progressing to become lethal pandemic on the scale of the Spanish influenza. However scientists warn such viruses are unpredictable, and countries are complacent in their approach to protecting their population.

Transcript

TONY JONES, PRESENTER: In the last 10 years three animal derived flu viruses have threatened Australia - bird flu, horse flu and swine flu. So far, none have gone on to become lethal pandemics on the scale of the 1918 Spanish flu. Yet scientists closest to these superbugs warn they are still highly unpredictable and that some countries are becoming complacent in their approach to protecting their populations. So how seriously should we take these warnings? Ticky Fullerton reports.

TICKY FULLERTON, REPORTER: Another day, another suspected dose of swine flu for an unlucky Australian.

It's nothing, though, to the panic caused when swine flu H1N1 first appeared in Mexico in April. By 29th April, the World Health Organisation had upgraded its pandemic alert to a level five out of a possible six.

MARGARET CHAN, DIRECTOR GENERAL, WHO (30 April, 2009): It really is all of humanity that is under threat during a pandemic.

TICKY FULLERTON: Despite best efforts of border control, H1N1 is now at large, killing fewer, but still highly contagious.

Forty-six countries have so far reported over 1,200 cases, over 6,000 of them in American and 300 in Japan. Just 91 people have died, almost all in Mexico.

It is the unpredictably of flu viruses - the "known unknown" - that causes alarm.

In 1918, the Spanish flu arrived as a mild case in spring, but in the autumn returned to kill an estimated 40 million. It's most likely genesis was from a bird influenza.

JOURNALIST (archive footage, '7.30 Report', Jan. 2004): Across Asia, chickens are meeting a grizzly end. It's a slaughter without precedent that's seeing millions simply stuffed into sacks and buried alive.

TICKY FULLERTON: It's bird flu, not swine flu that scientists fear most.

MALIK PEIRIS, UNI OF HONG KONG: Of all the options that are out there that threaten to become pandemic, H5N1 Avian flu is the most lethal and the most severe. So that is why attention was focused on H5N1.

TICKY FULLERTON: The first six bird flu deaths came in 1997, but it struck with a vengeance in 2003.

Unlike swine flu H1N1, bird flu H5N1 is normally transmissible only from bird to human. But its potency is frightening - a 60 per cent fatality rate in humans.

Most disturbing for flu experts like Dr Malik Peiris, bird flu is still incubating in poultry in developing countries.

MALIK PEIRIS: Bird flu H5N1 certainly is endemic in many countries across Asia and parts of Africa such as Egypt, as you mentioned. And I do not see any likelihood that that situation is going to change in the near future.

TICKY FULLERTON: Unsurprisingly, the human toll from sporadic outbreaks has continued in recent years, albeit at lower levels, particularly in China, Egypt, Indonesia and Vietnam. It means bird flu is a constant threat.

MALIK PEIRIS: If that virus were to become pandemic, if that virus were to acquire transmissibility, the outcome would be really devastating.

TICKY FULLERTON: Australian scientists have been at the forefront of diagnosing deadly flu viruses.

Tonight, the Australian Biosecurity Cooperative Research Centre picks up an innovation award for developing a highly effective test for avian influenza.

In 2007, that test became a vital tool in the battle against another devastating virus, equine flu. In January this year, Australia was declared free of horse flu - the only country in the world to eradicate the disease.

But for tonight's award winner, the message is that a bird flu pandemic is still a real risk.

STEPHEN PROWSE, CEO, AUSTRALIAN BIOSECURITY CRC: Influenza that's causing bird flu, that's the H5N1 influenza, is still present in many countries round the world. It's still causing disease in birds and it's still causing disease in humans. And it's still causing death of humans.

JOURNALIST (archive footage, Feb. 2006): But this senior health official in charge of the testing program at the bird market showed us what he thought of the threat.

TICKY FULLERTON: In recent years, Asian countries like Thailand and Indonesia have been criticised for their handling of bird flu. The WHO now warns that countries are developing flu fatigue.

STEPHEN PROWSE: WHO and a number of other people made comments that a pandemic was imminent, that the there was a high risk of a pandemic. In fact, that hasn't really eventuated. And there's been a little bit of tension to the concept that the scientists and WHO have been crying wolf. And in fact I think that's far from correct.

MALIK PEIRIS: I think that the problem with the avian flu H5N1 is extremely challenging, particularly so for countries with a relatively weak infrastructure in terms of animal husbandry. And, I mean, countries such as Vietnam really did a superhuman effort in 2005/2006 and brought the avian flu H5N1 under a measure of control. But I think in the end the virus has re-emerged even in Vietnam.

TICKY FULLERTON: The emergence of swine flu and new evidence from Canada that it has already jumped from humans to pigs shows just how unpredictable a flu virus can be. Pigs, the mixing vessel, can host swine, bird and human varieties.

STEPHEN PROWSE: Every time it goes through a cycle of replication, you get errors creeping in to that replication process. And, so each of the viruses that come out of those hosts are - will be a little different from each other. So, they then have the capacity to infect the hosts in a slightly different way.

TICKY FULLERTON: Viruses can also swap chunks of genetic material if two infect the same host. One possibility is that bird flus and human flus swap potency and transmissibility. Of course, none of this is inevitable.

MALIK PEIRIS: Human viruses have been established in pigs, certainly in Asia, for the last eight or nine years. And, clearly, the avian flu virus would have met human viruses in pigs, and that mixing, that reassortment, between H5N1 and the human H3N2 did not occur.

TICKY FULLERTON: Perhaps the most chilling potential for a virus is to develop resistance to drugs like Tamiflu.

Already, human flu strains are showing resistance and there have been some cases of resistance by bird flu.

STEPHEN PROWSE: One of the real concerns would be is if there are joint infections between bird flu and the new swine flu and there is recombination and exchange of genetic information between those two viruses. And that could present a real risk in that you might get a bird flu that spreads more easily from human to human, or a swine flu that actually has drug resistance.

TICKY FULLERTON: If you are one for probabilities, we are due for a pandemic. Over the last 100 years, there have been three, but the most recent was 40 years ago. Ticky Fullerton, Lateline.

Two Egyptian children have H5N1 bird flu - agency

Tue May 26, 2009 8:04pm GMT

CAIRO, May 26 (Reuters) - Two four-year-old Egyptian children have contracted the highly pathogenic H5N1 bird flu virus, raising to 76 the number of cases reported in Egypt, the state news agency MENA reported on Tuesday.

Egypt has been hit harder by bird flu than any other country outside Asia and has seen a surge of cases in recent weeks.

The children, a boy and girl, were from different areas of Sharkiya province in the Nile Delta region. Both fell ill after coming into contact with birds with the virus.

The avian flu virus rarely infects people, but experts say they fear it could mutate into a form that humans could easily pass to one another, sparking a pandemic.

Most of those infected have previously been in contact with infected domestic birds in a country where 5 million households raise poultry as a significant source of food and income.

Since 2003, the H5N1 virus has infected more than 400 people in 15 countries and killed more than 250. It has killed or forced the culling of more than 300 million birds in 61 countries in Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Europe.

WHO puts off giving advice on pandemic vaccines

By Laura MacInnis

Reuters
Tuesday, May 26, 2009; 2:51 PM

GENEVA (Reuters) - The World Health Organization wants to keep monitoring the spread of H1N1 flu before issuing guidance on the production of pandemic flu vaccines, a top WHO official said on Tuesday.

"We are in the process of the most basic development of the vaccine," acting WHO assistant director-general Keiji Fukuda told a news briefing.

Work under way on candidate viruses will continue until the end of June or July, after which drug companies can start developing and testing H1N1 vaccines, according to Fukuda.

