How can we be prepared if the swine flu gets out of hand and people are getting the flu like swine disease?

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How can a family or people get prepared if an outbreak of the swine flu gets uncontrollable. I live in new york city area and i heard that a few school student in a public high school has been confirmed of the flu like swine disease.
Preparedness? Outbreak? Uncontrollable disease? Hang on...

1. Think about this: If Relenza and Tamiflu seem to be effective against the current strain of swine flu, and these vaccines were developed for a different strain of influenza, how much dangerously different could this swine flu be? The CDC says, symptoms for swine flu are typical "flu-like" and not some bizarre never before seen symptom. ""The symptoms of swine flu in people are expected to be similar to the symptoms of regular human seasonal influenza and include fever, lethargy, lack of appetite and coughing. Some people with swine flu also have reported runny nose, sore throat, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea."

2. The swine flu of concern is a category A influenza. Pig farmers have always caught a variant of swine flu. If you tested pig farmers around the globe, and their family, and anyone who worked with them- you'd find they have immunities against swine flu variations. What makes this one unique is that it doesn't seem to require pigs as a vector. What's different is how it is spreading, from person to person now, as opposed to from pig to person. In general, every year there are new strains of influenza that have mutated or were more resistant to existing vaccines and nobody ever warns about a pandemic from new cases.

3. The body's immune system is the most important element when recovering from exposure to influenza. That means in the absence of having an already compromised immune system you're no worse off than if you came into contact with any other flu virus. Even if you get the most common flu viruses that have been out for years, and you don't take care of yourself after contracting sypmtoms (e.g., you continue to go to work, you don't get enough sleep, you don't drink enough water, your diet is poor, etc.), you could get worse and need hospitalization. And guess what? The current flu vaccines don't always protect you.

4. Speculation about the swine flu "mutating" into a "more deadly" strain that will cause a pandemic with thousands of deaths worldwide is only SPECULATION, and until someone can predict the future there's just no reason to be worrying to the extent that the media is senationalizing all this. Freakin' world of angst. The current preeminent hype sounds more like a way to get people scared enough to pay for flu shots.

5. (perhaps most important for your health) Stay away from the news media sensationalizing a "pandemic" of swine flu that hasn't even occurred yet.

6. Want to lessen your chances of getting ANY type of influenza? Wash your hands after being in public places and around others and refrain from touching your eyes or nose.  (+ info)

Is swine flu considered a disease or a virus?

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I'm doing a report for school, and I need to know: is swine flu (H1N1) considered a disease, a virus, or both?
  (+ info)

How does having an autoimmune disease put you more at risk for swine flu?

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does autoimmune disease rev up the cytokine storm, or does it calm it down due to immune dysfunction?
well it would depend on which autoimmune disease you are thinking of, but I would suspect that because your immune system is usually depressed in autoimmune disorders...it puts you at greater risk because you immune system is unable to effectively attack and fight off an invading virus.  (+ info)

Is the swine flu a serious problem or another over hyped disease fueled by the media?

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Should I be worried about this or not? Now the WHO says that 7 people have died in Mexico rather than the 100+ figure. Do you remember something called SARS from a few years ago? It disappeared rather quickly why will the swine flu be anything different?
The swine flu virus is perhaps the trickiest known to medical science; it constantly changes form to elude the protective antibodies that the body has developed in response to previous exposures to influenza or to influenza vaccines. Every two or three years the virus undergoes minor changes. Then, at intervals of roughly a decade, after the bulk of the world's population has developed some level of resistance to these minor changes, it undergoes a major shift that enables it to tear off on yet another pandemic sweep around the world, infecting hundreds of millions of people who suddenly find their antibody defenses outflanked.

Even during the Spanish flu pandemic, the initial wave of the disease was relatively mild, while the second wave was highly lethal  (+ info)

Swine flu vaccine-if have low immunity can you get the disease from jab?

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I would like to know the likelihood of actually getting the flu from the vaccine if you are immuno-compromised. If any experts are available, could they give an accurate answer about this. I have heard that the vaccine is a weak form of the disease, so is there a slight possibility that you catch the disease?
the jab does NOT contain live virus and so CANNOT give anyone the flu under any circumstances.

think of the flu virus as an orange the damage parts are the inside of the orange (the viral RNA) but you recognise it by its skin. in the vaccine they take the 'skin' of the virus - blitz it into small bits that your immune system can recognise and inject that - there is NO viral RNA so you cant get the infection. The body however recognises the 'viral skin' so starts an immune response to that so helping protect you.

If you are immune compromised you should have TWO jabs three weeks apart.  (+ info)

Who thinks Swine Flu can be the beginning of a horrible disease that threatens to kill millions of people?

