About Swine Flu - Everything You Need to Know About the H1N1 Pandemic
Early in 2009 a new strain of flu broke out in Mexico and subsequently spread to other parts of the world.
It was dubbed "swine flu" because the virus originated from pigs.
The rapid spread of the virus also raised countless questions with regards to swine flu; Where does is come from? Why is it called swine flu? Is there a cure? Is my life in danger? In this article these questions and other aspects about the swine flu pandemic will be discussed in detail.
What's in a name? Other than the fact that the virus that causes swine flu originated form pigs, the subsequent outbreak of swine flu has almost nothing to do with pigs.
Swine flu is a disease that is being transmitted between humans across the world and pigs are not contributing in any way to the infection and spreading of the virus among humans.
The use of the term swine flu by mass media has resulted in people thinking the flu could be contracted from consuming pork products and even that entire pork populations should be destroyed to curb the spread of the virus, thus creating a false an incorrect perception of pigs and pork products.
It is for this reason that health authorities have decided to refer the flu as the H1N1 Influenza A or just the H1N1 virus to prevent any misconceptions about pork.
H1N1 Influenza A is the correct scientific description of the virus.
The H and N refer to specific proteins that occur on the outer surface of the virus called hemagglutinin and neuraminidase respectively.
These proteins are assigned a number to indicate the specific variety of the relevant protein (different varieties exist because of viral mutations), in this case the number 1 to each.
The origins of the virus The first outbreak of the virus was first detected in Mexico City in March 2009, but where the virus actually came from originally is debatable.
The virus could have circulated among humans for months almost anywhere in the world before arriving in Mexico and infecting many people at a time which resulted in the actual outbreak as detected in Mexico City.
Some evidence suggests that the virus is closely related to a virus which occurred in Asia, which suggest that it could be of Asian origin.
However, there is no hard evidence that points to the exact origin of the H1N1 Influenza A virus.
A full genetic sequencing of the virus has already been performed and this does not paint a very clear picture either.
It showed that the virus has genetic material from quite a few different viruses from North America, Europe and Asia, which broadens the field of origin significantly.
Pandemic After the initial outbreak in Mexico, the virus subsequently spread to other parts of the world.
The virus is easily transmitted from one person to another by being present in exhaled respiratory droplets from coughing and sneezing, physical contact, kissing and touching an object touched by an infected person, then transferring the virus to the nose or mouth.
In fact, the World Health Organisation declared an alert level of six (out of a maximum of six) that refers to the ability of the virus to spread from one person to another.
Since transmission of the virus happens so easily and there are thousands of people traveling every day to all corners of the world a pandemic was imminent.
The virus spread so fast that only three months after the initial outbreak the WHO declared a pandemic in June 2009.
Symptoms and severity Despite the intense media hype about the spread of the virus and the meticulous documenting of every death related to the H1N1 virus, the reality is that most infections are quite mild, just like regular seasonal flu, with similar symptoms which include fever, headaches, coughing, aching muscles and joints, tiredness, sore throat, runny nose and in the more sever cases, diarrhea and vomiting.
This might beg the question: How would I know if I had swine flu or seasonal flu? It is not possible to be absolutely sure without having your blood or saliva tested in a laboratory.
In fact, it is reported that the laboratory test itself is only about 90% accurate.
The quick-tests that have been developed for rapid testing are only about 70% accurate.
The tests attempt to verify whether you have H1N1 antibodies in your blood yet.
If you are infected with the H1N1 virus but have not manufactured antibodies yet (or not enough to be detected) the test result will be negative.
The average person will be strong enough to overcome the flu with the correct treatment in a matter of days, but there are others that run a higher risk of developing complications that can result in death.
These people include the elderly, pregnant women, asthmatics, diabetics, those with heart or lung disease and those with a weakened immune system.
When to see the doctor Certain symptoms could warrant a visit to the doctor because they could be an indication of complications developing as a result of the flu.