The WHO expects to make recommendations about the best balance between H1N1 and seasonal flu vaccine-making "sometime during the summer," he said.

"We don't want to make recommendations too early because we are on a daily basis monitoring how the situation is evolving," he said, later adding: "We are still at the early stage of this pandemic and we have to see where it goes."

Last week, the WHO said it had decided to revamp its six-point pandemic alert scale to better reflect how severe a circulating virus is, and not just the way it is spreading.

Fukuda said the United Nations agency planned to convene scientists and public health experts within weeks to offer suggestions on how to adjust the pandemic definitions.

For now, he said the WHO was keeping its alert at Phase 5 which means a pandemic is "imminent." It will look for "large outbreaks with very large numbers of people" like those seen in Mexico or the United States before edging it to the top notch.

"That in and of itself could well be enough to take us up to pandemic Phase 6," he said.

Britain and other flu-affected countries pushed at the WHO's annual congress last week for a rethinking of the pandemic alert scale, given the mild effects experienced from H1N1 flu as it spread around the world.

Fukuda said top WHO officials agreed there were risks in moving too fast to the top level.

"If you go to declare Phase 6 without very clear evidence that there is a change in the global situation, it can lead to extra work for countries without much gain, it can lead to some level of panic, it can lead to some level of cynicism," he said.

Fukuda said the widespread awareness about the H1N1 flu and countries' efforts to prepare themselves for possible outbreaks was "more important than any definition."

"We are comfortable that the countries are doing the kinds of public health actions that need to be taken right now," he said.

Egypt: The detention of 47 in Kafr El-Sheikh, Damietta on suspicion of bird flu

26/May/09

Detained Kafr El-Sheikh hospital admitted 16 cases of suspected bird flu.
Dr Susan Abbasi Director, that the cases from the hospital centers of Kafr el-Sheikh, Sidi Salem and Bella and Desouk, Riyadh, Kulain samples were taken of them to be sent to labs central Ministry of Health

In Dakahlia, was detained in Mansoura Chest Hospital on 16 cases of suspected bird disease, avian influenza, including three from one family.

It also held the hospital gift Abdo Mohamed Nabawy 9 years of the status and Khalid al-Mohammadi Talat of Murad and Mohammad Yousuf, 12 light years of Aja.

Samples were taken from the throat and blood to be sent to the Ministry of Health laboratories, bringing the number of cases that entered the hospital within two to 38 cases. Hospital doctors said the chest out 16 cases during the first Sunday after confirmation of the negative samples from the plants and the Ministry of Health.

In Damietta, Damietta detained hospital admitted 5 new cases of suspected SARS patients.
hat-tip Helblindi

Egypt: For suspected bird flu patients The case of the detention of 12 in Kafr Sheikh, Gharbia, Sohag and Monoufia free

27/May/09

Despite measures to prevent the spread of the infection of bird flu, but hospitals are still receiving diets suspected cases nationwide.

In Kafr El-Sheikh Alaa Abdullah:
Yesterday Ahtjazachms new cases of fevers of Kafr el-Sheikh hospital for suspected bird flu patients, after feeling severe pain in bones and a rise in temperature and a cough and shortness of breath, which were obtained from blood samples and sent to the central laboratory of the Ministry of Health in Cairo for analysis.

In the valley of the new Khalid Qureish:
Mostafa Moussa, director of veterinary medicine in the new valley has been the completion of the immunization of 196 and 347 thousand birds against bird flu as part of the scheme of the Directorate, which began during the last month

In the West, Ahmed Abu Shanab:
Was detained on 6 cases of hospital admitted Tanta and Kafr Al-Mahalla on suspicion of having bird flu, including two children were given doses of the drug Tamiflu, and a sample of blood taken and sent to labs central Ministry of Health with the extent of their exposure to the disease or not, while the negative results of the analysis of 8 cases have been previously detained in hospital exit and return to Mnazlhmsrah Dr. Sharif Hammouda Undersecretary of the Ministry of Health to maintain

In Sohag, Mohamed Mostafa Mutawe and Nivine:
Been booked housewife Chest Hospital, Sohag to suspected bird flu influenza, the Secretary of Imran fat (40 years) were taken swab sample and sent to labs central Ministry of Health for examination and analysis.

Elia said Dr. Aziz, Chairman of the Chamber of operations to maintain the Directorate of Veterinary Medicine.

In Monoufia Souad Tantawi:
Dr. Magdy Abdel-Latif, director of the hospital Habaycp Shebin admitted that there had been no cases of bird flu this year to maintain. Manscher pointed out that what is only suspected of Mkhaltin birds are sampling and sent to central laboratories and results are negative, stressing that it was last year only two were fully recovery .
hat-tip Helblindi

Two children from the East hit by bird flu, bringing the number to 76

5/27/2009 12:01:00 AM

القاهرة - محرر مصراوي - أعلنت وزارة الصحة مساء الثلاثاء عن إصابتين جديدتين بإنفلونزا الطيور ليرتفع عدد المصابين بهذا المرض منذ اكتشافه في البلاد إلى 76 .

CAIRO - Editor Masrawy - The Ministry of Health on Tuesday night, two new two new bird flu, bringing the number of people infected with the disease since its discovery in the country to 76.

وقال الدكتور عبدالرحمن شاهين المتحدث الرسمى لوزارة الصحة إن الحالة 75 لطفل يدعى أحمد ربيع محمد إبراهيم يبلغ من العمر 4 سنوات من مدينة ههيا بمحافظة الشرقية ، وظهرت عليه الأعراض يوم الأحد الماضي دخل على إثرها مستشفى حميات الزقازيق أمس وهو يعانى من إرتفاع فى درجة الحرارة عقب تعرضه لطيور يشتبه فى إصابتها بمرض إنفلونزا الطيور .

And Dr. Abdul Rahman Shaheen said the official spokesman of the Ministry of Health, the situation of a child 75, Ahmed Mohamed Ibrahim, the spring at the age of 4 years of the Eastern Province city of Haia, and developed symptoms on Sunday, entered the hospital, which admitted yesterday Zagazig suffering from high fever after being exposed birds suspected of being infected with bird flu.

وأضاف أنه فور الإشتباه فى إصابته بالمرض تم إعطاؤه عقار التاميفلو وحالته المرضية مستقرة وجارى تحويله إلى مستشفى منشية البكرى .

He added that once the suspicion of being infected with the disease were given the drug Tamiflu and the condition is stable and is being transformed into a hospital, the Tamiflu drug.

وتابع المتحدث الرسمى أن الحالة 76 لطفلة تدعى " حسناء عبدالله على حسن " تبلغ من العمر 4 سنوات من عمريط مركز أبوحماد بمحافظة الشرقية، وظهرت عليها الأعراض يوم السبت الماضي دخلت على إثرها مستشفى حميات الزقازيق أمس ، وهى تعانى من إرتفاع فى درجة الحرارة عقب تعرضها لطيور يشتبه فى إصابتها بمرض إنفلونزا الطيور .

The official said that the situation of the girl, 76, called "the beauty Abdullah Hassan," a 4-year-old Amrit Obouhmad Center of East County, and developed symptoms on Saturday, entered the hospital fevers Zagazig yesterday, which is suffering from high temperature after exposure to birds suspected of being infected with bird flu.

ولفت إلى أنه فور الإشتباه فى إصابتها بالمرض تم إعطاؤها عقار التاميفلو وحالتها المرضية مستقرة وجارى تحويلها إلى مستشفى منشية البكرى .

