The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) is alerting parents that there will be a delay in getting flu shots for children 6 months of age through age 3 until at least November. Sanofi pasteur, the sole manufacturer of injectable flu vaccine (FluZone) approved for children 3 years of age and younger, announced a shipment delay. Plenty of FluZone will be available, but pediatricians will receive most of their FluZone supply in November and December.
The Public Health Agency of Canada is recommending that health care providers in Canada not prescribe amantadine to treat and prevent influenza during the current flu season. This recommendation is based on test results from the 2005-2006 flu season and initial results from the 2006-2007 season.
China has found no evidence of a new strain of H5N1 bird flu in its southern provinces and said on Thursday there was no need to share virus samples with the World Health Organisation (WHO).
The World Health Organization criticized the Chinese Ministry of Agriculture officials for not informing the global community of the emergence of a new variant of the worrisome H5N1 avian flu virus – Fujian-like virus, and hoarding virus samples and for not doing enough to contain the spread of H5N1 in poultry.
The Ministry of Health in Egypt has confirmed the country?s seventh death from H5N1 avian influenza. The 39-year-old woman, whose infection was confirmed on 11 October, died on 30 October.
The highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza has been detected in at least 55 countries in Asia, Europe, and Africa. This often fatal disease is of pressing concern because it can be transmitted from birds to humans, although such transmissions have been rare so far. Unfortunately, according to a Roundtable article in the November 2006 BioScience, the journal of the American Institute of Biological Sciences (AIBS), critical information about incidence of the disease in wild birds–even the species of the infected bird–is often recorded inaccurately or not recorded at all. The deficiencies in data collection, the authors write, “can lead to unwarranted assumptions and conclusions that in turn affect public perceptions, practical control and management measures, and the disposition of resources.”
Scientists have detected a new strain of H5N1 bird flu virus in China and warned it might have started another wave of outbreaks in poultry in Southeast Asia and move deeper into Eurasia. The development of highly pathogenic avian H5N1 influenza viruses in poultry in Eurasia accompanied with the increase in human infection in 2006 suggests that the virus has not been effectively contained and that the pandemic threat persists.
In the case of an outbreak of pandemic flu, large majority of Americans willing to make major changes in their lives. Survey also finds many people would face critical work-related problems. The latest national survey conducted by the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) Project on the Public and Biological Security finds that when faced with a serious outbreak of pandemic flu, a large majority of Americans are willing to make major changes in their lives and cooperate with public health officials’ recommendations.
A compromised immune system makes people more prone to contracting a cold or flu, and Cognis is helping companies meet the growing demand worldwide for immunity boosting dietary supplements and functional foods. Colds and flu are the most frequent infections across all age groups. Each year, Americans suffer from one billion colds, 100,000 are hospitalized and about 36,000 die from the flu and its complications. Immune health is also a global concern with frequent colds and flu ranked as one of the top three health problems by consumers in China, India and Latin America.
The employee health department at Penn State Hershey Medical Center and Penn State College of Medicine plans several campus-wide vaccination days for any employee interested in receiving the flu shot. Vaccines will be given on a first-come, first-serve basis, starting Oct. 30.