The warning signs for children are blue or black lips or fingertips, rapid inhaling and exhaling, difficulty breathing, seizures and extreme irritability.
For adults a painful chest or abdomen, shortness of breath and persistent vomiting are the indicators.
Swine flu treatment Most people will recover from swine flu without needing to seek medical attention.
You can ease the symptoms with over-the-counter drugs obtainable from your pharmacy while you recover.
Sufficient rest is important and no exercise or stressful routines should be performed or maintained to avoid risking damage to the heart muscle.
Note that over-the-counter drugs are only for symptomatic treatment - it does not fight the virus, your immune system will be taking care of that.
There are antiviral drugs available to combat the virus.
They are called Tamiflu (oseltamivir) and Relenza (zanamivir).
According to the CDC (Centre of Disease Control) these should be prescribed to those patients with severe cases of the flu to help them recover.
It is important to start the medication within two days after the first symptoms appear to be most effective.
Prudent prescribing of these drugs is also very important to prevent the virus from developing resistance which would render the medication worthless on the shelves of pharmacies.
Swine flu prevention There are quite a few things that you can personally do to avoid getting infected with the H1N1 virus.
They include the following: oFrequent washing of hands oMaintain a strong immune system with a healthy diet oAvoid close contact with people you know are affected oAvoid crowded places Immunity is obviously the best way to prevent infection, but at the time this article was written the vaccine for swine flu was still being developed and not yet available to the public.
The WHO estimates the vaccine to be ready early in 2010.
The H1N1 virus will only stop spreading when there is no-one (or very little people) left to infect.
This is achieved by something called "herd immunity".
This means that in any group of people there are not many left that can become infected.
If there is no-one to infect, the virus can't spread or the odds of it spreading will be very low - essentially safety in numbers.
The world's population will obtain immunity by either one of two ways: generating immunity by being infected and recovering from the H1N1 virus or by means of vaccination.
Once the vaccine is available and is being mass produced, this process of immunisation will take place rapidly and the H1N1 virus will slowly disappear.
It was dubbed "swine flu" because the virus originated from pigs.
The rapid spread of the virus also raised countless questions with regards to swine flu; Where does is come from? Why is it called swine flu? Is there a cure? Is my life in danger? In this article these questions and other aspects about the swine flu pandemic will be discussed in detail.
What's in a name? Other than the fact that the virus that causes swine flu originated form pigs, the subsequent outbreak of swine flu has almost nothing to do with pigs.
Swine flu is a disease that is being transmitted between humans across the world and pigs are not contributing in any way to the infection and spreading of the virus among humans.
The use of the term swine flu by mass media has resulted in people thinking the flu could be contracted from consuming pork products and even that entire pork populations should be destroyed to curb the spread of the virus, thus creating a false an incorrect perception of pigs and pork products.
It is for this reason that health authorities have decided to refer the flu as the H1N1 Influenza A or just the H1N1 virus to prevent any misconceptions about pork.
H1N1 Influenza A is the correct scientific description of the virus.
The H and N refer to specific proteins that occur on the outer surface of the virus called hemagglutinin and neuraminidase respectively.
These proteins are assigned a number to indicate the specific variety of the relevant protein (different varieties exist because of viral mutations), in this case the number 1 to each.
The origins of the virus The first outbreak of the virus was first detected in Mexico City in March 2009, but where the virus actually came from originally is debatable.
The virus could have circulated among humans for months almost anywhere in the world before arriving in Mexico and infecting many people at a time which resulted in the actual outbreak as detected in Mexico City.
Some evidence suggests that the virus is closely related to a virus which occurred in Asia, which suggest that it could be of Asian origin.
However, there is no hard evidence that points to the exact origin of the H1N1 Influenza A virus.
A full genetic sequencing of the virus has already been performed and this does not paint a very clear picture either.
It showed that the virus has genetic material from quite a few different viruses from North America, Europe and Asia, which broadens the field of origin significantly.