He pointed out that once the suspicion of being infected with the disease were given the drug Tamiflu, a stable and satisfactory condition, which is currently under conversion to a hospital in the capital Bakrie.
hat-tip Florida1

Two Egyptian children have H5N1 bird flu - agency

26 May 2009

Source: Reuters

CAIRO, May 26 (Reuters) - Two four-year-old Egyptian children have contracted the highly pathogenic H5N1 bird flu virus, raising to 76 the number of cases reported in Egypt, the state news agency MENA reported on Tuesday.

Egypt has been hit harder by bird flu than any other country outside Asia and has seen a surge of cases in recent weeks.

The children, a boy and girl, were from different areas of Sharkiya province in the Nile Delta region. Both fell ill after coming into contact with birds with the virus.

The avian flu virus rarely infects people, but experts say they fear it could mutate into a form that humans could easily pass to one another, sparking a pandemic.

Most of those infected have previously been in contact with infected domestic birds in a country where 5 million households raise poultry as a significant source of food and income.

Since 2003, the H5N1 virus has infected more than 400 people in 15 countries and killed more than 250. It has killed or forced the culling of more than 300 million birds in 61 countries in Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Europe.
hat-tip Dutchy

Russia: A three-dimensional model of influenza virus, porcine

25.05.09 17:44
Scientists from the Singapore Bioinformatics Institute have created a three-dimensional model of the core protein of influenza virus A/H1N1 - neyraminidazy that would allow a more precise definition of "weak spots" virus, and create new drugs and vaccines against the new flu. "

The group of scientists led by Dr. Sebastian Maurer-Straw has set the area of protein molecules in which the mutation occurred, and determine what resources would be effective against the virus.

All influenza A viruses are divided into types depending on the varieties of two key proteins, which are located on the surfaces of viral particles - virionov. This gemagglyutinin (marked H), responsible for the ability of the virus to penetrate into the cell, and neyraminidaza (N), related to its reproduction. The structure of these proteins vary from strain to strain. "Pork influenza" refers to the type of H1N1, avian flu - to the H5N1 (although there are other varieties of bird flu), and "normal" seasonal influenza, as a rule, is a type of H3N2.

Scientists have determined that the structure of the virus A/H1N1 neyraminidazy much more similar to a protein similar to avian influenza virus H5N1, a protein other than strains H1N1, including the strain that caused an epidemic "Spanish" in 1918. In addition, these mutations are made less effective previously developed types of vaccines directed against neyraminidazy. However, existing drugs for influenza, such as Tamiflu and Relenza, remain effective against the new flu. "

Egypt: 7 cases of detention of suspected bird flu meeting Sunday attended by

Tuesday, May 26, 2009 - 13:05

Detained hospitals Zvty fevers and Tanta and Mahala 7 new cases of disease suspected of being infected with bird flu, with fevers detained Mahala 4 cases they are: Ramzi Abdel Azim Ibrahim Salim (in the eight months) of the Center for Caesarean Mahala, Mr. Saeed Abdul Sami (27 years) working Maniya Smonod Dakahlia, and Abdel-Fattah Attiyat Mus'ad (27 years) of the Center Smatay Qtor housewife, Mona Ismail Fouda, Abdel-Latif (17 years), student of Smatay Qtor Center.

كما احتجزت حميات طنطا، محمد العربى السيد العربى(4 سنوات) من محلة مسير مركز قطور، ومصطفى محمد عبد الفتاح (21 سنة) عامل بمزرعة دواجن من ميت السودان مركز طنطا، وأمل عادل أبو الحسن (18 سنة) ربة منزل بحميات زفتى، وتم حجز الحالات بالأماكن المخصصة لذلك، كما تم أخذ عينة دم ومسحة حلق وإرسالها للمعامل المركزية للتأكد من إصابتها بالمرض من عدمه.

Tanta fevers also detained, Mr. Larbi Mohamed Larbi (4 years) from the locality of the Center manages Qtor, Mustafa Mohamed Abdel Fattah (21 years) of the poultry farm worker dead Tanta Center Sudan, and that just Abulhasan (18 years) Bhmyat Zvty housewife, was reservation of places allocated to the cases that have been taking a blood sample and swab hours and sent to central laboratories to ensure that the disease infected or not.

صرح بذلك الدكتور عصام عثمان مدير إدارة الطب الوقائى بمديرية الصحة بالغربية، الذى أكد على سلبية عينات 14 حالة أخرى، وتم إخراجها من المستشفيات.

Said Dr. Essam Othman, Director of the Department of Preventive Medicine meeting Sunday attended by Department of Health, which emphasized the negative samples, 14 other cases were excluded from the hospitals.

Suspected Egypt Swine Cases (detected at Airport)

5/22:
Came from Germany.

Ms. Meiram -
Daniel Mr. Nader (4) Syrian nationality

Mohammed Ahmed (22) from Cairo




5/25
American. Came from New York

Suha Ahmed, Abdul Jalil (31) (Mother)
Mariam Mohamed (3) (son)
Abdul Rahman (6) (son)





5/26
from Egypt. Came from Kuwait.

Shereen Essam Mkhaltin (Mother)
Yusuf Omar (8) (son)
Omar Sharif (son)

After returning from Kuwait .. 3 Egyptian isolate suspected bird infected pigs

[These are new].

Tuesday, May 26, 2009 - 12:05

The Department of quarantine at Cairo International Airport, yesterday evening, Monday, the removal of the three passengers were Egyptians suspected of contracting the virus, swine flu, after their return on board the Kuwait Airways from Kuwait, where the medical examination by a doctor on the child quarantine Yusuf Omar (8 years ) The high temperature and the emergence of some symptoms of HIV infection have also been isolated Omar Sharif, his brother and his mother Shereen Essam Mkhaltin as it had been taken to hospital for fever بالعباسية show their disapproval.

يذكر أن إدارة الحجر الصحى استقبلت أمس حوالى 4500 راكب قادمين من الدول الموبوءة والتى حددتها منظمة الصحة العالمية ضمن دائرة الاشتباه، ليصل عدد الدول التى يفرض عليها إجراءات الفحص الطبى بالحجر لـ 46 دولة بعد إضافة الكويت وأيسلندا وهندراوس.

States that the Department of Quarantine received yesterday, about 4500 passengers coming from countries affected by identified by the World Health Organization within the circle of suspicion, of the total number of countries which are subject to quarantine procedures for medical examination of 46 State of Kuwait and after the addition of Honduras, Iceland.

The lake is preparing for a pandemic of avian influenza

Tuesday, May 26, 2009 - 10:32

Recommended that a meeting of the Committee against bird flu lake need for all departments and bodies and the heads of all the cities to identify and map and a special rehearsal for the management of bird flu crisis and response in case of the evolution of an epidemic disease, by raising the maximum degree of readiness, in order to attain the highest degree of preparedness and readiness in a coordinated and salary among all agencies and departments, cities and villages so as to manage the crisis in terms of science.

The meeting recommended the need to study the implementation of Law No. (70) for the year 2009 on the organization and handling of the sale of live birds and poultry for sale and supply, which provides for limited trade in live poultry and birds to the stores, which has been the subject of a decision of the Minister of Agriculture, are required to be trade or slaughter in accordance with the conditions and procedures set by law, and in places and the massacres that took place determined by a decision of the competent minister of agriculture.

Record in a new avian influenza virus: The case of the detention of 24 in Kafr Sheikh, Sohag and West

Hat-tip Helblindi
Comment: 27 new suspected H5N1 cases: 14 in Kafr El-Sheikh, 8 in the West province, including a familial cluster of a mother, two sons and a daughter , 2 in Sohag, a mother and her son, 3 in the Lake province, including a mother and a son.


