AM, thanks for sharing this with us. But I think Dr. Gitterle needs to make sure he doesn't sit on the edge of invoking hysteria. Even as I listen to the press, their tone is on the edge of hysteria. However, at this point we only have 109 confirmed cases (out of a population of 304,059,724 - Jul 2008). One confirmed death, the poor lil guy in Texas (a Mexican national visiting our country). I am not saying there aren't more cases; however, that will be up to health officials and the CDC to confirm and release that information. This doctor's posting could have been worded much more carefully. As a health care professional, he has an obligation to the public ...YES...but there are ways to go about it. If I weren't a learned person (who endeavors to stay as informed as possible) I would be freaking out right now. Just my $.02
Quote:
- During the night, we crossed the threshold for the definition of a WHO, Phase 6 global pandemic. This has not happened in any of our lifetimes so far. We are in uncharted territory.
Level of influenza pandemic alert raised from phase 4 to 5 --29 April 2009 -- Based on assessment of all available information and following several expert consultations, Dr Margaret Chan, WHO's Director-General raised the current level of influenza pandemic alert from phase 4 to 5. She stated that all countries should immediately activate their pandemic preparedness plans. At this stage, effective and essential measures include heightened surveillance, early detection and treatment of cases, and infection control in all health facilities. http://www.who.int/en/
- Tamiflu is running out. There is a national stockpile, but it will have to be carefully managed for law enforcement and first responders as it is not enough to treat the likely number of infections when this is full-blown. I don't think there is a big supply of Relenza, but I do not know those numbers. If I had to choose, I would take Relenza, as I think it gets more drug to the affected tissue than Tamiflu.
I sure would love to know where he is getting his information. Making blanket statements like this can induce an even bigger problem than people getting the flu....mass hysteria is not fun to deal with!
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A friend of mine gave me this little tidbit to share and while the numbers are broad (these are estimations) it does help put things in perspective:
http://www.flufacts.com/impact/statistics.aspx
INFLUENZA STATISTICS
The flu isn’t always thought of as a serious or life-threatening illness. Because of the dangers and complications it can have in older people, children, and people with health problems, the perception of flu severity is changing.
In the U.S., an estimated 25–50 million cases of the flu are currently reported each year — leading to 150,000 hospitalizations and 30,000–40,000 deaths yearly. If these figures were to be estimated incorporating the rest of the world, there would be an average of approximately 1 billion cases of flu, around 3–5 million cases of severe illness, and 300,000–500,000 deaths annually.
Flu-related deaths can result from pneumonia and from exacerbations of cardiopulmonary conditions and other chronic diseases. Deaths of older adults account for more than 90% of deaths attributed to pneumonia and influenza.