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Old 04-09-2008, 07:37 PM
 
Location: Foot of the Rockies
90,316 posts, read 120,355,293 times
Reputation: 35920

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I have worked in public health and the general consensus is not "if" but "when". That said, we don't know when, we don't know which virus will cause the pandemic. The problem will be that many health care providers will be sick as well.
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Old 04-10-2008, 09:12 AM
 
Location: Lenoir/Morganton, NC
148 posts, read 583,853 times
Reputation: 116
I am preparing some, not really stressing out over it, but keeping my eye on the news, especially with the few reported cases where human to human transmission may have been a factor.

I think people don't want to prepare, so they ridicule those that do, or say there's "nothing we can do". I keep OTC and prescription medications [Tamiflu] at home, sop we won't have to be out around more sick people if there is a pandemic. I also have some disposable gloves and masks to wear, in case my husband was to get this and I had to look after him, and a better grade of mask to wear if there was any sort of large outbreak in my part of the country. My regular disaster/power outage supplies of food, water, cleaning supplies, etc will cover it if we have to stay at home for a couple weeks while it passes, although it'd be nice to have more in savings in case it meant being unable to work for more than a few days.
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Old 04-10-2008, 07:23 PM
 
Location: New Jersey
16,870 posts, read 10,512,375 times
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Thumbs down "Bird Flu"

It's sad that the fear-mongering mentality of the 21st century has carried over into the medical community. However, I supposed that when there are research grants and pharmaceutical drug interests at stake, people will resort to such measures. The amount of money in world-wide research grants, anti-viral medications and "flu shots" is enormous. I think a few people saw a possibility of another large flu outbreak and others took the idea and ran to the bank with it. I keep hearing the BS, "it's not a matter of if, it's a matter of when." Nonsense. Of course, over the next few million years of human existence (if we "live" that long), there will probably be another large outbreak of some viral disease, and it might be influenza. However, there is no real evidence at this time that "bird flu" is going to suddenly "jump" species from birds to humans, and if it does, have a devastating affect on humanity.

Viruses and other microbes are fairly confident and habitual in their means of transmission (thank god). There usually has to be some kind of environmental stress placed on an organism to have it abandon its current means of transmission and "jump" to another means, let alone jump to another species (in accordance with the theory of punctuated equilibrium). Even if the flu did invade humans, as another poster pointed out, modern means of containment and isolation would probably hinder its progression. That's assuming, of course, that the new virus is less or just as susceptible to the human immune system as its current counterpart. The last time there was a major flu epidemic, it occurred at a time when the world, and its population, were devastated by war. Aside from that flu pandemic, there hasn't been an equivalent influenza break out before or after the event. Considering the fact that influenza has been around (or at least recorded) for about 2500 year, I'm not sure how a stretch of 100 years without an outbreak like the one in 1919 makes us "due" for anything. That doesn't mean that we should be careless in how we approach possible new threats of disease, but I think that the amount of time and money being dedicated to this particular issue is a colossal waste of resources...
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Old 04-10-2008, 08:15 PM
 
Location: Foot of the Rockies
90,316 posts, read 120,355,293 times
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It is probably true that the next pandemic will not be as severe due to advances in medical technology since the Spanish Flu epidemic of 1918. However, flu epidemics come in cycles, and we are overdue for one.
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Old 04-10-2008, 08:56 PM
 
Location: Southern Ca
756 posts, read 2,570,192 times
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eeeehhhhh....its only gonna pick off the already ill, and immunocompromised...maybe young children and the elderly............

no worries
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Old 04-12-2008, 01:00 PM
 
2,839 posts, read 9,962,802 times
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There's really no point in getting hysterical over it. If there's going to be a pandemic, there's going to be a pandemic. Stocking up on Tamiflu might possibly help IF it's a strain that is actually helped by Tamiflu... but really, if you stock up today, it will probaby expire by the time there is any pandemic.

These scares go in cycles... when the pharma companies are not making a ton of money on new drugs, the media goes into overdrive over new and deadly illnesses. I think panic is more of an issue than a deadly flu right now.
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Old 04-12-2008, 04:49 PM
 
Location: Foot of the Rockies
90,316 posts, read 120,355,293 times
Reputation: 35920
Quote:
Originally Posted by nay624 View Post
eeeehhhhh....its only gonna pick off the already ill, and immunocompromised...maybe young children and the elderly............

no worries
Apparently not for you. There are a lot of us in those categories.
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Old 04-12-2008, 04:54 PM
 
Location: Houston, TX
2,410 posts, read 5,993,208 times
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Who can worry about Influenza when you're recovering from Pneumonia and worring about money for bills?
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Old 04-12-2008, 05:49 PM
 
Location: a primitive state
11,375 posts, read 24,359,209 times
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There are probably legitimate reasons to be concerned about the spread of new diseases. Most of us have seen a number of them appear in the past decades that have affected how we go about our daily lives, like AIDS and West Nile Virus.

I also believe that the media takes advantage of the fear of new diseases to sell advertising by sensationalizing every conceivable threat. That seems to lead to increased skepticism or blind panic. Neither is in the public interest.

But we all should use a little common sense when reading online forums, don't you think?
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Old 04-12-2008, 09:37 PM
 
Location: Southern Ca
756 posts, read 2,570,192 times
Reputation: 262
Quote:
Originally Posted by Katiana View Post
Apparently not for you. There are a lot of us in those categories.
may I humbly ask for forgiveness ...that my scarcasm came across as
serious....


not my intent to "scare you"
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