The case of the detention of 24 in Kafr Sheikh, Sohag and West
Suspicion and detention and the withdrawal of samples, etc. .. .. the trinity of terror that threatens all the provinces to raising levels of officials willing to confront the disease and to take all measures to prevent the spread of the infection
26/May/09

In Kafr el-Sheikh Alaa Abdullah: arrested in Kafr Sheikh fever hospital 14 new cases in one day on suspicion of bird flu patients, after feeling severe pain in bones and a cough and a rise in temperature and running from the nose, shortness of breath and was immediately detained at the scene for suspected cases have been obtained on a sample of blood and swab hours and sent to the central laboratory of the Ministry of Health in Cairo for analysis with the extent of serious injury from the disease or not. The hospital administration has allowed the number of 5 cases of out and return to their homes after the results of tests conducted them free from the disease.

In vast portions of the West, Ahmed: The detention of 8 cases of suspected bird flu patients, hospital admitted Tanta and Kafr Al-Zayat, Zfti, including two children, two brothers, Mohammad Shebl 6 years, and his sister emigrated 8 years Mnsourip Alfrstq the village of Kafr Al-Zayat Center, in addition to the mother or the good old Yusuf housewife, said Dr. Sharif Hammouda Undersecretary of the Ministry of Health that the suspect had been deposited in their rooms for suspected cases of fever in hospitals, and given a dose of a drug Altamvelo and take a sample of blood The melancholy hours, and sent to the central laboratories of the Ministry of Health in Cairo, with the extent of illness or not.

In Sohag, Nevine Moustafa: The arrest of a housewife and her son from the household contacts of birds Souhag hospital admitted with suspected bird flu virus, and two fur Faten Mohamed (27 years) and her son Mahmoud Nasser Mahmoud (9 years ) and has been taking samples and swabs and send them to the central Ministry of Health laboratories for examination and analysis. Iliya said Dr. Aziz, Chairman of the Chamber of Veterinary Medicine Department operations, and added that working groups had to move immediately to the place of the author to deal with the flu.

Red Sea of Arafat Ali: Mr. Majid said Abdul Karim, secretary general of the Red Sea province, said all preventive measures taken by the organs of the veterinary quarantine and port air land and sea to ensure safety from disease, swine flu in accordance with standards of the Ministry of Health World.

He pointed out that the assignment of German tourist who claims George Lodge upon arrival at the international airport of Hurghada fever hospital on suspicion of having this disease, an absolutely correct decision, regardless of whether the analytical result is negative or positive, because what is important is to ensure the safety of any visitors to the region before heading to Hurghada hotel or tourist area.

In the East, Nermeen Ahawadwi: The Chancellor pays tribute to Abdul Majid, governor of the province of any official assignment Bmderiaat health and veterinary medicine or agriculture demonstrates his failure to take necessary measures against the disease to the public prosecutor for investigation and criminal penalties to sign on to the vital port and ambushes in the inspection and the absence of their positions.

In the lake of Tamer Abdel-Raouf: The reservation Nanaap Ismail Mabruk housewife 27 years and assess the village of the coast within Brashid Damanhour admitted to hospital on suspicion of bird flu has been transferred with the child, Shaaban Abdel-Rahman Saeed al-6 years and residing in Kafr Dawar and Mahmoud Mahmoud Said 48-year-old worker and resident Babis to Alexandria where he was admitted to take samples and swabs for laboratory analysis of the Central Ministry of Health.

Previous Post:

...including 15 cases of Ghamr Center

Nada al-Ahmed Reda Yunes (4) - confirmed #72
Town: Ghamr
Sym onset: 5/9
Adm: 5/18.
Tested on 5/18.
DOD: 5/18

The detention of 39 cases in 7 provinces of suspected bird flu

hat-tip Helblindi:
Comment; 39 new suspected H5N1 cases: 22 in Dakhaliya, looking suspiciously like two huge clusters, 6 in Kafr El-Sheikh, 4 in the West province, 2 in the Lake province, 2 in Damietta, 1 in Qalubiya, 1 in Suez. Also villagers from the recent fatal case are accusing the MoH of sending them to collect dead birds without PPE.


25/May/09

Detained in hospital diets 7 provinces of 39 suspected cases of bird flu symptoms.

Daqahliya, was detained in Mansoura Chest Hospital 22 suspected cases of the disease, including 15 cases of Ghamr Center and the rest of the centers of Mansoura Wagga line and downloaded.

Dr. Abdul-Karim, Mr., Under-Secretary, Ministry of Health, was withdrawn samples from suspects to be sent to the laboratories of the Ministry of Health, referring to the ouster of 8 other cases of the Chest Hospital on Monday after making sure not to have the disease.

Meanwhile, and accused the villagers of the Center for Bfal Ghamr, which saw the death of Case No. 27 of avian flu and called Nada Ahmed Reda Allboudy, 4 years, last week, the Directorate of Veterinary Medicine endangering the lives of their children at risk after they were taken recently in its campaign to catch the birds and handling without preventive measures or safety nets to assist the doctors and members of the Committee in the vaccination.

In Kafr El-Sheikh Dr Susan Abbasi, director of the hospital fever, 6 cases of detention centers Kulain and Kafr El-Sheikh, Sidi Salem, Riyadh, following their rise in temperature.

In the West, Dr. Essam Othman, Director of Preventive Medicine, Tanta fevers that were held and Mahala 4 cases were given the drug Tamiflu, and samples were taken for analysis. In the lake, Dr. Yosri Congratulations, Under-Secretary, Ministry of Health, admitted that the hospital held Damanhour Nadia Mahmoud Salim, 18 years of Obouhms and Nanaap Alhabrok Ismail, from the town of Rashid.

DAMIETTA detained in hospital diets Mr. Gohari, two years and 3 months, and attributed the morning, 5 years from the town of Kafr Battikh and Mr. Mohamed's 3 years and 3 months from the village of Kafr Saad Izbat 5.

In Qaliubiya Abdaty Dr. Abdel-Alim, director of preventive medicine, the hospital admitted that the milk was held Zeinab Mohammed Sabri, two and a half years of Alpajur Mnovip. In Suez, Dr. Mohamed Naguib, director of the hospital diets, the detention of Mohamed Magdy Hassan, 32 years of working Palmdzr Software, after showing symptoms of the disease.

Board of Governors will discuss the summer diseases and Examinations

Excerpt:
Monday, May 25, 2009

At the level of bird flu .. The number of human cases in Egypt since 2006 until May 24 of this 74 cases, 27 of whom died, in 2009 has seen 23 cases, 4 cases of them died.

Over the past period, the closure of 564 poultry farms, however, is committed to replace the 8200 and the closing of the sale of live poultry, and the removal of more than 37 A violation of shanty towns, and the confiscation of 686 vehicles transporting poultry without permission.

With regard to the elements of the plan of the Ministry of Health to deal with swine flu .. There is crisis management, through the formation of the Committee on the Ministry of Health of the crisis management committees in all health departments nationwide and a lifting of the state of extreme emergency and the cancellation of the workers leave the health sector in all provinces, and the establishment and management of a central operations room to confront the epidemic.

Rady said the continued surveillance of bird flu in all health facilities at the level of the Republic, with a total of 1289 suspected cases including 6 cases confirmed during the period from (April 24 - May 23), and the establishment of disease surveillance systems for swine flu, where the total number of suspected cases 89, all negative during the period (April 24 - May 23), and the establishment of a system to monitor diseases like influenza and pneumonia, with a total of 20,485 suspected cases during the same period.

And Dr. Magdy Radi, the spokesman for the Council of Ministers, to the development of services through the provision of laboratory reagents for diagnosis, and increase the efficiency of existing plants and the establishment and operation of labs at the governorates of Alexandria and Minya, in addition to the central Ministry of Health laboratories, as is the establishment of 4 laboratories nationwide, the West, Aswan, Kafr Sheikh and Asyut.

