Novel Influenza H1N1 has Dramatic Risks for Pregnant Women
Like previous epidemic and pandemic diseases, 2009 pandemic influenza A (H1N1) may pose an increased risk of severe illness in pregnant women. To see if there were clinical experiences that matched this assumption a Californian investigation by their Department of Health reviewed demographic and clinical data reported from April 23 through August 11, 2009, for all H1N1-infected, reproductive-age women who were hospitalised or died. These included non-pregnant women, pregnant women, and postpartum women (those who had delivered ≤2 weeks previously).[1]
Read the rest of this page »
H1N1 – 3 Key Questions
Question 1 – How does it kill?
H1N1 is a unique virus and unlike seasonal flu which damages the upper airway cells, H1N1 Novel Influenza damages the terminal air sacs called alveoli. These are found in the lower part of lungs.
Secondly a co-infection with bacteria such as S.aureus or Streptococcus pneumoniae has presented in about one third of recorded deaths to date. The others appear at this stage to have succumbed to the virus alone. There does however, tend to be other underlying health problems such as diabetes, overweight, cardiovascular problems etc. The damage to the lung tissues involves the rupture of the alveoli allowing blood to fill the spaces usually reserved for gas exchanges.
Read the rest of this page »
Pain Killers Adversely Inhibit Vaccination Benefits
Read the rest of this page »
The questions concerning the benefits Vs risks of vaccination in light of the recent global approach to H1N1 (novel influenza) vaccine recommendations has thrown this area of medicine under a very bright spotlight. Leaving aside the question ‘to vaccinate or not’ a recent article has raised a simple and useful question. If I take a non steroidal pain killer (NSAID’s) to reduce post vaccine discomfort, or are ingesting them for other reasons does it affect my vaccine promoted immune response?
Gastric Complications For Patients with H1N1 (Swine Flu)
The incidence of gastric events in normal seasonal flu is very low, almost never. The H1N1 swine Flu virus has differentiated itself from the seasonal flu not only in its speed of migration around the world, but also in the development of gut related events.
A new article in the International journal GUT [1] explains how a well set up investigational group based in Chile – a country well exposed to the virus, followed the first 500 confirmed patients who were infected with the influenza A (H1N1) 2009 virus back in May 2009.
Read the rest of this page »
H1N1 (Swine Flu) What Does it Mean This Winter?
The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control recently surveyed H1N1 (Swine Flu) epidemiological 2009 data for 28 countries, finding that 51% of all deaths have been among people aged 20-49 years, and only 12% were among people over 60 years of age.
This is striking, as it is a near-perfect reverse of normal flu trends, and mirrors what was seen, demographically, in 1918. While the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology have tried to factor in such trends, it is extremely difficult to know how influenza dynamics, illnesses and death rates may vary if transmission and illness is primarily among young adults.
Read the rest of this page »
Vit D Optimisation Requires Supplementation Says Harvard
The conservative Harvard Medical School in the USA normally promotes micronutrient intake being derived from food stuffs alone. The Health Publications Bulletin out in Sept 2009 says that from the perspective of Vitamin D food sources may be inadequate and that supplementary intake is required to meet physiological optimisation. (See Video)
Do Flu Vaccines Provide Real Protection?
Read the rest of this page »
Each year the respective medical authorities in the western world recommend the influenza vaccine and who should receive it. Since 1999 the age groups have been expanded to include greater numbers of people. Whilst the UK has a more conservative approach to seasonal flu in terms of age, in the USA virtually the only groups not recommended to receive the vaccine are those aged between 19 and 40 without any ongoing health problem.
Vit D Gains New Respect as Vital Health Nutrient
Vit D Balances the Innate Immune Response
Read the rest of this page »
A new study has concluded that one key part of the immune system, the ability of vitamin D to regulate anti-bactericidal proteins, is so important that it has been conserved through almost 60 million years of evolution and is shared only by primates, including humans – but no other known animal species. The genetic material – called an Alu short interspersed element – is part of what used to be thought of as “junk DNA” and makes up more than 90 percent of the human genome.
BioMask BF-200. Mimics Mucosal Cells Then Minerals Kill the H1N1 Virus
The influenza virus is a determined and relentless foe. Infecting about 1 billion people worldwide annually and killing hundreds of thousands. If influenza evolves into a pandemic strain, as it did three times last century, it could kill tens of millions.
Stripped to its genetic skeleton the virus that has wrought havoc on populations and caused untold misery is one of the simplest organisms on the planet. It consists of merely eight genes. Humans, on the other hand, have some 20,000 genes.
According to experts, in the first eight weeks of a flu pandemic, an effective mask could reduce the number of cases from one million to just 6. [1]
Read the rest of this page »
Children and Anti-Virals. Are They Worth Combining?
Read the rest of this page »
Comment: A paper out in the British Medical Journal on the 10th August 2009 [1] raises some interesting questions about the benefit of treating children under the age of 12 with neuraminidase inhibitors. This paper looked at 4 RCT’s involving 1766 children of whom 1243 had confirmed seasonal influenza A. Plus three RCT’s for the potential benefits of prophylaxis in 863 children.
