Rhiza Labs FluTracker Forum

Nah, I'm not really against vaccines. But I definitely don't think that plugging yourself with an annual vaccine is all that smart until you're elderly. Plugging the youth, who are 6 to 20 years old with a vaccine and then getting them hooked to take it annually is poor judgement, in my opinion, and it just seems to me like this is the road that the industry is trying to prod people to follow now. The seasonal vaccine used to be only for the elderly. If they could hook the parents to get the youth involved, can you imagine where their profits would go? In the end, as far as big pharma is concerned, a substantial percentage of the marketing strategy is to encompass a larger group of susceptible people. They (and the doctors who listen) will very likely insist, for years to come, that this is a necessary precaution - when in fact, the truth may not be so clear-cut.

If D225G started in my neighborhood, I believe the probability of my survival would not be that dissimilar from those who took the vaccine compared to those who obtained exposure naturally, given that a very large number of those who took the vaccine did not have the version containing the D225G component. And perhaps it would be discovered that those who acquired it naturally would have a stronger response against D225G than those who had the single vaccine dose. These are all unanswerable ponderings right now.

I'm not trying to start an argument. That is never my intention. I'm just voicing a separate common opinion.

Dramatic drop in positive flu tests in most recent week - over half.

http://www.epi.state.nc.us/epi/gcdc/flu0910.html

But 3 deaths

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www.twitter.com/hniman

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2010/0 ... hreat.html

Posted: Thursday, Feb. 25, 2010

By Karen Garloch


kgarloch@charlotteobserver.com


Cases of H1N1 flu have declined since the peak last fall, but seven people have died in North Carolina in the past four weeks, showing the so-called swine flu is still a threat.


State Health Director Jeff Engel issued a statement Thursday warning that flu season is not over and encouraging people to continue to be immunized.


“We continue to see hundreds of people hospitalized each week with flu-related complications,” Engel said. “The vaccine is safe and effective in preventing the flu. With plenty of vaccine on hand, there is no reason for North Carolinians to fall victim to H1N1.”


As of Feb. 20, about 1.6 million doses of H1N1 vaccine had been administered in North Carolina. That’s just over half of the 3.2 million doses distributed by the state to local health departments, doctors’ offices, hospitals, pharmacies and colleges.


In Mecklenburg County, public health officials are partnering with the Old North State Medical Society to offer H1N1 vaccinations during this week’s CIAA Basketball Tournament.


For information, visit www.meckhealth.org or www.flu.nc.gov.

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Praemonitus, Praemunitus..Forewarned is Forearmed.

http://hamptonroads.com/2010/02/nc-heal ... u-not-over

More of the same story

N.C. health officials warn H1N1 flu is not over
Posted to: Health and Medicine News North Carolina

The Associated Press
© February 26, 2010
RALEIGH, N.C.

Health officials in North Carolina are warning the H1N1 flu outbreak is not over.

State Health Director Jeff Engel said Thursday North Carolinians still should get the flu vaccine, even though outbreak of the illnesses seems to have peaked last fall.

Health officials say seven H1N1-related deaths have occurred in North Carolina in the past month.

Officials say as of Feb. 20, nearly 1.7 million doses of the vaccine have been administered in North Carolina.

The Division of Public Health and local health departments are working to increase the number of vaccinations by taking free vaccine clinics to communities.

_________________
Praemonitus, Praemunitus..Forewarned is Forearmed.

http://www.wect.com/Global/story.asp?S=12022693

All sorts of things currently circulating

Variety of illnesses making kids in Bladen and Pender counties sick
Posted: Feb 22, 2010 2:45 PM
Updated: Feb 22, 2010 4:39 PM

BLADEN COUNTY, NC (WECT) - Doctors in Bladen and Pender Counties are seeing a number of viruses making children ill.

Dr. Robert Rich with Bladen County Medical Associates says children have been sick with a stomach flu. Symptoms include a low grade fever, nausea with or without vomiting and diarrhea.

More severe symptoms include, abdominal bloating, vomiting for more than 48 hours, a high fever and dehydration.

The main treatment for the stomach flu is hydration. Clear fluids, or anything you can see thru like Jello should be consumed for the first 24 hours. For young children solutions like Pedialyte work well.

At the Pender County Health Department, Dr. Maria Alba has seen several cases of pink eye or conjunctivitis both bacterial and viral.

Treatments for the bacterial version include antibacterial eye ointments or drops. Pink eye caused by a virus has to clear up on it's own.

Pink Eye is very contagious so along with treatment doctors also advised parents and their children to wash their hands, avoid rubbing their eyes, and don't share towels, wash cloths or pillowcases.

The Pediatricians at the Pender County Health Department are also still seeing upper respiratory viruses and stomach flu.

Parents need to be very careful making sure children with the stomach bug stay hydrated.

_________________
Praemonitus, Praemunitus..Forewarned is Forearmed.

H1N1 causes all of the above symptoms. In additional to causing a viral infection that causes pink eye, it also reduces the host immune system which leads to secondary bacterial infections (eyes, ears, and lungs)

_________________
www.twitter.com/hniman

Norovirus is rampant and so is conjunctivitis at this time of the year, before h1n1 was ever around.

Just like last fall when half of the student population (across the entire country) was H1N1 infected.

_________________
www.twitter.com/hniman

http://wake.mync.com/site/wake/news/sto ... -rise-in-n


Norovirus On The Rise In NC
sdf CaptionBy Kerry Hall, NBC17, 20 hours, 47 minutes ago
Updated: Feb. 26 7:33 pm ShareThis
Tweet This! http://mync.com/site/48684/ RALEIGH, N.C. -
State health officials are warning people about the rapid spread of norovirus in the Carolinas.

You can catch the one or two day stomach bug by coming into contact with as few as ten tiny particles of the virus.

It's commonly spread in places where a lot of people are in close contact with one another.

The Celebrity Mercury cruise ship docked in Charleston, South Carolina early Friday morning, after about 400 passengers and employees suffered from norovirus at sea.

Two weeks ago, about 150 students complained of nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea during a conference held at the convention center in downtown Raleigh.

Croasdaile Village Retirement Community in Durham has been under quarantine. About 170 residents and more than 70 staffers have suffered from norovirus in the past two weeks.

Under the quarantine, no visitors are allowed, group activities are cancelled, and communal areas are closed as employees sanitize the campus.

Health experts say thorough hand washing with soap and water is one the best ways to prevent the spread of the illness. However, they say popular hand sanitizers are not effective against norovirus.

"Any of the germs, the bacteria, the viruses that cause diarrhea-type illnesses, the alcohol hand gels typically don't work with those germs," said Robin Carver, director of infection prevention for WakeMed.

Ways to stop the spread:

-Wash hands thoroughly with soap and water

-Stay home if you're sick

-Do not prepare food while you are sick or for 48 hours after symptoms disappear

-Disinfect surfaces with a bleach solution

Some people may experience complications from dehydration. If you feel sick for more than two days, you should contact a doctor

_________________
Praemonitus, Praemunitus..Forewarned is Forearmed.