Rady said the availability of medicines, vaccines and supplies and equipment, which had been contracted to 2.5 million doses of the antiviral drug Tamiflu, and are contracted to provide 2.5 million doses of the other, in addition to providing basic supplies and disinfectants.

He pointed to the development of quarantine procedures by providing all the outlets quarantine necessary manpower (doctors, nurses, health observer), and the training of all workers in quarantine to prepare for a pandemic, and the application of preventive action from the affected country, as it was up to the 2404 aircraft , 151 the total number of passenger ship 331013, and was suspected in 32 cases, and the results of the samples were negative for swine influenza virus, and is being processed for the isolation quarantine Cairo international air port to isolate suspected cases, as was the installation and operation of a survey of 20 outlets thermal
Quarantine.

He also stressed the activation of the Plan of hospitals and infection control procedures, with a meeting of all directors of hospitals (public, central, specialist, health insurance, educational) for the work plan of work for each hospital and the procedures for activating the plan of the Ministry of Health through the preparation of a detailed action plan for all hospitals to cope with the pandemic and the follow-up activated, and the revitalization of surveillance for cases of (avian influenza, swine flu, pneumonia, influenza-like illness).

, Dr. Magdy Radi, the spokesman for the Council of Ministers to activate the plan and basic health care units, and the revitalization of surveillance and reporting of cases and the application of the referral system and raising awareness.

He referred to the planning and coordination with other ministries (interior, civil aviation, higher education, transportation, housing, communications).

He also stressed the implementation of the plan dealing with the media and citizens about the epidemic situation in Egypt, transparency, and increased phone lines to the hotline on influenza illness (105), to the line 30 to respond to the queries of citizens over 24 hours, and the implementation of an information campaign to raise the awareness of citizens (Disclaimer TV, Disclaimer radio), the printing and distribution of two million Poster and printed posters to members of the community.

Radi said that the efforts of the provinces in the face of the threat of swine flu is to focus on several main points of the slaughter is completed and execution of all the flock of pigs governorates, with the exception of the herd, who Helwan governorate, which is still under the slaughter and death.

7 suspected cases of avian influenza b 3 provinces

Monday, May 25, 2009 - 19:23

Detained hospital fevers DAMIETTA 5 cases of suspected bird flu infected, were also detained two of the table is a Bhmyat and fevers Mkhaltthm Alexandria because of the domestic birds.

حيث تم احتجاز 5 من دمياط، وهم السعيد الجوهرى وصباح عزت 5 سنوات من كفر البطيخ والسيد عيد (3 سنوات) من عزبة كفر سعد وعلى عبد المقصود (42 سنة) من السواحل كفر البطيخ ووفاء لبيب (50 سنة) من الأعصر دمياط. 5

where the detention of Damietta, the Al-Sabah attributed the fundamental and 5 years of Kafr melon and Mr. Eid (3 years) of the Kafr al-Saad and Abdel-Maksoud (42 years) from the coast and meet Kafr Battikh Labib (50 years) of the Al Damietta.

كما قامت الشئون الصحية بمطروح باحتجاز الطفل محمد حافظ (3 سنوات) ونصف بمستشفى الصدر بمطروح وتحويل عبد العزيز زعبا كريم (60 سنة) من نجع أولاد سعداوى بمركز الحمام إلى مستشفى حميات الإسكندرية.

Health affairs, has also Bmatarouh detention of Muhammad Hafiz (3 years) and half of hospital-Sadr and the transfer of Bmatarouh Zaaba Abdul Aziz al-Karim (60 years) of the Naga Saadaoy the status of children admitted to hospital in the bathroom of Alexandria.

وتم سحب عينات دم من الحالات المشتبه بإصابتها، وإرسالها لمعامل وزارة الصحة لمعرفة مدى إصابتهما من عدمه، كما قامت لجنة مكافحة أنفلونزا الطيور بتطهير المنازل وإعدام الطيور وفحص المخالطين للمرضى بأماكن سكناهم.

Blood samples were withdrawn from the suspected cases of bird flu, and sent to the laboratories of the Ministry of Health to determine the extent of their injuries or not, as the Committee for the fight against bird flu, clearing houses and the culling and to examine patients in contact with places of residence.

3 injured in suspected U.S. citizen of Egyptian flu pigs

Monday, May 25, 2009 - 17:04

Department of isolated quarantine at Cairo International Airport on suspicion of three cases of an Egyptian origin, and carrying American citizenship Hospital Abbasiyah fevers, for the suspicion of avian influenza virus infected pigs, where a quarantine of warming girl Mariam Mohamed 3 years, but decided to remove her brother Abdul Rahman, 6 years, and her mother, Suha Ahmed, Abdul Jalil, 31 years, as Mkhaltin them where they were coming on Monday on an Egypt Air from New York.

يذكر أن إدارة الحجر الصحى بالمطار استقبلت أمس الأحد 4 آلاف 269 راكبا من الدول الموبوءة والتى حددتها منظمة الصحة العالمية ضمن دائرة الاشتباه، حيث تبينت سلامتهم جميعا، كما تم تسجيل جميع بياناتهم وأماكن إقامتهم لمراقبتهم صحيا خلال فترة تواجدهم بمصر.

States that the management of quarantine on Sunday, the airport received 4 thousand 269 passengers from countries affected by identified by the World Health Organization within the circle of suspicion, where the safety of all identified, as was the registration of all their statements and their places of residence to keep tabs on their health during the period of Egypt.

The detention of 14 in 3 provinces on suspicion of bird flu

And the execution of 310 birds in the Suez
24/May/09

Mansoura Chest Hospital was held yesterday, 8 cases of suspected bird flu, namely: Rawan Ibrahim Lotfy «years», and Yasmeen Ashraf Abdullah «3 years» The Mahmoud Saad «two» Manal Mohamed Kamal «28 years», Zeinab Mr. Mujahid «39 years», Tharwat Al Rizq «18 years», Baker Mahrus Elnaggar «33 years» and the Ayatullah Ahmad Annan «3 years», samples were taken of them to be sent to the laboratories of the Ministry of Health.

The hospital doctors out 23 cases during the past two days, after confirmation of samples tested negative for them, for long time to improve the situation of children Rahman Sabri «4 years» the detainee hospital after the Tamiflu drug to make sure his disease.

In Aswan, fever hospital, detained 5 suspected cases of the disease, namely: Sharif Qureshi Abbas «34 years» and 3 children, brothers from one family, are: Youssef, Mohamed Mahmoud Hajjaji Hajjaji in addition to the Mariam Mohamed Abdullah «3 years».

In the lake, Dr. Yosri Congratulations Deputy Minister of Health for the detention of a woman called Hanim Ismail charity «40 years» on suspicion of being infected with the disease was isolated and the hospital admitted Damanhour sampling and analysis sent to the central labs, and said that all the samples were withdrawn from the case, which was seized were negative.

In Suez, Dr. Adel Abbas and the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Veterinary Medicine have been 310 executions in the forty birds.
hat-tip Helblindi

the detention of 4 cases of Menoufia

New measures to combat bird flu
Ready to upgrade the lake
Seminars and cultural Sohag ..
25/May/09

Confrontation with the virus is still avian flu concerns of top officials of the governorates, and has been expanded to include the suspicion of the disease-like symptoms and the development of plans to determine the response teams to control emergency situations.

In the lake: the local council demanded the lifting of the lake to maintain the degree of preparedness to combat avian influenza virus and pigs and the work of a pilot project by claiming the discovery of a case in one of the centers to identify and measure the speed of reaction of the control groups in all the departments and their responsiveness and dealing with the matter and identify the shortcomings and weaknesses .