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I hope it's not one of those diseases in movies always have that millions and millions of people die, and we all have to struggle to survive, and we have to wear gas masks or something!
I hope it doesn't get to a pandemic
H1N1 flu's are descendants of the 1918 pandemic strain. Due to mutations. the flu shot may or may not work, Therefore, there's no vaccine available for this new swine flu. This has instilled fear among the people that millions of people will die before a vaccine can be made.

Regular swine flu is a contagious respiratory disease, caused by a type-A influenza virus that affects pigs. The current strain, A(H1N1), is a new variation of an H1N1 virus which causes seasonal flu outbreaks in humans. It also contains genetic material of bird and pig versions apart from human genetic material. Surprisingly, this version has never before been seen in neither human nor animal.

A few months ago, scientists concluded that the 1918 flu pandemic that killed between 50 to100 million people worldwide in a matter of 18 months, was not due to the flu itself. Instead, they discovered the real culprit was streptococcus pneumoniae infections in which people with influenza often get what is known as a "superinfection" with a bacterial agent. In 1918 it appears to have been Streptococcus pneumoniae.

Streptococcus pneumoniae causes pneumococcal infections and affects children and adults worldwide. S. pneumoniae infects the upper respiratory tract and can cause pneumonia, as well as infections in other parts of the body such as in the bloodstream (bacteremia), lining of the brain and spinal cord (meningitis), bones (osteomyelitis), joints (arthritis), ears (otitis media) and sinuses (sinusitis).

The researchers concluded that, since strep is much easier to treat than the flu using modern medicine, a new pandemic would likely be much less dreadful than it was 91 years ago.  (+ info)

Does the swine flu start working as soon as there is the transmission of the disease or what?

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How long does the virus take to kick in?
H1N1 Influenza (commonly referred to as the Swine Flu) is a new influenza virus causing illness in people in the US and countries around the world. It has elements of influenza that have previously been found in humans, pigs, and birds. It is important to know how to avoid getting the infection from another person and to avoid spreading it if you have it.
Why are we so worried about the H1N1 influenza when thousands die every year from seasonal flu? According to the World Health Organization (WHO), seasonal epidemics occur every year but the virus is treated with seasonal vaccines. H1N1 is a new virus to which people have no immunity increasing the possibility of a world-wide epidemic.
H1N1 influenza A virus is thought to spread mainly from person-to-person in the same way that seasonal flu spreads, which is through coughing or sneezing of people with influenza. Sometimes people may become infected by touching something with flu viruses on it and then touching their mouth or nose. You cannot get the flu from eating pork.
The symptoms of H1N1 flu in people are similar to the symptoms of regular human flu and include fever, cough, sore throat, body aches, headache, chills and fatigue. Some people have reported diarrhea and vomiting. Like regular seasonal flu, H1N1 flu may cause a worsening of underlying chronic medical conditions, such as heart and lung disease.
Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Throw the tissue into the trash after you use it. Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze. Alcohol-based hand cleaners are also effective. Avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth to prevent the spread of germs.
If you are exposed to the flu or have traveled to an area in which there have been cases of the flu, monitor yourself for flu symptoms for 7 days because it may take that long for the illness to develop. See your doctor if you start coming down with the symptoms of the flu. Public health experts recommend that you stay home from work or school and limit contact with others to keep from infecting them.
It is expected that most people will recover without needing medical care. If indicated, there are antiviral medications called Tamiflu and Relenza that can make your illness milder and make you feel better faster. They may also prevent serious flu complications. For treatment, antiviral drugs work best if started soon after getting sick (within 2 days of onset of symptoms).
The best defense against the flu is to wash your hands.  (+ info)

What is the level of protection for the subsequent similar disease after getting influenza (swine flu)?

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Are we completely protected after the first attack of Swine flu?
Of course not! Flu is a virus. The body has no defense against viruses because they mutate constantly - did you know that EVERY time you get a cold it is a DIFFERENT virus? Although you'll never get sick from that specific cold again, you are still susceptible to every other mutation out there. Forever.  (+ info)

What system does the disease swine belong to?

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And where is a good online source that can tell me more?
flu  (+ info)

What can I do to prevent being claimed by the Swine disease?

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Yeah, I don't want to die, that'd be gay. So what are some things I can do to prevent being killed?

Thanks.
The swine disease is the flu. So to avoid getting the swine flu you should do the same things to avoid the yearly flu. Was your hands, keep your immune system up, by eating well and washing your hands a lot. You could carry a small case of hand sanitizer. The BIGGEST thing is getting your flu vaccine. Go to your local hospital or clinic and ask for a flu vaccine
Hope that helps  (+ info)

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