Rhiza Labs FluTracker Forum

California Influenza and Respiratory Disease Surveillance for October 10-16, 2010
The 2010-11 influenza season officially started on October 2, 2010 (week 40). Since the start of
the season, overall influenza activity in California has remained “sporadic” [defined by the CDC
as “small numbers of laboratory-confirmed influenza cases or a single laboratory-confirmed
influenza outbreak has been reported, but there is no increase in cases of influenza-like-illness
(ILI)], with sporadic detections of influenza A/H3 and influenza A/H1 reported statewide.

7:01am GMT
By Chris Pentilla at Entrepreneur.com

Fri Nov 19, 2010 12:01am GMT

Seasonal illness is rearing its ugly head at Socialcast Inc., a San Francisco company that creates business collaboration software. One of the company's 30 employees was out recently with a bad cold and sinus headache. Another employee went home with a stomach bug. Yet another stayed home with cold symptoms. "In the last couple of weeks, we've definitely seen a pickup [in illness]," says founder and chief executive Tim Young.

Nathan Reis is also seeing more sickness among the 100 sales and customer-service employees at his 4-year-old Scottsdale, Ariz., payment-processing company Entrust Bankcard LLC. Even Reis, the company's founder and chief executive officer, isn't immune. "I just got over strep throat," he admits.

The threat cold-and-flu season poses to companies isn’t something to sneeze at. According to the Centers for Disease Control, the flu alone costs U.S. companies $10.4 billion in direct costs including hospitalizations and outpatient visits. The CDC also estimates up to one-fifth of the U.S. population will get the flu in a given flu season, and more than 200,000 Americans will be hospitalized with seasonal, flu-related complications.

This year's flu is already making the rounds. "What we see circulating is H3N2 and the pandemic H1N1 primarily, with some Influenza B," says Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota.

Despite warnings from public health officials, many Americans aren't rushing to get their flu shots. A recent Consumer Reports survey of 1,500 U.S. adults found that only 37 percent plan to be vaccinated.
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Flu season is off to a slow start in Orange County and shots are still readily available.
So far, only a handful of cases have been laboratory confirmed, said Nicole Stanfield, a spokeswoman for the Health Care Agency. Most cases, however, aren't tested in the lab. Flu cases usually peak in January or later.

Vicino said the younger Diaz had had the flu and wasn't feeling well, but his death was unexpected. The incident comes as Riverside police continue to deal with the Nov. 7 slaying of Officer Ryan Bonaminio.

Beleskey recalled, Voros put on IR
December 3rd, 2010, 10:13 am

The Ducks have recalled left wing Matt Beleskey from Syracuse of the American Hockey League and put winger Aaron Voros on injured reserve due to a bad case of the flu.........................

Los Angeles - Flu cases are up slightly in Los Angeles County, including strains that can only be prevented with this year's vaccine, the county's top health official said today.

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Tonight's performance of Supernatural Santana Canceled
1/12/2011
Las Vegas, NV (January 12, 2011) – Tonight’s performance of Supernatural Santana: A Trip Through The Hits at The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino has been cancelled due to illness. Carlos Santana and members of the Santana band are unable to perform due to influenza. The show will not be rescheduled

According to the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health the average flu season, which lasts from fall to late spring, flu claims an estimated 1,000 deaths in LA County.

Jonathan Fielding, director of the county’s public health department says two of the deaths were from the H1N1 virus, also known as Swine Flu, the other from a strain known as H3N1.

The three individuals who died were a 48-year-old man, a 29-year-old woman, and a 4-year-old boy.

The adults were both obese, which is a newly-described risk factor for complications from influenza.

All died from a vaccine-preventable strain of the flu.