He also called for the Council during the last meeting which was held under the chairmanship of Gabriel and the presence of Juma governor, Major General Mohammad Sha'rawi up awareness campaigns in villages and hamlets to familiarize citizens with the seriousness of HIV and the prevention of the disease.

The Governor emphasized that the development of an integrated plan for a pandemic of avian influenza virus to define and identify each of the cities and boards of health, veterinary medicine and civil defense, in turn, should it occur.

He pointed out that it will be ready to raise the number of 25% of all workers hand over 24 hours in the event of a pandemic in the neighboring countries, and lifting to 50% of all workers on when they occur in a neighboring province, and lifting 100% when they occur in humans within the area of the province.

He pointed out that the plan include the Department of Agriculture quickly teams pay to get rid of infected birds, the location of the event and clean up sites in coordination with the health and veterinary medicine and to ensure the flow of irrigation water watercourses affected areas and identify the tasks and the drilling equipment and burial of health.

In Monoufia: detained hospitals and Echmoun Mnov fevers and Mnov read Menoufia 4 new cases of suspected bird flu disease bird showed signs of the disease they are: Mohammed Ibrahim Abdel Nabi sacks (17 years) and a resident called the city was Mnov detention in hospital fevers Mnov, Fatima Abdel-Moneim Abdel-Hamid (26 years old), a housewife from the city was followed by seizure inside a hospital fevers followed, and Mr. Ali barbaric speech (45 years old), Srs Allian were detained inside a hospital fevers Mnov, and dignified, Saad Ali (60 years) from the village of Kafr Pharaonic Bohmon were seized inside a hospital Echmoun fevers were taken from blood samples and sent to labs central Ministry of Health.
-snip-
hat-tip Helblindi

Additional new type-A flu case confirmed in S. Korea

SEOUL, May 25 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's health authorities said Monday they have confirmed an additional case of Influenza A, bringing the total number of people infected with the new flu virus here to 22

Inquiry ordered in Spain after children needlessly exposed to swine flu

JANE WALKER in Madrid

AN INQUIRY into an outbreak of swine flu in Spain has been ordered after children were unnecessarily exposed to the virus.

Defence minister Carme Chacón ordered the inquiry into an outbreak at the Hoyo de Manzanares base, a military academy near Madrid, where there have been 18 confirmed cases of A/H1N1 flu. A further 81 people are awaiting test results. All cases are said to be mild.

Ms Chacón’s inquiry is attempting to find out why the military authorities apparently took until last Friday before officially reporting the outbreak, although the first case was confirmed last Monday. During those four days two groups of school children visited the academy, and could have been exposed to the virus.

Some 500 people in the military engineering school have been confined to barracks.It is not known how the soldiers contracted the virus, since none of them is known to have visited Mexico recently. Most other persons in Spain with the illness had been in Mexico shortly before becoming ill.

These cases bring the number of reported victims in Spain to 145.

The opposition Popular Party (PP) has demanded Ms Chacón’s resignation. “She covered up the flu outbreak in the military academy and only later visited it accompanied by photographers,” said PP leader Mariano Rajoy.

Prime minister José Luis Rodriguez Zapatero said: “They [PP] demand the minister’s resignation because a few soldiers have caught flu, but they continue to defend Trillo over the Yak-42 affair. How can they be serious?”

Last week, former defence minister Federico Trillo refused to resign from parliament after a general and two officers were jailed over a cover-up regarding the fate of a Yak-42 plane carrying 62 Spanish soldiers from Afghanistan six years ago, which crashed in Turkey killing all on board.

Preventive Medicine BESIEGES hotbeds of avian influenza in Port Said

Sunday, May 24, 2009 - 19:16

The Department of Preventive Medicine, Directorate of Health Affairs in Port Said procedures in the village surrounded the tenth of Ramadan, which is located south of Port Said, which was seen in cases of dead poultry and birds infected with avian flu, which has led to the Department of Preventive Medicine in coordination with the Department of Veterinary Medicine and the environment to execute all the birds in the village and the intensification of medical follow-up field through a comprehensive medical survey for all residents of the village, and periodically, in anticipation of the emergence of cases of suspicion over the weekend.

He just left the director, Dr. Department of Preventive Medicine for the seventh day as the appointment of an observer in the village-based health continues, the health unit and the processing of the latest medical devices to measure temperature.

Influenza A(H1N1) - update 37

23 May 2009 -- As of 06:00 GMT, 23 May 2009, 43 countries have officially reported 12 022 cases of influenza A(H1N1) infection, including 86 deaths.

The breakdown of the number of laboratory-confirmed cases by country is given in the following table and map.

Map of the spread of Influenza A(H1N1): number of laboratory confirmed cases and deaths [jpg 492kb]
As of 08:00 GMT, 23 May 2009

9	788	0
Grand Total	12022	86

Health care workers being trained to detect, manage pandemic flu

May 24, 2009

The Ministry of Health in collaboration with the Pan American Health Organisation/World Health Organisation (PAHO/WHO hosted an International Health Regulations and Pandemic Influenza workshop in order to equip health care workers to detect and manage pandemic influenza.

According to a Government Information Agency (GINA) press release the three-day workshop focused on the National Influenza Pandemic Preparedness Plan (NIPPP), International Health Regulation, surveillance of influenza: generic protocol for influenza surveillance, infection control, vaccines and antivirals, hospital preparedness plan and risk communication for health faculties.

Chief Medical Officer Dr Shamdeo Persaud said the session was timely as it focuses on the clinical aspect of influenza management, surveillance monitoring and evaluation. He said since the emergence of the H5N1 bird flu in 2003, Guyana established a national committee to follow up on outbreaks of the virus. “Part of the preparedness involved securing our ports and through the implementation of the international health regulation 2005, we are ready to put quickly, a number of systems in place to start screening our ports,” he said.

Persaud said about 40 countries have reported the presence of the H1N1 virus and there is now established human to human transmission. “There are more than 8,000 confirmed cases of H1N1 (swine flu) and 76 deaths so far confirmed,” he said.

Meanwhile, PAHO/WHO country representative Dr Kathleen Israel said that the workshop is being conducted in the context of the influenza pandemic which was anticipated as a result of H5N1. She said the training will provide participants with the tools to “to effectively monitor and detect any cases of acute respiratory infection whether it is caused by H1N1 or by H5N1.”

Israel noted that the Caribbean has been fortunate since it has not experienced any outbreak of the H1N1 virus. However, she noted that despite the fact that no cases have been found, countries must continue to monitor the situation and take precautionary measures to prevent acute respiratory infections. She then charged the participants to apply the knowledge gained from the workshop to their work environment and communities.

INFLUENZA A (H1N1) - WORLDWIDE (15): ASIA

In this update:
[1] China (Fujian): 8th confirmed case
[2] China (Beijing): total 4 confirmed cases
[3] China (Hong Kong SAR): 2 new confirmed cases
[4] Taiwan: total 6 confirmed cases
[5] Philippines: total 2 confirmed cases
[6] South Korea: total 10 confirmed case
[7] Japan: total 321 confirmed cases
[8] Kuwait: total 18 confirmed cases

"Health" of the people attacking the government for the lack of intensive care units

Sunday, May 24, 2009 - 16:33

هاجم د.حمدى السيد رئيس لجنة الصحة بمجلس الشعب الحكومة بسبب تقاعسها فى توفير أسرّة لمرضى العناية المركزة بالمستشفيات الحكومية.

