Tag Archives: influenza

H1N1 Vaccine Safety: FDA Letter to Health Care Professionals 2

Commissioner’s Letter to Health Care Professionals Letter from the Commissioner to Nation’s Health Care Professionals on H1N1 Vaccine Safety U.S Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Jan 14, 2010 KEY points and excerpts: FDA and CDC are assessing H1N1 vaccine safety on a continuing basis and have published a detailed report describing the safety profile of […]

H1N1 Vaccine Safety: Guillain-Barré Syndrome – Less Mysterious, More Manageable and Very Rare 1

Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS) is a very rare disorder in which the body’s immune system attacks part of the peripheral nervous system. Specifically, “GBS damages the nerves’ protective covering (myelin sheath) and this interferes with the signaling process, causing weakness, numbness or paralysis.”  There is no cure for GBS but it is treatable.  Most recover and […]

2010 January 12 21:53:09 UTC – Misery in Haiti Comments Off on 2010 January 12 21:53:09 UTC – Misery in Haiti

Background on Haiti Earthquake USGS National Eathquake Information Center: Magnitude 7.0 – HAITI REGION DOS: Travel Alert – HAITI WHO: Public health risk assessment and interventions: Haiti Earthquake January 2010 (PDF) USAID: Response to Haiti Earthquake DOD: OPERATION UNIFIED RESPONSE How You Can Help American Red Cross International Committee of the Red Cross

Video Digest: H1N1 Vaccination Push – Sketches from Maine and California; Memories of Flu Resurgence in Winter 1958 Comments Off on Video Digest: H1N1 Vaccination Push – Sketches from Maine and California; Memories of Flu Resurgence in Winter 1958

 

World Notes: Dispatches from Asia. Pyongyang on H1N1 “Alert”; Ludhiana (India) on H1N1 “War Footing” Comments Off on World Notes: Dispatches from Asia. Pyongyang on H1N1 “Alert”; Ludhiana (India) on H1N1 “War Footing”

PYONGYANG: The H1N1 flu situation remains unclear in North Korea. Indications, though somewhat tenuous, suggest the situation is serious. The Wall Street Journal reported the country issued a nationwide alert on H1N1 in late December. Earlier that month North Korea’s official news agency (KCNA) reported that nine people had contracted the H1N1 virus in the […]

World Notes: “Grim” Winter Flu Outlook for China Comments Off on World Notes: “Grim” Winter Flu Outlook for China

  BEIJING: Agence France Presse reported that all but six of China’s 659 deaths from H1N1 were recorded in the last two months of 2009, suggesting the flu is on the upswing. While H1N1 is declining in major cities, China’s Health Ministry reports H1N1 is spreading into the countryside. Ministry officials described the winter flu […]

A Shot in the Arm: New Public Information Campaign Push for H1N1 Vaccination Comments Off on A Shot in the Arm: New Public Information Campaign Push for H1N1 Vaccination

As the nation enters 2010 with ample H1N1 vaccine supplies and a public weary from H1N1, HHS has ramped up public information efforts encouraging Americans to get vaccinated. Several events are planned for National Influenza Vaccination Week, which has been rescheduled to the week of Jan 10. New public-service announcements (PSA’s) are appearing on radio, […]

Video Digest: H1N1 in Asia – Vignettes from New Delhi and Bishkek (Kyrgyzstan) Comments Off on Video Digest: H1N1 in Asia – Vignettes from New Delhi and Bishkek (Kyrgyzstan)

   

Severe H1N1 and Lung Damage: A Pefect (Cytokine) Storm ? Comments Off on Severe H1N1 and Lung Damage: A Pefect (Cytokine) Storm ?

Medical evidence continues to accumulate on lung damage in severe cases of H1N1 influenza. Researchers at Sao Paul University Medical School found three distinct patterns of lung damage revealed from autopsies conducted on 21 patients who died from H1N1. Their findings, published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, indicated that acute […]

H1N1 Research: Scientists discover natural flu-fighting proteins 1

CHICAGO, Dec. 18, 2009 (Reuters) — U.S. researchers have discovered antiviral proteins in cells that naturally fight off influenza infections, a finding that may lead to better ways to make vaccines and protect people against the flu. Comment: The scientists published their findings in the journal Cell in a paper titled The IFITM Proteins Mediate […]