outbreak

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Flu Plan Directs Docs to Take Sickest Off Life Support

Plan could grant legal exemption to extreme rationing in case of disaster pandemic

(Newser) - Authorities planning for a severe flu outbreak are drawing up rules for life-saving ventilators that instruct doctors to take severely ill patients off life support and give the equipment to those with a better chance of survival. The plan, to be used in an outbreak comparable to the pandemic that...

A Zombie's Worst Enemy: Canadian Math Geeks

Scholars devise method to eliminate pesky Hollywood bugaboo

(Newser) - Decades of terrorizing sleepy towns in grade-B horror flicks hasn't prepared zombies for their newest foe: Canadian math geeks. Scholars in Ottawa have formulated a mathematical model to combat a zombie outbreak, dismissing quarantines and cures: “The most effective way to contain the rise of the undead is to...

Swine Flu Related to 1918 Strain

(Newser) - The H1N1 virus can more easily infect the lungs than the common seasonal flu, a new study finds, making it more likely to cause pneumonia. What’s more, the present virus bears troubling resemblance to the 1918 strain that killed more than 40 million people worldwide. The study also shows...

New Strain May Mean Year-Round Flu Season: CDC

(Newser) - The US could experience an extended or even year-round flu season thanks to H1N1, the Centers for Disease Control said yesterday. Researchers theorize that a combination of unprepared immune systems and the unusually cool spring could be contributing to the steady stream of flu infections. “The fact that we...

'Swine Flu Cruise' Quarantined

 'Swine Flu Cruise' Quarantined 
Jun 18, 2009 3:51 AM CDT

'Swine Flu Cruise' Quarantined

Passengers, crew confined to Caribbean liner after staff members diagnosed

(Newser) - Venezuela has quarantined more than a thousand passengers and crew on board a visiting cruise ship, the BBC reports. Three crew members from the Ocean Dream have been diagnosed with swine flu and 11 more are showing symptoms. Barbados and Grenada had earlier refused to allow the Spanish-owned ship's passengers...

Mexico City Lifts Flu Restrictions

Alert level lowered after no new infections reported for a week

(Newser) - Mexico City has lifted all measures introduced to curb the spread of swine flu, and changed its alert status to the lowest level, the BBC reports. "We can calm down now," said Mayor Marcelo Ebrard, telling residents they no longer have to wear masks. No new cases of...

Feds: Older People Safer From Swine Flu

People born before 1957 found to carry anti-H1N1 antibodies

(Newser) - People born before 1957 appear to have some immunity to the H1N1 virus, the New York Times reports. Tests show that older adults have antibodies that attack the virus, probably because they've been exposed to a similar virus. Experts believe the swine flue virus, like seasonal influenzas before 1957, is...

NYC Shuts 3 Schools in New Swine Flu Fear

Assistant principal critically ill with city's worst case of virus so far

(Newser) - New York City has closed three public schools where large numbers of student have become ill with flu-like symptoms, the New York Times reports. The assistant principal at one of the schools is in critical condition with the most serious case of swine flu the city has seen, though he...

Forget Swine Flu— 5 Pandemics to Fear

(Newser) - While the world panics over swine flu, many far more serious outbreaks lie in wait, reports Foreign Policy. Here are some you won’t see on TV—yet:  
  • Cholera: The deadly diarrheal infection is rampant in Africa, with infections shooting up 96% in 2006. The current outbreak in Zimbabwe
...

Experts: Don't Blame Pigs for Swine Flu

H1N1 virus likely arose among jet-setting humans

(Newser) - The humble porker shouldn't be the one taking the blame for the H1N1 virus, scientists tell the Los Angeles Times. Pigs provided some of the raw material for the virus, experts say, but so did birds and humans. The most likely incubators and spreaders of the virus, according to scientists,...