D attacked. Hamdi Al-Sayyed, head of the People's Assembly's health committee because of the government failing to provide the family of a patient in intensive care at government hospitals. أكد أن خطة وزارة الصحة مبهمة حول وحدات الرعاية المركزة وحضانات الأطفال، لافتاً إلى أن عشرات

المرضى يتعرضون للموت يومياً بسبب نقص أسرة الرعاية المركزة وارتفاع تكلفة أجهزة التنفس والرعاية بالمستشفيات الخاصة، فضلاً عن ضعف خبرة الأطباء فى التعامل مع وحدات الرعاية المركزة "ICU" وقال السيد خلال اجتماع لجنة الصحة "إن تكلفة سرير الرعاية المركزة ألف جنيه لليوم الواحد".

Emphasized that the plan was vague on the Ministry of Health and intensive care units and nursery children, pointing out that dozens of patients are dying daily because of the lack of family-centered care and the high cost of respiratory care devices for hospitals, as well as the weakness of the experience of doctors in dealing with intensive care units "ICU", said Mr. During the meeting of the Committee on Health, "The cost of intensive care beds thousand pounds per day."

وأشار إلى أن عدد مرضى ضغط الدم والنوبات القلبية فى تزايد مستمر، مبيناً إلى أن 75% من مرضى النوبات القلبية سببها التدخين وقال "لا أعرف كيف نطلق لقب مستشفى على مبنى لا يوجد به وحدات وغرف للرعاية المركزة"، واستطرد قائلاً "لو المستشفى متخصصة فقط فى إجراء عمليات البواسير، لابد أن يوجد بها وحدة عناية مركزة.

He pointed out that the number of patients with blood pressure and heart attacks continues to increase, indicating that 75% of patients with heart attacks caused by smoking, "I do not know how to call the title of a hospital building does not have units and intensive care rooms," and had "only if a specialized hospital in the conduct of hemorrhoids, there should be unity, and attention focused.

أكد د.عبد الحميد زغلول عضو اللجنة توقف العديد من وحدات الرعاية المركزة بسبب عدم وجود شبكة غاز وتساءل قائلاً "هل يعقل أن نوقف هذه الوحدات رغم أن تكلفة إنشاء الشبكة لا تتعدى 40 ألف جنيه؟".

He said. Abdel Hamid Zaghloul member of the Committee and many of its intensive care units because of the lack of a network of gas and he asked, "Is it possible to put a stop to these units, although the cost of establishing the network does not exceed 40 thousand pounds?".

كشف زغلول عن أن مستشفى رشيد نموذج حى لإهدار المال العام، لافتاً إلى قيام المسئولين عن بيع أسرة حديثة لوحدات الرعاية المركزة بالكيلو "كخردة" واستبدالها بأسرة جديدة وقال "إن تكلفة السرير الذى تم بيعة خردة 17 ألف جنيه".

Zaghloul revealed that the rational model of a hospital district to waste public money, he said, adding that the officials on the sale of the family of modern intensive care units Kilocycle "scrap" a new and replacement beds and said, "The cost of the bed, which was sold for scrap 17 thousand pounds."

طالب د.شمس الدين أنور بضرورة إعداد خريطة عن المستشفيات التى تحتاج إلى زيادة وحدات الرعاية الصحية بها.

D students. Shamsudin Anwar the need to prepare a map of the hospitals that need to be increased and the health-care units.

وشدد الدكتور حمدى السيد على ضرورة توفير سيارات إسعاف ضرورة بحضانات الأطفال واعترف الدكتور شيرين فؤاد بنقص حضّانات الأطفال ووحدات علاج الأطفال المبتسرين ووصفها "بكارثة كبيرة تتحملها الدولة".

And Dr. Hamdi Al-Sayyed stressed the need for the provision of ambulances and the need for incubators of children admitted Dr. Shereen Fouad nursery children and the lack of units and the treatment of preterm infants describe "a major catastrophe, borne by the state."

اعترف د.عبد الحميد أباظة مسئول الاتصال السياسى بوزارة الصحة بصعوبة توفير أسرّة الرعاية المركزية بالمجان.

Recognized. Abdel Hamid Abaza, political liaison officer at the Ministry of Health to provide family care, the difficulty of the central charge.

وقال "لابد أن يشارك المريض فى دفع جزء من تكلفة غرفة الرعاية المركزة ويستحيل على وزارة الصحة توفيرها بالمجان".

"We must be involved in the patient to pay part of the cost of the intensive care ward, it is impossible for the Ministry of Health provided free of charge."

وأكد أباظة الدور الذى بذلته الصحة مؤخراً لتفعيل الإدارة المركزية (ICU) وحدات الرعاية المركزة داخل المستشفيات، مبيناً إلى أنه تم إنشاء وحدات للرعاية المركزة النوعية داخل مركز الكبد القومى ومعهد السكر وفى بعض وحدات أمراض النساء.

Abaza stressed the role of Health recently made to give effect to the central administration (ICU) and intensive care units in hospitals, indicating that it was the establishment of intensive care units within the Center for Quality and the National Institute of the liver in some sugar and gynecology units.

أرجع أباظة المشكلة لنقص الخبرة بين الأطباء المتخصصين والتمريض وضعف الأجور التى تقاضها طبيب الرعاية المركزة.

Abaza attributed the problem to the lack of expertise among doctors and nursing professionals and low pay which little doctor in intensive care.

وأوضح أن إنشاء زمالة للرعاية المركزة سيحد من هذه المشكلة، لافتاً إلى أن أجر طبيب العناية المركزة يتراوح الآن ما بين 50 و60 جنيهاً فى النوبتجية، فيما تحصل الممرضة على 40 جنيهاً فى النوبتجية وهو ما ساعد على زيادة الإقبال للعمل فى وحدات الرعاية المركزة.

He pointed out that the establishment of fellowships for intensive care will reduce this problem, pointing out that wage intensive care doctor, it is only between 50 and 60 pounds in Alnobtjip, with the nurse to get 40 pounds Alnobtjip, which helped to increase demand to work in intensive care units.

Delegates from the airport, requiring companies to wear masks

The instructions of the Chamber of Tourism in order to avoid the swine flu infection
Sunday, May 24, 2009 - 16:56
Caption: Procedures to meet the increasingly stringent swine flu

Asked the Chamber of representatives of tourism companies, companies who receive tourists at airports and ports by following preventive measures during the reception of tourists coming from countries that have detected cases of influenza.

وأكد رياض قابيل أمين عام غرفة الشركات، أن هذه الإجراءات تلقتها الغرفة من الإدارة العامة للحجر الصحى بميناء القاهرة الجوى، وتشمل استخدام الأقنعة الواقية للأنف والفم والاهتمام بغسل الأيدى بالماء والصابون بصفة مستمرة، والابتعاد عن أماكن الازدحام، وخاصة الأماكن المغلقة، وإخطار الحجر الصحى بأى حالات اشتباه من السائحين تظهر عليهم أعراض الأنفلونزا "ارتفاع درجة الحرارة – رشح – صداع – آلام بالجسم – غثيان- قىء – إسهال".

The Secretary General of Riyadh Chamber of Qabil companies, that these actions received from the Chamber of the General Administration of quarantine in Cairo Airport, including the use of masks for the nose and mouth and attention to washing hands with soap and water continuously, and keep away from the congestion, especially indoor, and to notify the quarantine of any suspicion of tourists are showing symptoms of influenza, "the high temperature - nominated - headache - the pain of the body - nausea - vomiting - diarrhea."

Suspicion of infection in 6 new cases of bird flu and the lake Menoufia

Sunday, May 24, 2009 - 14:43

Detained fever hospitals and centers Echmoun Mnov read Menofia, 3 new cases of suspected bird flu, following the emergence of symptoms.

وأشار د.هشام عطا يوسف وكيل وزارة الصحة بالمنوفية، أن الحالة الأولى لعجوز مسن (60 سنة) تدعى كريمة على سعد وتقيم بكفر الفرعونية مركز أشمون، وتم حجزها بمستشفى حميات أشمون والحالة الثانية لمواطن يدعى السيد خطاب على البربرى (45 سنة) ويقيم بسرس الليان وتم احتجازه بمستشفى حميات منوف.

