19 Deaths From Swine Flu In Younger Children...

... and that was in the past week alone! H1N1 has killed a total of 76 children in the United States thus far, proving that this flu is more dangerous to the younger crowd.

The regular flu kills between 46 and 88 children a year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That suggests deaths from the new H1N1 virus could dramatically outpace children's deaths from seasonal flu, if swine flu continues to spread as it has.

CDC officials say 10 more states, a total of 37, now have widespread swine flu. A week ago, reports suggested that cases might be leveling off and even falling in some areas of the country, but that did not turn out to be an enduring national trend.

The new virus, first identified in April, is a global epidemic. The CDC doesn't have an exact count of all swine flu deaths and hospitalizations, but existing reports suggest more than 600 have died and more than 9,000 have been hospitalized. Health officials believe millions of Americans have caught the virus.

Vaccinations against swine flu began this week and so far, states have ordered 3.7 million doses. Demand is exceeding supply, and people seeking the vaccination should ask their state or local health department where to go, said Schuchat, who heads the CDC's National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases.
Health officials also said more data is trickling in from several clinical trials of the new vaccine, and so far no serious side effects have been reported.
Preliminary results from one study indicate that both a seasonal flu shot and a swine flu shot are effective when given during the same doctor's office visit. However, the government is not recommending that people get the nasal spray versions of the seasonal and swine flu vaccines at the same time.
The nasal sprays contain weakened, live virus, and the government doesn't have data on how a person's immune system would react to exposure to both at once, said Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091010/ap_on_he_me/us_med_swine_flu_8

Go and get your children the shot for this flu folks, because this is going to get even nastier, I think. Some places are out of vaccine already so you may have to wait. Be the first in line!

Swine Flu Update

Okay, so i'm a little late with this update. Better late than never, in this case.
As of August 27,2009, there have been 8,843 people who have been hospitalized with the H1Ni influenza. There have been 556 deaths brought on by this flu.

Since I am down in the state of Florida, I will give you the latest on the flu here in the Tampa Bay area.

I would note that the schools in Hillborough County just started classes last week and that health officials expect the swine flu outbreak to go into hyper-gear as many students will be catching this flu.

In Hillsborough County/Tampa, six people have died from the H1N1 flu at this point in time. There has also been one death each in Pinellas and Polk Counties as of the 26th of August.

At Tampa Catholic High School, it is reported that 20 percent of the 700 student body are absent from classes due to the swine flu. Many parents have been told to keep their children home if they have any sort of illness at all, and it appears to be working.

http://www2.tbo.com/content/2009/aug/26/262124/tampa-catholic-reports-20-absent-swine-flu-spreads/news-metro/

The increase in cases was not unexpected. Young people are especially susceptible to swine flu and on school campuses, the highly contagious virus can spread quickly. Hillsborough County Health Department Director Doug Holt predicted it would take two weeks for influenza to invade a campus once classes started; that's how long Tampa Catholic students have been back at school.Holt said he eventually expects absences of at least 30 percent in public schools, where classes began this week.

With all of this nice,hot and humid weather, this flu will spread quicker than health officials think that it will, I predict. These kids will still be getting together away from school to socialize and play, spreading this flu at an even faster rate. Wait till mid-September which is when I predict that all hell will break loose here in the Tampa area.