They are saying more than half the US population could get swine flu...

[TravelingChris]

In that article it says that AIDS patients are not at any special risk with H1N1 flu. That along with the fact that it is hitting younger populations especially hard makes me think that people are dying from an overreaction of their own immune system that is most likely flooding their lungs. That is what most of the thinking about the Spanish flu deaths in the WW1 era is now thought to have been. If that is true, they should be getting large stores of corticosteroids and other immune suppressants to lower immune response in flu victims.

[Perry]

In that article it says that AIDS patients are not at any special risk with H1N1 flu. That along with the fact that it is hitting younger populations especially hard makes me think that people are dying from an overreaction of their own immune system that is most likely flooding their lungs. That is what most of the thinking about the Spanish flu deaths in the WW1 era is now thought to have been. If that is true, they should be getting large stores of corticosteroids and other immune suppressants to lower immune response in flu victims.

 

I believe steroids have been shown to make things worse.

 

Bird flu patients who get early treatment with the antiviral drug Tamiflu have the best chances of surviving while using steroids can do more harm// than good, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Friday.

 

The United Nations agency was reporting on the preliminary conclusions of international experts who met last month in Turkey to compare notes on treatments, including the attempt by doctors in some countries to use steroids as well.

 

"Corticosteroid therapy has failed so far to show effectiveness," the WHO warned in a statement. "Prolonged or high dose corticosteroids can result in serious adverse events."

 

Frederick Hayden of WHO's global influenza program said some doctors, notably in Vietnam and Indonesia, had administered steroids to try to save quickly deteriorating bird flu patients. Eight of nine had died, he said, citing published research.

 

"A concern is some treatment is of unsubstantiated value and in some instances may be doing more harm than good," he told Reuters.

 

 

[cillakat]

I believe steroids have been shown to make things worse.

 

Use of oral steroids puts one at risk for an especially severe viral or bacterial infection on any kind one it comes to that individual.

 

However, using oral steroids during a severe respiratory infection where breathing is compromised improves outcomes b/c....well....breathing is good and it decreases inflammation enough to breathe.

 

ACE inhibitors, some antiinflammatories will help dampen down a cytokine storm. So can optimal D levels. Read on.

 

share as needed/interested. All information is mine and from evidence based sources. I didn't have time to cite......so do with it what you will.

 

http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=0AV...ZGd3a2N3&hl=en

 

Virtually all flulike illnesses currently presenting are H1N1. It's possible that 50% of cases are presenting without a fever and very likely many more. This makes meaningless, the recommendations to "stay home from school or work until fever free for 24 hours" as many with the flu will never have had a fever. Children are unknowingly being sent to school with H1N1; adults with H1N1 will continue to go to work not realizing that they are spreading the flu.

 

Contagion is a factor from 24h prior to onset of symptoms and for 7-10 days after *onset of symptoms*.

 

It's wonderful that most people are reporting being sick for 1.5-2 days. Yay! For those at risk for respiratory complications though (including our pregnant friends and family members) it doesn't matter that 'most' are sick for 1-2 days. For them, this is not a typical flu so please stay home if you have any symptoms. Please keep your child home if they have any symptoms. If one is sick, keep them all home.

 

What can you do to prevent or treat the flu?

 

Consider:

•Anti-Virals if you think you have the flu [CDC recommendation not mine] Keep in mind that there is a 50-90% false negtive rate on the rapid flu tests. Yes, you read that right. Just b/c you have a negative rapid flu test absolutely positively does not mean you are home free.

 

Effective treatment:

 

•Anti-Viral Medication started within 24h (less helpful but still helpful if started later....though drug resistant cases are emerging)

 

•High Dose Vitamin D3 therapy aka Stoss Therapy. (reduces cytokines) Stoss Therapy is 1,000 IU D per one lb body weight per day

FOR THREE DAYS,

then back to normal dosing: 1,000 IU per 25 lbs body weight. Stoss therapy is not appropriate for those with kidney disease. Take sufficient calcium and magnesium while taking vitamin D.

