Swine Flu!

[eSineM]

While it is true that people die from regular flu too, what is particularly scary about this one is the ease in which it spreads.  If normal flu kills a few people, but had the ability to spread more rapidly with more ease then it only makes sense that you would see more deaths.  Plus it is particularly dangerous for certain groups of people, more so than regular flu.

My case was mild either because I started the Tamiflu immediately or just because it would not have been bad anyway.  I will never really know.  With my son I would say it was worse than any other flu he has ever had because his fever was 103 and 104 for quite a while.


Having said that and having been through it, I still don't think that I would get the vaccine for either of us unless we had health conditions like asthma or something.  I guess everyone just has to decide for themselves.

We are both still feeling kind of tired and achy, but my son went back to school today since he had not had fever for 24 hours so I guess we are on our way to recovery.  Thanks everyone!

 thats the body working correctly to get the stuff out of the system.. thats why its bad to take pills to fight off fever, then your body does not do its job as well.

[klkwid]

It's true that Swine flu is just another strain of the flu, but it's still something to be concerned about.  It's fast spreading and it does actually kill a large percentage of the people it infects-that is, compared to other strains of the flu.  The chances of actually dying are still pretty low, but some demographics are very high-for example, I read that 26 out of 100 confirmed cases in pregnant women died.  I work for a doctor, and we're taking every precaution.  The buzz in the medical field is pretty intense.  It doesn't mean we're all going to die of it, it just means that it's a big risk.  Some people here are trying to convince themselves it's not dangerous and that's a HUGE mistake!  There ARE real ways to diagnose it-I believe the official way is a blood test.  So not everything that walks in the door is called swine flu at our office.  There is a lot of hype out there now, but it's still something you need to be aware of and be careful with!!

[ipayitforward]

I wasn't really worried about it with my son until one of his friends classmates died of it last week. A 13 year old girl with no other health problems, and she was only the 2nd in the school to catch it. Anything that has the slightest chance of killing a kid isn't something to be ignored, no matter how much it's hyped or debated. I will definitely be getting him the vaccine when it's available.

There really has been a lot of hype and mis-information.  My neighbor told us that 10 percent of healthy people who get this new flu die from it.
  Of course we (in America) have a strange view of what health is...if someone drops dead from a heart attack, people will say, "how strange that was...he was never sick a day in his life!"

Dave D

[klkwid]

I wasn't really worried about it with my son until one of his friends classmates died of it last week. A 13 year old girl with no other health problems, and she was only the 2nd in the school to catch it. Anything that has the slightest chance of killing a kid isn't something to be ignored, no matter how much it's hyped or debated. I will definitely be getting him the vaccine when it's available.

There really has been a lot of hype and mis-information.  My neighbor told us that 10 percent of healthy people who get this new flu die from it.
  Of course we (in America) have a strange view of what health is...if someone drops dead from a heart attack, people will say, "how strange that was...he was never sick a day in his life!"

Dave D

So does that mean that you would just not try to prevent heart disease?  It happens to people out of the blue sometimes, but why wouldn't you try to avoid it if you have the chance??  I always confirm my stats before I quote them, so I don't know if 10% is a real number or not, but assuming it is, that's a LOT of people!  Why wouldn't you try to avoid getting it if you have the chance? 
I'm not for ALL immunizations, and this is definitely NOT one of them that I would say is a mandatory, but I would hope that everyone is smart enough to use hand sanitizers and wash your hands frequently at least. 

[samrhett2]

The test they used on my son was a nasal swab.

[rogery]

Accurate statistics for swine flu will not be easy. Many patients will never be tested even when seeing a physician. Doctors will treat as if a patient has swine flu based on symptoms. Treatment will be similar to any serious flu. For those that think this is some sort of scam, this flu strain should not be taken lightly.  

[jdcrawford03]

Some docs said that the swine flu is no different than the seasonal flu. There are many schools being closed do to the swine flu.

[ipayitforward]

I wasn't really worried about it with my son until one of his friends classmates died of it last week. A 13 year old girl with no other health problems, and she was only the 2nd in the school to catch it. Anything that has the slightest chance of killing a kid isn't something to be ignored, no matter how much it's hyped or debated. I will definitely be getting him the vaccine when it's available.

There really has been a lot of hype and mis-information.  My neighbor told us that 10 percent of healthy people who get this new flu die from it.
  Of course we (in America) have a strange view of what health is...if someone drops dead from a heart attack, people will say, "how strange that was...he was never sick a day in his life!"

Dave D

So does that mean that you would just not try to prevent heart disease?  It happens to people out of the blue sometimes, but why wouldn't you try to avoid it if you have the chance??  I always confirm my stats before I quote them, so I don't know if 10% is a real number or not, but assuming it is, that's a LOT of people!  Why wouldn't you try to avoid getting it if you have the chance? 
I'm not for ALL immunizations, and this is definitely NOT one of them that I would say is a mandatory, but I would hope that everyone is smart enough to use hand sanitizers and wash your hands frequently at least. 

I wasn't quoting the 10 percent as a statistic...I was saying that that is probably a hyped statistic...

and of course I would try to avoid heart disease...I was trying to say that we think anyone who looks good and isn't visibly "sick"  is healthy...while they may be very sick underneath.

I also wouldn't discourage anyone from getting the flu shot if they want it...and if it prevents any deaths that is great.

I saw a commercial the other day on tv that said, "What are YOU doing to prevent the flu?"  as if taking the vaccine was the only thing one could do to prevent the flu...As other people have posted, washing your hands, avoiding touching your face especially when you have been out in public will help too...but the best preventative is to eat healthy and to have your immune system in good shape to protect yourself!

Dave D

[home_teachin]

The boy next door, who was in the same class as the little girl who died, has the Swine Flu now. I'm just going to have to keep on a close eye on my boy to make sure he doesn't come down with it. It looks like they are going to close the schools here.

[AirforceSS]

I had the Swine Flu before, it's not that bad... And my friend just got better from having it. She's doing pretty good now.

[vtyler98]

The Swine Flu is really going around here at daycares and schools so far, I haven't caught it yet and hope I don't.. I'm definately not taking the vaccine for it unless I absolutely have to.. What is everyone elses opinion on the vaccine? I heard it can cause some rare type of disease, although it isn't common, it can do that. 

[AirforceSS]

The Swine Flu is really going around here at daycares and schools so far, I haven't caught it yet and hope I don't.. I'm definately not taking the vaccine for it unless I absolutely have to.. What is everyone elses opinion on the vaccine? I heard it can cause some rare type of disease, although it isn't common, it can do that. 

It causes disease! I'm definitely NOT GETTING THAT! My mom says she'll MAKE me take it though! Now I'm scared!   

[vtyler98]

The Swine Flu is really going around here at daycares and schools so far, I haven't caught it yet and hope I don't.. I'm definately not taking the vaccine for it unless I absolutely have to.. What is everyone elses opinion on the vaccine? I heard it can cause some rare type of disease, although it isn't common, it can do that. 

It causes disease! I'm definitely NOT GETTING THAT! My mom says she'll MAKE me take it though! Now I'm scared!   

Yep here is a link, its called Guillans-Bare (spelling??) syndrome, its about halfway down the page.

http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/277574