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The next update will be on Tuesday September 1st, at 08:30 PST.
Local/National News
Kids trudging back to school with their new books and backpacks will also be carting along the H1N1 virus, and B.C.'s health officer says he's expecting a spike in flu cases this fall. Normally, flu doesn't start to increase until the winter, but Perry Kendall said Tuesday that B.C. health officials are preparing for a fall outbreak. "The kids in the schools, who have no resistance to the virus, spread it around to each other," Dr. Kendall said."So we can expect quite reasonably that when the kids come back to school, they'll bring the virus back with them and we'll see a sort of seasonal flu outbreak. We'll see it probably in the fall rather than in the winter and spring. So we'll see it early." To prepare, the provincial government is posting fact sheets about the flu on its website, and schools and teachers are being briefed about ways to limit the spread of the virus. The Globe and Mail
The Government of Canada today announced two key initiatives to support healthcare professionals in treating and preventing H1N1 flu virus infections in Canada. "Canadian healthcare workers will have the tools they need to safely and effectively prevent and treat H1N1,” said Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq. “We are continuing to follow our pandemic preparedness plan by collaborating with all levels of government to protect and support our frontline workers.”
The two initiatives are:- The Public Health Agency of Canada is mobilizing public health officials, intensive care specialists and medical experts from Canada and abroad to meet in Winnipeg next week to share and discuss best practices for treating severe H1N1 infections.
- The Public Health Agency of Canada and the Canadian Institutes for Health Research are providing an additional $2.7 million to the Influenza Research Network to evaluate the safety and efficacy of the pandemic vaccine, as well as to monitor and evaluate vaccine implementation programs. PHAC
International News
South Africa has no choice but to develop its own H1N1 flu vaccine, Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi said on Wednesday, citing concerns treatment will not be available to poorer nations. "South Africa has arrived at a situation where we have no option but to start developing our own vaccine capacity, not only for H1N1, but generally," Motsoaledi told parliament. Reuters
Iran said Wednesday a woman had died of the H1N1 virus in a north-western region, the Islamic Republic's first fatality from the new flu strain, state radio said. "Unfortunately a woman from Maragheh (in East Azerbaijan province) died of the flu because she also suffered from chronic respiratory problems," Deputy Health Minister Hassan Emami Razavi said, without giving further details. Reuters
Despite being in the midst of swine flu panic in May of this year, more than half of the health care workers polled in a Hong Kong study were unwilling to receive the H1N1 vaccine when it becomes available. This finding, published in a recent online edition of BMJ hints at some of the challenges that countries will likely face as they move to implement the World Health Organization’s recommendation that all front line health care workers be vaccinated. It also brings into focus one of the issues that health care workers themselves will be faced with, namely a need to make decisions in the face of conflicting interests (i.e. their own safety versus that of the people they care for). Applied more broadly, the issue of vaccine uptake also presents significant challenges to corporations who may elect to include vaccines in their business continuity strategies. Google News
Antiviral News
The World Health Organization (WHO) has issued guidelines for the use of antivirals in the management of patients infected with the H1N1 pandemic virus. The guidelines represent the consensus reached by an international panel of experts who reviewed all available studies on the safety and effectiveness of these drugs. Emphasis was placed on the use of oseltamivir and zanamivir to prevent severe illness and deaths, reduce the need for hospitalization, and reduce the duration of hospital stays.
Evidence reviewed by the panel indicates that oseltamivir, when properly prescribed, can significantly reduce the risk of pneumonia (a leading cause of death for both pandemic and seasonal influenza) and the need for hospitalization.
For patients who initially present with severe illness or whose condition begins to deteriorate, WHO recommends treatment with oseltamivir as soon as possible. Studies show that early treatment, preferably within 48 hours after symptom onset, is strongly associated with better clinical outcome. For patients with severe or deteriorating illness, treatment should be provided even if started later. Where oseltamivir is unavailable or cannot be used for any reason, zanamivir may be given.
This recommendation applies to all patient groups, including pregnant women, and all age groups, including young children and infants. WHO
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