Likely Helpful adjuncts effective treatment - will reduce and/or moderate cytokines or act as ACE inhibitors:

 

•Aspirin,

Adults only;

never children or adolescents

(reduces cytokines).

 

•Green tea (ACE inhibitor, reduces cytokines). Consider drinking

 

daily and/or gargling with it.

 

•High dose vitamin C therapy to bowel tolerance. Use cheap ascorbic acid unless you personally need buffered - avoid time released for this usage.

 

 

Effective Prevention:

 

•Optimal blood levels of D3 (reduces cytokines)

 

 

•50-80 ng/mL is optimal; some say 50-70 ng/mL, some say 55-80 ng/mL - it depends on who's writing and when they wrote it. Anything less than 50 ng/mL=substrate deficiency which is a Very Bad Thing. Our 50-80 ng/mL translates to 150-200 nmoL in any other place in the world

Moderate levels are correlated, by some data, with increased cytokine activity (20-40 ng/mL). We don't want moderate levels or even 'normal' levels. We want optimal levels in the middle of the 'reference range'.

 

 

 

•Remember that because of problems with Quest's test, any D result from them should be divided by 1.3 to get an accurate number.

 

 

 

•Optimal vitamin D levels are your very best defense against influenza, some researchers posit that it may be as or more effective than a vaccine.

 

 

•Green tea (ACE inhibitor, reduces cytokines).

 

Drink it or gargle.

 

•Probiotics. Take daily.

May be helpful adjuncts to effective treatment and/or prevention in addition to above measures:

 

•Black tea (ACE inhibitor, reduces cytokines)

 

•Quercetin (possible ACE inhibitor, reduces cytokines)

 

•Pomegranate (ACE inhibitor)

 

•Proanthocyandin containig foods, supplements (ACE inhibitors): grapeseed extract, pinebark extract (pycnogenol)

 

•Turmeric (reduces cytokines). 1/4 tsp powder can be placed on tongue and swallowed with water

.

 

•Black pepper (reduces cytokines)

 

•Raw crushed garlic (reduces cytokines). For easy dosing, mix with tsp raw honey.

 

•Coconut oil (reduces cytokines)

 

•Echinacea (increases some cytokine activity but overwhelmingly reduces cytokine activity)

Assess carefully:

 

•Elderberry aka Sambucol (known to increase cytokines). I am avoiding.

 

•Astragalus (reduces activity of some cytokines, increases activity of other cytokines). I am avoiding.

 

•Olive oil (may increase cytokines). I will continue to use as needed but will use coconut oil for cooking/baking.

 

•Fish oil (may increase cytokines). I will continue to take significant amounts.

 

•Chocolate (ACE inhibitor but increases cytokines). I will use moderately;p

Cannel on preventing and treating H1N1:

http://www.vitamindcouncil.org/newsl...itamin-d.shtml

 

Randomized, placebo controlled trial shows D3 prevents and treats colds and flu:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17352842

 

:)

K

[cin]

I actually had a talk with my kid's ped about swine flu last week and he told me that he feels it has been widely blown out of proportion by the media and if it had been called anything but "swine" flu it wouldn't be such a big deal. He is much more concerned about the "regular" flu since that kills more people every year.

 

 

Sounds like my pediatrician. He told me x kids died last year at the hospital from the plain old flu (I can't remember the number, obviously!) and it was NEVER on the news. And it's just as important. People can die from anything. But it's just not newsworthy. SWINE flu sounds so good.

[LibraryLover]

Hornblower, that was very helpful, concise, and thoughtful information. I appreciate it.

[cillakat]

America's went through

 

Hm.

 

This is probably a new strain and no doubt if you are autoimmune or elderly than a shot may be needed but I would be hesitant to take a shot that has not had clinical trials.

 

Clinical trials are going on as we speak. 20 of them are either completed, recruiting or upcoming. This is only in the US. They are going on in other countries as well.