Pandemic After the initial outbreak in Mexico, the virus subsequently spread to other parts of the world.
The virus is easily transmitted from one person to another by being present in exhaled respiratory droplets from coughing and sneezing, physical contact, kissing and touching an object touched by an infected person, then transferring the virus to the nose or mouth.
In fact, the World Health Organisation declared an alert level of six (out of a maximum of six) that refers to the ability of the virus to spread from one person to another.
Since transmission of the virus happens so easily and there are thousands of people traveling every day to all corners of the world a pandemic was imminent.
The virus spread so fast that only three months after the initial outbreak the WHO declared a pandemic in June 2009.
Symptoms and severity Despite the intense media hype about the spread of the virus and the meticulous documenting of every death related to the H1N1 virus, the reality is that most infections are quite mild, just like regular seasonal flu, with similar symptoms which include fever, headaches, coughing, aching muscles and joints, tiredness, sore throat, runny nose and in the more sever cases, diarrhea and vomiting.
This might beg the question: How would I know if I had swine flu or seasonal flu? It is not possible to be absolutely sure without having your blood or saliva tested in a laboratory.
In fact, it is reported that the laboratory test itself is only about 90% accurate.
The quick-tests that have been developed for rapid testing are only about 70% accurate.
The tests attempt to verify whether you have H1N1 antibodies in your blood yet.
If you are infected with the H1N1 virus but have not manufactured antibodies yet (or not enough to be detected) the test result will be negative.
The average person will be strong enough to overcome the flu with the correct treatment in a matter of days, but there are others that run a higher risk of developing complications that can result in death.
These people include the elderly, pregnant women, asthmatics, diabetics, those with heart or lung disease and those with a weakened immune system.
When to see the doctor Certain symptoms could warrant a visit to the doctor because they could be an indication of complications developing as a result of the flu.
The warning signs for children are blue or black lips or fingertips, rapid inhaling and exhaling, difficulty breathing, seizures and extreme irritability.
For adults a painful chest or abdomen, shortness of breath and persistent vomiting are the indicators.
Swine flu treatment Most people will recover from swine flu without needing to seek medical attention.
You can ease the symptoms with over-the-counter drugs obtainable from your pharmacy while you recover.
Sufficient rest is important and no exercise or stressful routines should be performed or maintained to avoid risking damage to the heart muscle.
Note that over-the-counter drugs are only for symptomatic treatment - it does not fight the virus, your immune system will be taking care of that.
There are antiviral drugs available to combat the virus.
They are called Tamiflu (oseltamivir) and Relenza (zanamivir).
According to the CDC (Centre of Disease Control) these should be prescribed to those patients with severe cases of the flu to help them recover.
It is important to start the medication within two days after the first symptoms appear to be most effective.
Prudent prescribing of these drugs is also very important to prevent the virus from developing resistance which would render the medication worthless on the shelves of pharmacies.
Swine flu prevention There are quite a few things that you can personally do to avoid getting infected with the H1N1 virus.
They include the following: oFrequent washing of hands oMaintain a strong immune system with a healthy diet oAvoid close contact with people you know are affected oAvoid crowded places Immunity is obviously the best way to prevent infection, but at the time this article was written the vaccine for swine flu was still being developed and not yet available to the public.
The WHO estimates the vaccine to be ready early in 2010.
The H1N1 virus will only stop spreading when there is no-one (or very little people) left to infect.
This is achieved by something called "herd immunity".
This means that in any group of people there are not many left that can become infected.
If there is no-one to infect, the virus can't spread or the odds of it spreading will be very low - essentially safety in numbers.
The world's population will obtain immunity by either one of two ways: generating immunity by being infected and recovering from the H1N1 virus or by means of vaccination.
Once the vaccine is available and is being mass produced, this process of immunisation will take place rapidly and the H1N1 virus will slowly disappear.