Influenza A (H1N1) Cases and Deaths
*Cases reported by The World Health Organization (WHO) are as of January 3rd, 2010
National News
The Canadian government has stated that Canada is lending, not donating, five million doses of the H1N1 vaccine to Mexico; however, the government remains silent on what it will do with its expected surplus of the pandemic drug. In the meantime, it has said that it will ship five million doses this week to Mexico, where the pandemic first surfaced. Manufacturers will only deliver the bulk of that country's order at the end of this month and Mexico will replenish Canada's supply by the end of March. The Globe and Mail
International News
Five samples from pigs at the Sheung Shui Slaughterhouse last month have tested positive for human H1N1 pandemic influenza at the University of Hong Kong. As a result, the government has launched the Human Swine Influenza (HIS) Vaccination Program that is aimed at those involved in the pig farming and slaughtering trade. The samples that tested positive for the pandemic H1N1 virus were taken from pigs on the Mainland of China. Food Safety News
The Health Ministry in Lower Saxony has reported that GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) agreed to reduce Germany’s order of Pandemrix H1N1 flu vaccine by 133.3 million Euros after health officials decided they need fewer doses. Germany cut its order to 34 million doses from 50 million doses during negotiations with GSK. European governments are cutting orders, and may donate or sell unused vaccines, after medical authorities in November supported a one-dose regimen rather than the two doses recommended as a guideline for government purchases. Safety concerns and lower-than-expected death rates from the virus also dampened demand for shots. Business Week
Doctors are stumped as to how Bermuda's two fatal flu victims contracted the virus, with health officials revealing yesterday that relatives of the pair have not fallen sick. The Department of Health announced on Wednesday that two Bermudians with influenza had died since December 19 with one confirmed as an H1N1 fatality. But officials are refusing to give out any information which could identify the patients including whether the deaths happened on the Island or overseas for fear of causing panic in the community. The Royal Gazette
A recent report has suggested that the spread of H1N1 influenza among Indians appeared to be in control after the virus reached the indigenous Yanomami group in northern Brazil. Despite a rise in flu-like illnesses, neither deaths nor new confirmed cases were detected in Yanomami villages in the Santa Isabel do Rio Negro region, a medical team there said in its report. The team was sent to monitor suspected cases of H1N1 flu in Brazil's Amazonas state after a 10-year-old Indian boy from a village of the Yanomami ethnic group was hospitalized with serious flu symptoms. China View
Vaccine News
Deputy Health Minister Trinh Quan Huan said the Vietnamese Ministry of Health would send an official query to the World Health Organization regarding recent accusations that pharmaceutical industries unduly influenced the WHO in exaggerating the H1N1 flu pandemic. The deputy minister said Vietnam will also ask WHO for advice on how to proceed with flu prevention strategies. The query comes following accusations from the Health Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) that several major drug firms deliberately exaggerated the seriousness of the H1N1 pandemic to make enormous profits by causing panic to sell vaccines. Saigon Gaia Phong
According to a Clinical Infectious Diseases study, mandatory flu vaccination of staff has been successful at BJC HealthCare, a St. Louis health group with 26,000 workers. After the requirement was set in 2008, 98.4% of workers were vaccinated. Medical exemptions were granted to 1.2% of workers and religious exemptions to 0.3%. Only eight workers were not vaccinated and not exempted. Fewer employees sought medical or religious exemptions than had declined the vaccine the year before. Clin Infect Dis
U.S. federal officials and representatives from some of the nation's biggest health advocacy groups today teamed up to push the importance of pandemic H1N1 vaccination for people who have chronic medical conditions such as asthma, diabetes, and cancer. As part of National Influenza Vaccination Week, the experts spelled out the risks to these groups in a live Web seminar (webinar) hosted by the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Nicole Lurie, MD, HHS assistant secretary for preparedness and response, told webinar participants that though vaccine uptake in children who have underlying conditions is growing, uptake for adults with chronic conditions is lagging. CIDRAP
Sinovac Biotech Ltd., a leading provider of biopharmaceutical products in China, has announced that it has received its fifth purchase order for its H1N1 vaccine from China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. Under this purchase order, Sinovac is required to deliver an additional 8.57 million doses of H1N1 vaccine to the Chinese Central Government, of which 2.33 million doses are expected to be delivered before March 15, 2010, and the balance of 6.23 million doses to be stockpiled by the government in Sinovac's warehouse facility. PR News Wire
Antiviral News
BioCryst Pharmaceuticals Inc. has reported that its partner, Japanese company Shionogi & Co. Ltd., has received marketing and manufacturing approval in Japan for the intravenous flu drug peramivir, which treats several strains of the flu, including H1N1. “This first approval of a BioCryst discovered drug is a major step in our journey towards building an enduring and successful biopharmaceutical company," said President and Chief Executive Jon P. Stonehouse. BioCryst has recently signed agreements with partners to distribute peramivir around the globe. The Wall Street Journal
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