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla%3Aen-US%3Aofficial&hs=kv6&q=H1N1+vaccine+trials&aq=f&oq=&aqi=

 

http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/results?term=H1N1

Rank Status Study 1 Not yet recruiting CSL H1N1 Influenza Vaccine Administered at Different Dose Levels With and Without AS03 Adjuvant in Healthy Adult and Elderly Populations Condition: Influenza Interventions: Biological: AS03; Biological: Inactivated H1N1 Vaccine 2 Not yet recruiting Sanofi H1N1 Influenza Vaccine Administered at Different Dose Levels With and Without AS03 Adjuvant in Healthy Adult and Elderly Populations Condition: Influenza Interventions: Biological: AS03; Biological: Inactivated H1N1 Vaccine 3 Active, not recruiting Sanofi H1N1 + TIV - Adults and Elderly Condition: Influenza Interventions: Biological: Inactivated H1N1 Vaccine; Drug: Placebo; Biological: TIV 4 Active, not recruiting Sanofi H1N1 Influenza Vaccine Administered at Two Dose Levels in Adult and Elderly Populations Condition: Influenza Intervention: Biological: Inactivated H1N1 Vaccine 5 Not yet recruiting H1N1 Vaccine in Pregnant Women Condition: Influenza Intervention: Biological: Inactivated H1N1 Vaccine 6 Recruiting Peds Sanofi H1N1 Influenza Vaccine Administered at Two Dose Levels Condition: Influenza Intervention: Biological: Inactivated H1N1 Vaccine 7 Active, not recruiting CSL H1N1 Influenza Vaccine Administered at Two Dose Levels in Adult and Elderly Populations Condition: Influenza Intervention: Biological: Inactivated H1N1 Vaccine 8 Recruiting Sanofi Pasteur, TIV + H1N1, Pediatric Population Condition: Influenza Interventions: Biological: Inactivated H1N1 Vaccine; Biological: Trivalent Inactivated Influenza Vaccine 9 Not yet recruiting A Study of Different Formulations of an Adjuvanted A/H1N1 Pandemic Vaccine in Healthy Adults and the Elderly Conditions: Influenza; Swine-origin A/H1N1 Influenza Interventions: Biological: Monovalent Subvirion A/H1N1 influenza vaccine with adjuvant; Biological: Monovalent Subvirion A/H1N1 influenza vaccine with adjuvant; Biological: Monovalent Subvirion A/H1N1 influenza vaccine; Biological: Normal saline solution 10 Active, not recruiting A Study of Different Formulations of an A/H1N1 Pandemic Vaccine in Healthy Adults and the Elderly Conditions: Influenza; Swine-origin A/H1N1 Influenza Interventions: Biological: Monovalent Subvirion A/H1N1 Influenza vaccine (7.5 µg of HA); Biological: Monovalent Subvirion A/H1N1 Influenza vaccine (15 µg of HA); Biological: Monovalent Subvirion A/H1N1 Influenza vaccine (30 µg of HA); Biological: Normal saline solution (placebo) 11 Not yet recruiting A Study of Swine-origin A/H1N1 Influenza Vaccines in Healthy Europeans Children Aged 6 to 35 Months Conditions: Influenza; Swine-origin A/H1N1 Influenza Interventions: Biological: Swine A/H1N1 influenza vaccine (split virion, inactivated); Biological: Swine A/H1N1 influenza vaccine (split virion, inactivated + Adjuvant); Biological: Swine A/H1N1 influenza vaccine (split virion, inactivated + adjuvant) 12 Active, not recruiting

 

continued in next post

[cillakat]

