[Update]4/30/09- CDC has confirmed US cases to 109.
[Update- 4/29/09] CDC reports 91 cases confirmed in the U.S..... update found here.
[Update]4/29/09, 64 confirmed cases in the US.
Swine Flu goes global. Taking Tamiflu can cause another set of problems according to reports.
An update on the Swine Flu from the Center of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has the total U.S. cases confirmed at 40, while other reports claim the number is at 50.
In Mexico, where investigations have some believing it all started with a four-year old boy, there is now 152 dead and 1,600 believed to be infected.
Cases have been reported in Spain and now Israel.
Canada has reported six cases confirmed.
From the CDC:
California 7 cases
Kansas 2 cases
New York City 28 cases
Ohio 1 case
Texas 2 cases
TOTAL COUNT 40 cases
NYT:
The number of deaths believed attributable to swine flu climbed to as many as 152 on Tuesday — all of them in Mexico — as news agencies reported the number of confirmed cases of infection in the United States stood at 50 after further testing at a New York City school.
Other cases have been reported in Ohio, Kansas, Texas and California. In addition, The Associated Press reported that preliminary tests by health officials in New Jersey had identified five “probable” cases — four people who were recently in Mexico and one who had been in California.
Spanish Health Minister Trinidad Jiménez on Tuesday said Spain had confirmed a second case of swine flu, in the eastern province of Valencia, but that the patient was recovering well.
Israel’s Ministry of Health on Tuesday reported the first case in the country. Smadar Shazo, a Health Ministry spokeswoman, said the man who contracted the illness, a 26-year-old, had recently returned from Mexico. Ms. Shazo said he is in good health now and is likely to be released from hospital Wednesday.
About 1,600 people in Mexico are now believed to have swine flu.
The World Health Organization raised its global pandemic flu alert level on Monday while recommending that borders not be closed nor travel bans imposed. But in a possible precaution to be taken by other nations, Japan said Tuesday it would no longer allow Mexican travelers to obtain a visa upon arrival.
According to another report, Scotland has two confirmed cases and seven suspected, 11 confirmed and 43 suspected in New Zealand, one suspected in France and one suspected in South Korea.
Here is the kicker, I found this report while searching Google news for Tamiflu, which is one of the antiviral medications given to those with Swine Flu or suspected cases of Swine Flu.
OSAKA, Japan, April 19 (UPI) -- Researchers from Japan's Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry say Tamiflu apparently increases abnormal psychological behavior in young influenza patients.
The team, led by Osaka City University Professor Yoshio Hirota, said its study revealed influenza patients between the ages of 10 and 17 were more likely to exhibit serious abnormal behavior if they consumed the antiviral medication, The Daily Yomiuri reported Sunday.
Tamiflu was banned by the Japanese ministry in 2007 for use on 10- to 19-year-olds after delirious behavior was observed in some children taking the drug.
The new study focused on nearly 10,000 influenza patients under the age of 18 diagnosed after the 2006 fiscal year.
They stated in their report that those patients ages 10 to 17 who took Tamiflu had a 54 percent greater chance of exhibiting abnormal behavior than those patients who did not take the medication.
The reason I search for Tamiflu was new reports on the local news where I live were reporting that while there have been no confirmed cases in Arizona, Tamiflu was sold out in certain areas of AZ.
Customers are calling to ask questions about the new virus, pharmacists said.
“We're seeing some increased calls from patients,” pharmacist Eric Sredzinski said.
“The one concern is people have been dying in Mexico. And if this happens in the United States, what are we going to see?” he said.
He said there also concerns about how to detect swine flu and how to avoid getting sick.
Sredzinski also said the Scottsdale branch of “The Apothecary Shops” sold out of Tamiflu, an antiviral drug, Monday.
It is one of the two only known treatments for swine flu. The other is another antiviral drug, Relenza.
Sredzinski said a doctor ordered the few boxes they had on hand.
The store usually sells a few boxes a year.
Since the news of Swine Flu became public, the White House was found to be missing some key people, namely a secretary of health and human services, so news shows the U.S. Senate is going to get off their duffs and vote to confirm Obama's choice, who is Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius.
On a side note, that position is only one of 15 health positions that Obama hasn't gotten around to filling as of yet.
The president has yet to fill 15 top positions at the health department or name a full-time director for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and five more nominations -- including that of former Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius to be HHS Secretary -- are waiting to be confirmed by the Senate, officials at the department said.
The top post at the CDC remains open but is being filled by an acting director. And at the Department of Homeland Security, which is leading the federal government's response to the swine flu outbreak, the functions of nearly 20 senior-level posts are being temporarily performed by career civil service employees.
The government's medical response is being coordinated by a temporary team including acting CDC director Richard E. Besser, acting HHS secretary Charles Johnson, a Bush assistant secretary previously approved by the Senate, and Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response Rear Adm, W. Craig Vanderwagen, another Senate-confirmed holdover.
Feeling warm and fuzzy yet?
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Swine Flu Update
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