Swine Flu Facts

In February 2009, La Gloria village in Eastern Mexico reported that 60 percent of its occupants were sick from a respiratory illness. A sick boy showed a positive test result for the swine flu. In the following months, the swine flu made its ways around the world. Cases of the swine flu have been found on all habitable continents. Health officials expect the cases of the swine flu to increase in the near future.
  1. Basics

    • The swine flu, or H1N1, is a type of influenza A virus. Small in size, the viruses have a round shape. Like all strands of influenza, the swine flu changes its makeup through antigenic drift. Antigenic drift is the changes in the outer layer of the virus. According to swine-flu-facts.org, the swine flu consists of human influenza, avian influenza and two parts of swine influenza. It's unknown how it came about. Usually the swine flu doesn't affect humans, but the current strand is a mutated form.

    Symptoms

    • Symptoms of the swine flu include coughing, sore throat, fever, chills, fatigue and body aches. Swine-flu-facts.org states that some patients experienced diarrhea. Government health officials suggest that if people suffer from these symptoms, they should contact a doctor. Anyone with a compromised immune system has a higher chance of contracting the swine flu. This list includes people undergoing chemotherapy and radiation treatments, HIV/AIDS patients, lupus victims and those whose medications hinder the immune system's ability to fight disease.

    Treatment

    • Doctors prescribe Tamiflu and Relenza to fight the swine flu. Not everyone needs the drugs, however. Healthy people who become infected usually recover in a week, according to the World Health Organization. The Centers for Disease Control recommends treatment for those in danger of flu complications. If a patient has low blood pressure, is coughing up blood, has chest pain or a fever lasting more than three days, he should receive antiviral drugs. The drugs keep the virus from breaking out of cells and spreading. Health officials urge victims to stay hydrated. Several swine flu deaths happened due to dehydration.

    Prevention

    • Viruses travel through the air. If an infected person coughs or sneezes, the virus projects into the air. A person with the swine flu may not show symptoms for a day, but still be contagious. Infected people should avoid contact with others. To fight the current strand of the swine flu, several countries stopped unnecessary flights to Mexico. To decrease the chances of contracting the disease, wash hands and surfaces frequently. Cover the mouth and nose while coughing and sneezing with a tissue.

    Previous Outbreaks

    • Various outbreaks of influenza occurred in history. In 1918, a different strand of the flu killed between 30 and 50 million people, according to 1918.pandemicflu.gov. More flu pandemics occurred in the 1950s and 1960s. A swine flu outbreak occurred in 1976 in the United States. A mass immunization program was started, but didn't reach the majority of the population. The treatment also caused the paralyzing disease Gullian-Barre syndrome. The 1976 epidemic stayed within the United States.

Infectious Diseases - Related Articles