Health Tips

Vaccine against seasonal influenza strain H1N1 is not believed to protect us. Vaccines against the Swine Flu to cope with seasonal flu to minimize infection rates are typically developed, and yet annually it still kills around half a million of the worlds population. Today, they use an injection of “killed virus”, the worlds flu vaccines. Manufacturers are asked to produce a vaccine for H1N1, they are unlikely to be able to respond quickly enough if a global pandemic is declared.

About a billion doses of any one vaccine each year is the only they can produce, so that even if all the capacity was switched to fight a pandemic flu, as opposed to a seasonal flu. Few years ago, the supply of the vaccines they have produced were enough to epidemic but now is not enough for the total populations outbreak.

Deadlier wave of a new H1N1 strain they forecast will reappear this fall and they have to produce pandemic vaccines as early as now to prepare for a turn out as the vaccine may not be as effective will be sure to a big waste of resources with serious results, and there would also be a shortage of seasonal flu vaccine available. Only a few more weeks were needed for the World Health Organization (WHO) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) CDC to develop a “seed strain” of the pandemic virus on the first days May, but producers would then need four to six months before they could create large volumes of vaccine.

In other point of view, the WHO will attempt to make sure that a substantial amount is available and should a pandemic be declared and a vaccine produced, for the benefit of developing countries. Vaccine manufacturers and countries with standing orders, such as the U.S. and some European countries will be asked to share with developing countries from the moment the first batches are ready if an H1N1 vaccine is made.

2009-2010 flu seasons are ineffective against the new strain with the previous influenza vaccines for the north and south hemispheres. The WHO claims that two separate immunizations will be required for seasonal and swine flu, but no decision would be made on whether to begin producing a swine flu vaccine. The board will receive inputs from manufacturers (e.g. GlaxoSmithKline, Sanofi-Aventis, Novartis and Baxter International) regarding when they are able to finish manufacturing the seasonal shot and begin production of the swine flu vaccine, waiting from the WHO of their recommendations and “seed virus”, and some may be ready to proceed with production at that time.

There also antiviral drugs available for treatments of influenza, the virus is resistant to amantadine and rimantadine but sensitive to the oseltamivir and zanamivir. There remains concern that this strain may mutate develop resistance to oseltamivir in the future. For the treatment and prevention of the Swine Flu, the CDC recommended the use of Tamiflu (oseltamivir) and Relenza (zanamivir). Studies shows that the medication continues to maintain its effective that why the U.S. government had already extended the shelf life of federally stockpiled Tamiflu from their original five years to seven years.

Buying medications from online sources is not recommended by the WHO because they believed that half of the drugs they sold are counterfeited. Others are thinking if they grab up antiviral drugs for their safe even if they have no symptoms, the health officials warned them may eventually lead them to the Swine Flu virus developing drug resistance.

In the history of the United States, this is not the first time that the country is experiencing a swine flu outbreak. The first recorded incident of H1N1 infection in the US was recorded on January 27, 1976, when there was a small outbreak of mild respiratory illnesses took place at Fort Dix Army Base in New Jersey.

According to throat cultures obtained from sick soldiers, each of the patients were infected by “swine-like flu virus” which have been unknown to humans since 1930. It was believed that the same virus was also responsible for the worst flu pandemic in the United States in 1918-1919 which led to the death of half a million Americans.

To many people, the discovery of the 1976 was more of a debacle than a victory because after only 10 weeks of implementation, vaccination efforts came to a premature close as the program led to complications which were associated to the shots.

After the death of Private David Lewis after participating in a forced five-mile march the night before his demise, Dr. David Sencer and his colleagues attributed the death to strains of swine-like flu virus. Upon the advice of specialists across the United States, Dr. Sencer called on then President Gerald Ford to launch a nationwide mass inoculation.

President Ford and the US Congress heeded the call and in October implemented the $137-million National Inoculation Program. However, after only several days of implementation, there were reports that the vaccine being used for the program made the patients prone to Guillain-Barre Syndrome, a rare neurological disorder which results to temporary paralysis but could be risky.

Prior to its premature end in December 1976, the vaccine was administered to over 40 million Americans comprising almost 25% of the population. From the over 500 people who experienced Guillain-Barre Syndrome after vaccine administration, 25 people died. As a result, the Federal Government paid millions worth of damages to the families of the victims.

Meanwhile, the epidemic which some experts predicted would affect 50 to 60 million Americans during that time never happened. According to the Center for Disease Control, there were only 200 confirmed cases and one death.

It is understandable why the current H1N1 outbreak has been a source of anxiety for the public who recalls the 1976 event. It serves as a lesson for the government and health officials who needs to make a decision on the current swine flu in the days and weeks to come.

Dr. David Sencer, who is now retired and resides in Atlanta, believes that the 1976 debacle brought good things as well as bad. The belief that the 1918-19 flu epidemic resulted from swine-like virus partly contributed to the 1976 setback.

Although current studies have shown that the cause of the epidemic was bird flu, it did not ease the current anxiety prevailing in the public. The 1918-19 epidemic led to the death of 500,000 people in the United States and more than 50 million worldwide.

In Mexico, where the 2009 swine flu outbreak, originated, 22 people have died from the most recent outbreak. Government officials have been under fire for the way they have handled the situation. However, with such a mystery surrounding the threat, Dr. Peter Katona, who is an authority on infectious disease from UCLA, believes that people have failed to understand the challenges posed by such problem.