Couples Find Love in Flu Hotel
 Couples Find Love in Flu Hotel 
May 8, 2009 3:48 AM CDT

Couples Find Love in Flu Hotel

Guests stuck in Hong Kong hotel party away last night of quarantine

(Newser) - Many of the hundreds of guests quarantined in Hong Kong's Metropark hotel shed their face masks to party away their final night in confinement yesterday, Reuters reports. The guests—who were initially outraged to learn they would be confined to the hotel for a week because of swine flu fears—...

Asia Unites Against Swine Flu Threat

Health ministers from 13 countries pledge increased cooperation

(Newser) - Health chiefs from 13 Asian countries met in Bangkok yesterday to hammer out a unified response to the H1N1 virus, Reuters reports. The ministers pledged to step up cross-border cooperation, establish joint response teams, and share essential supplies. A statement called for Asia to establish the capacity to produce vaccines,...

China Quarantines 2 Yanks
 China Quarantines 2 Yanks 
May 5, 2009 5:40 AM CDT

China Quarantines 2 Yanks

Americans detained as Mexico begins airlifting its citizens out of China

(Newser) - Two American citizens have been placed under quarantine in mainland China over swine flu fears, CBS News reports. Another two have been held and released, according to a US Embassy spokeswoman who said the Americans were detained either because they showed flu-like symptoms or were close to "cases of...

Hong Kong Hotel Guests Chill in Quarantine

Guests stuck in swine flu hotel pass the time with pizza, parties

(Newser) - The 300 guests and staff quarantined in Hong Kong's Metropark Hotel since Friday are getting used to life in captivity, the Wall Street Journal reports. The captives—confined since a Mexican guest tested positive for swine flu—complain about boring food and missed business deals, but some have organized beer...

Flu Threat Smaller Than Feared

Mexico cuts flu death toll; virus fails to spread in flu-hit US cities

(Newser) - Officials in Mexico and the US remain cautious about the swine flu outbreak but say it appears to be less of a threat than first thought, the New York Times reports. In Mexico, less than half of suspected cases have turned out to be the H1N1 virus, very few relatives...

Hong Kong Quarantines Entire Hotel

(Newser) - Hong Kong has quarantined an entire hotel after a guest was diagnosed with swine flu, the Wall Street Journal reports. The territory's chief executive said he opted to err on the side of caution in an attempt to contain the spread of the disease. Roughly 300 guests are trapped inside;...

Flu Fear Swamps US Hospitals
 Flu Fear Swamps US Hospitals 
May 1, 2009 4:37 AM CDT

Flu Fear Swamps US Hospitals

System strained as people with mild symptoms demand swine flu tests

(Newser) - Hospitals and clinics across the country are being overwhelmed by panicky people seeking to be tested for swine flu, reports the Los Angeles Times. Experts warn the signs of strain already show that the system is ill-equipped to deal with a full-scale outbreak. Health officials struggling to cope with the...

States' Flu Readiness Comes Up 10M Doses Short

Stockpiles of antiviral medication are 10 million doses short

(Newser) - Dozens of states have failed to stockpile enough medication to treat a full-blown flu outbreak, the Washington Post reports. The federal Strategic National Stockpile program has vast amounts of antiviral medication stashed in secret locations around the country, but records show that state governments have 10 million fewer dosages than...

Confirmed Swine Flu Cases Jump

WHO investigators find 257 confirmed cases in 11 countries

(Newser) - The number of confirmed swine flu cases worldwide jumped from 147 to 257 yesterday, according to the World Health Organization. Hundreds more suspected cases are still being investigated. The jump in confirmed cases is likely attributable to investigators working through their backlog of specimens rather than rapidly mounting incidents of...

Swine Flu Not So Tough: Scientists
Swine Flu Not So Tough: Scientists
Apr 30, 2009 8:09 AM CDT

Swine Flu Not So Tough: Scientists

Strain could be less lethal than seasonal flu, analysis shows

(Newser) - Scientists are gradually downgrading their worst-case scenarios for the swine flu outbreak, the Los Angeles Times report. The H1N1 strain initially appeared to have disturbing similarities to the 1918 flu virus, but researchers analyzing genetic data released this week say the strain is less lethal than feared—and may in...

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