Swine flu spreads to UK and is suspected in Brazil, Australia, New Zealand; death toll rises

[BirminghamExaminer]

Excerpt:

At least 2 cases of swine flu have been confirmed in Scotland.

More cases are suspected in Israel, Brazil, Peru, Guatemala, France, Australia and New Zealand.

Health officials at the Centers for Disease Control recommend that Americans limit travel to Mexico.

There are now at least 40 confirmed cases of swine flu in the United States but so far, none have been serious cases.

The death toll has risen to around 150 in Mexico and is expected to rise.

The incubation period for this strain of swine flu is thought to be around 3 days. This means that you can have the flu and be contagious for 3 days before exhibiting any symptoms.

More details on swine flu.

[HereSince1628]

1. Do we know yet if there is only one flu variety at work in Mexico?

Last I read there were possibly three, but the lab-confirmations were awaiting Canadian lab work.

[BirminghamExaminer]

3. I don't know about that.....but

I am under the impression that while viruses evolve, they don't evolve that quickly but I could be wrong.

The 1918 pandemic flu known as Spanish flu began in the spring with rather mild outbreak but by that fall, it was deadly and the researchers who have been studying it all these years still say it was exactly the same virus so I'm not sure what to think.

We are comparing Mexico to U.S. illnesses without the right numbers to back up the story. In Mexico, thousands of people have had the flu (probably much more than that actually) and 150 have died. In the U.S. only 40 people have had it for what....two or three days? I think it's too early for us to think that just because the cases here have been mild so far that it will stay that way. Most of the people here who have it are children. Most of the people in Mexico that have died were adults. This is one of the worrying things to me because that is the same pattern that occurred in the 1918 pandemic. I almost wish I hadn't read so much about it (I've read two pretty scholarly books on the 1918 flu pandemic for medical anthropology classes in the 90s).

I am not suggesting people should panic but people shouldn't take this too lightly even though we're all already sick of hearing about it.

[HereSince1628]

4. Actually under anti-viral treatment, influenza is known to start shedding resistant strain

in four to six days! Personally, I think that is not slow.

I agree that it's early days in this all over the world and that the picture could (will?) look very different in a week.

[Mojorabbit]

2. Suspect cases in Russia too. nt