A Study of Inactivated Swine-Origin A/H1N1 Influenza Vaccines in Healthy European Subjects Aged 3 to 17 Years Conditions: Influenza; Swine-origin A/H1N1 Influenza Interventions: Biological: Swine A/H1N1 influenza vaccine (split virion, inactivated); Biological: Swine A/H1N1 influenza vaccine (split virion, inactivated + Adjuvant); Biological: Swine A/H1N1 influenza vaccine (split virion, inactivated + Adjuvant) 13 Active, not recruiting A Study of Different Formulations of an A/H1N1 Pandemic Vaccine in Healthy Children Aged 6 Months to 9 Years Conditions: Influenza; Swine-origin A/H1N1 Influenza Interventions: Biological: Monovalent Subvirion A/H1N1 Influenza vaccine; Biological: Monovalent Subvirion A/H1N1 Influenza vaccine; Biological: Normal saline solution (placebo) 14 Active, not recruiting A Study of Swine-origin A/H1N1 Influenza Vaccines in Healthy European Adults and the Elderly Conditions: Influenza; Swine-origin A/H1N1 Influenza Interventions: Biological: Swine A/H1N1 influenza vaccine (split virion, inactivated); Biological: Swine A/H1N1 influenza vaccine (split virion, inactivated); Biological: Swine A/H1N1 influenza vaccine (split virion, inactivated) 15 Active, not recruiting A Clinical Trial With Influenza A/H1N1 Vaccines Condition: Influenza Interventions: Biological: split-virion, adjuvanted H1N1 vaccine of 7.5 μg per dose; Biological: split-virion, adjuvanted H1N1 vaccine of 15 μg per dose; Biological: split-virion, non-adjuvanted H1N1 vaccine of 15 μg per dose; Biological: split-virion, non-adjuvanted H1N1 vaccine of 30 μg per dose; Biological: whole-virion, adjuvanted H1N1 vaccine of 5 μg per dose; Biological: whole-virion, adjuvanted H1N1 vaccine of 10 μg per dose; Biological: placebo control 16 Active, not recruiting A Clinical Trial of CSL's 2009 H1N1 Influenza Vaccine (CSL425) in Healthy Adults Condition: Influenza Caused by the Novel Influenza A (H1N1) Virus Interventions: Biological: CSL's 2009 H1N1 Influenza Vaccine (CSL425); Biological: CSL's 2009 H1N1 Influenza Vaccine (CSL425) 17 Recruiting A Clinical Trial of CSL's 2009 H1N1 Influenza Vaccine (CSL425) in Healthy Children Condition: Influenza Caused by the Novel Influenza A (H1N1) Virus Interventions: Biological: CSL's 2009 H1N1 Influenza Vaccine (CSL425); Biological: CSL's 2009 H1N1 Influenza Vaccine (CSL425) 18 Recruiting Immunogenicity, Safety and Tolerability of Two Doses of Adjuvanted and Non-adjuvanted Swine Origin A/H1N1 Monovalent Influenza Vaccine in Healthy Subjects 18 or More Years of Age Condition: Pandemic Influenza Intervention: Biological: Monovalent A/H1N1 influenza vaccine 19 Active, not recruiting Immunogenicity, Safety and Tolerability of Two Doses of Adjuvanted and Non-adjuvanted Swine Origin A/H1N1 Monovalent Influenza Vaccine in Healthy Subjects 18 or More Years of Age Condition: Pandemic Influenza Intervention: Biological: Monovalent A/H1N1 influenza vaccine 20 Recruiting Immunogenicity, Safety and Tolerability of Two Doses of Adjuvanted and Non-adjuvanted Swine Origin A/H1N1 Monovalent Influenza Vaccine in Healthy Subjects From 6 Months to 17 Years of Age Condition: Pandemic Influenza Intervention: Biological: Monovalent A/H1N1 influenza vaccine

 

 

 

I have seen several die of the yearly flu but they were not healthy prior to the virus or they lived in less clean/healthy environments (street people)

 

But that's not who is being hospitalized and who is dying this go around. I took my healthy, fit neighbor to the hospital on Friday. My daughter's young healthy (albeit overweight) teacher was hospitalized all this week. I have a dear friend who should be in the hospital but is refusing to go. We are seeing an exponential increase in the number of hospitalizations in the 30-49 age group.

 

A flu outbreak *in the southeast* with widespread activity in the early fall/late summer is occuring right now. This is unprecedented. Usually there is virtually no flu right now.

 

Nothing about this is normal.

 

Katherine

Who, at the same time, is not concerned