Pointed out. Hesham Youssef Atta and Undersecretary of the Ministry of Health Menoufia, the first case of an elderly man (60 years) are invited to a decent Kafr Saad and assess the status of the Pharaonic Echmoun was booked hospital Echmoun fevers and the second case of a man named Mr. barbaric speech on (45 years) and assesses Bsrs Allian Hospital, was arrested and admitted Mnov.

الحالة الثالثة لربة منزل تدعى فاطمة عبد المنعم عبد الحميد (26 سنة) وتقيم بمدينة تلا وتم احتجازها بحميات تلا، وتم أخذ عينات من دم المصابين وإرسالها إلى المعامل المركزية بالوزارة للفحص وتبين أن وراء الإصابة مخالطتهم لطيور منزلية نافقة وتم اتخاذ إجراءات التطهير اللازمة بمحل إقامة الحالات الثلاث.

The third case of a housewife named Fatima Abdel-Moneim Abdel-Hamid (26 years) and has been followed in the subsequent detention Bhmyat been sampling the blood of the injured and sent to the central laboratories of the ministry's inspection and found that the incidence of domestic birds Mkhaltthm dead cleansing action was necessary to establish the whereabouts of the cases three.

كما قامت مستشفى حميات دمنهور باحتجاز 3 أشخاص للاشتباه فى إصابتهم بمرض أنفلونزا الطيور بعد ظهور أعراض عليهم تتشابه مع أعراض مرض أنفلونزا الطيور عليهم من ارتفاع شديد فى درجة الحرارة واحتقان فى الحلق وصعوبة فى التنفس وألم فى العظام.

The hospital has admitted Damanhour 3 persons detained on suspicion of having bird flu after an outbreak of symptoms were similar to the symptoms of bird flu from their very high temperature, sore throat and difficulty in breathing and pain in the bones.

وكان اللواء مجدى أبو قمر مدير أمن البحيرة قد تلقى إخطاراً من مستشفى حميات دمنهور باحتجاز نادية سالم محمود (18 سنة) مقيمة بأبو حمص ونعناعة إسماعيل الحبروك, وتقيم برشيد, هانم إسماعيل يوسف صدقة (40 سنة – ربة منزل) مقيمة بإيتاى البارود, وتم أخذ عينة دم منهم لتحليلها فى المعامل المركزية لبيان مدى إصابتهم بالمرض.

The Major General, Magdi Abu Amar lake director of security had received notification from the hospital admitted the detention of Damanhour Nadia Mahmud Salim (18 years) resident Abu Homs, Nanaap Ismail Alhabrok, and assess the Brashid, Hanim Ismail Youssef charity (40 years - housewife) powder Biitay resident, was taken blood samples were analyzed in the laboratory to the central statement of the extent of their disease.

وعلى الفور تم تشكيل لجنة من مديرية الطب الوقائى والإدارة الصحية والطب البيطرى, التى انتقلت إلى منازل المصابين لتطهيرها وتطهير المنازل المجاورة وأخذ عينات من الطيور الموجودة بالمنزل لفحصها معملياً.

And were immediately set up a committee from the Directorate of Preventive Medicine and Health and the Department of Veterinary Medicine, which moved to the injured, clearing houses and clearing houses nearby and took samples of birds in the home laboratory for examination.

Sunday Conversation: The strategy against swine flu

By TODD ACKERMAN
Copyright 2009 Houston Chronicle
May 23, 2009, 7:01PM

Dr. Wendy Keitel, a Baylor College of Medicine professor of molecular virology and microbiology, last week began collecting blood samples from local swine flu patients that will be used in the development of a vaccine in anticipation of the virus returning this fall. Keitel, the lead investigator of the national effort, talked with Chronicle reporter Todd Ackerman about the new virus, the seasonal flu and the lure of a so-called universal flu vaccine that would work against all types of flu.

Q: What role will the blood samples play in developing a vaccine?

A: We are not making a vaccine at Baylor. What these samples will do is enable us to understand how the body develops an immunity against the illness. The changes from when sufferers are acutely ill to when they are getting better can help us figure out how a vaccine should perform. That’s important in vaccine trials.

Q: What’s the likelihood we’ll have an effective swine flu vaccine in ample supply this fall?

A: Good. Most seasonal influenza vaccine production will be done by the end of July so manufacturers will be able to switch their manufacturing capacity to swine flu at that time if it appears the virus will circulate again when influenza season starts.

Q: What are the chances the virus could mutate significantly from what we’re seeing now?

A: The most important thing people need to understand about the influenza virus is that it’s a wily and unpredictable foe. We already know that an H1N1 virus went from mild to severe in the 1918 pandemic. That doesn’t mean that this one will. I think you hope for the best and you anticipate there could be a change in the virulence. But even if doesn’t change to become more virulent, it’ll likely still cause widespread infections, deaths, doctors visits, hospitalizations and secondary pneumonias — what we see every year with seasonal influenza.

Q: To experts in the field, does it seem unacceptable that 36,000 people a year die from the flu?

A: Certainly, it’s not acceptable to us. Over 90 percent of people who die from seasonal flu are elderly, whose immune systems aren’t as strong and tend to have underlying chronic conditions that can increase their risk for complications of influenza. So there has been a tremendous effort to develop specific vaccines for the protection of the elderly and other people with underlying conditions.

Q: Is it true we still don’t know that much about the flu?

A: We know a lot about the flu, but we still have a lot to learn. Over the past 10 years, the medical community’s growing awareness of the huge impact flu has on individuals and in populations has led to a progressive expansion of immunization efforts against influenza. There’s even a move toward a universal immunization against influenza, vaccines that may stimulate immunity that lasts longer than a year. But those are hopes and dreams still.

Q: What are common misconceptions about flu viruses, generally?

A: The most common misconception is that it’s not a big deal, it’s just the flu. It’s that perception that for many years undermined efforts to control it.

Q: There seems to be a growing consensus now that adults do have some natural protection against swine flu, is that right? At what age does that start?

A: When they’ve tested blood from older people, they tend to have detectable levels of antibodies to this virus, whereas younger people don’t. We think it may be related to an H1N1 virus that circulated before 1957 and then disappeared. People born before then may have been exposed to closely related viruses and have some immunity.

Q: Why do you think swine flu caused so much more death in Mexico and seems relatively mild here?

A: I think we haven’t seen the end of it here yet. It’s not over until it’s over. I suspect it was more widespread in Mexico than reported, which would mean the death rate wasn’t as high as it seemed. That’ll be the subject of investigation. But it’s premature to draw any conclusions about whether it’s worse or better here yet.

Q: Has anything about this outbreak better prepared us for the next epidemic?

A: Yes. The concern about bird flu, H5N1, resulted in a concerted prevention effort that I think better prepared us for this, but this outbreak still exposed public health system gaps: We had shortages of rapid diagnostic tests for our labs; we had inadequate supplies or ability to get antivirals into areas where disease was occurring; and our surveillance system had huge weaknesses — we had a large outbreak that was already international before we even knew it was occurring.

todd.ackerman@chron.com

Latest developments on A/H1N1 flu worldwide

2009-05-24 10:10:35

BEIJING, May 24 (Xinhua) -- The following are the latest developments on the A/H1N1 flu outbreak worldwide on Sunday, according to the World Health Organization and governments' data.

Confirmed deaths worldwide: 91, with 80 in Mexico, nine in the United States, one in Canada and one in Costa Rica.

Confirmed cases: More than 12,020 in 45 countries, most in the United States and Mexico.