Word: flu
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Public health officials have been warning for some time that nothing about the flu is predictable. But here's something that is: When it comes to a new strain of the flu like H1N1, which has already stoked global fears of a massive pandemic, there's almost certain to be some overreaction. That's what happened this week when the public was hit with a double-play of scary news: A new estimate showed that that up to 90,000 Americans could die of H1N1 in the upcoming season; and a simultaneous report that the government was taking some unprecedented...
...What sparked the reports about insufficient testing of the new vaccine was a statement by Dr. Thomas Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control, confirming that the government has given flu vaccine manufacturers a green light to begin bottling up still-experimental shots and readying them for shipment, even before the final results from the ongoing tests on the vaccine's safety and effectiveness are completed.(Read: "Study: H1N1 Vaccine Works On Animals...
...weeks apart, to educate the immune system to recognize H1N1, and another six to eight weeks after that to generate true immunity to the virus. That's when scientists will know if the vaccine provided enough protection to allow the bottled inoculations to be shipped. After decades of making flu vaccines, the scientists are sure they know what they're doing. Indeed, had the pandemic begun earlier, in December or even January-when the World Health Organization made its determination of which flu strains to include in the routine seasonal flu vaccine-instead of April, then H1N1 might have simply...
...Still, the decision to approve the fill and finish steps underscores how unusual H1N1 is, and highlights the fact that the upcoming flu season may yet hold surprises. In its report, PCAST also released projections of how severe the pandemic could get: up to 120 million people coughing, sneezing, feverish and otherwise sick with the symptoms of flu, 90,000 people potentially dead from the illness, and half to 100% of beds in intensive care units of hospitals in hard-hit regions filled with flu patients...
Longwood: 1. Boston neighborhood home to Harvard Medical School and the Museum of Fine Arts. 2. Where swine flu infiltrated Harvard; the Dental School will never be the same. 3. A half-hour’s ride away on the free M2 bus. 4. What you will curse when you realize the one book you really need is at Countway Library...