Swine Flu

[nekosensei]

There has been a lot of activity on Twitter today about swine flu. For those of you who haven't heard, the outbreak started in Mexico City. About one thousand people have been infected, and 68 people have died. There's confirmed cases in Texas, Kansas, and California as well as suspected cases in New York and London. If I remember correctly, the WHO said they don't think they're going to be able to contain it.

I have a feeling that, if this thing does indeed turn into a pandemic, I might be end up conducting my courses online this spring and summer. :P

Comments

[rm.livejournal.com]

On the plus side, the only deaths have been in Mexico. The US cases have all recovered. One theory is that the pollution in Mexico City has made it harder to recover from.

The biggest risk, probably, is it being the widespread flu over the next cold-weather flu season here. It's not really enough time to develop a vaccine. If it does have the mortality rate the Mexico situation suggests, THEN there's a problem.

[bkwrrm-tx.livejournal.com]

Honestly, it scares me. The cases are in the San Antonio area, which isn't that far, in Texas terms. I'm just praying that this doesn't explode.

::cross fingers::

[ftemery.livejournal.com]

I always catch everything. I have a virus right now. I'm thinking of getting the dust masks back up out of the basement. Idiot in front of me on the plane was coughing constantly. Does NO ONE cover their mouth anymore?

[misswitch.livejournal.com]

Seriously, I can't be the only one who's expects something along the lines of

The Stand

to happen any day now.

[nekosensei.livejournal.com]

Well, when they were discussing what hashtag to use for the swine flu on twitter, someone suggested #captaintrips. I kind of liked that one.

I'm not expecting anything like The Stand, and I don't think it will be as bad as the Great Flu Pandemic of 1919, but I still think it could get ugly. I do have to admit that I'm worried about catching it because my lungs aren't in tip top shape. I have asthma and I did have that pulmonary embolism last January. Seriously, I'm going to tell my students that if they're sick, they should stay home. We'll deal with missing work later.

[nick-101.livejournal.com]

I hope it doesn't spread far and wide. It's like bird flu all over again. Diseases like that make me a little paranoid sometimes.

[coffeenomad.com (from livejournal.com)]

if the Swine Flu is anything like the other scares and outbreaks in the US, it shouldn't amount to much (I'm hoping anyway)

[quietdarkness.livejournal.com]

One of the things that the media is downplaying is that there are antivirals that are working on this flu. I'm certainly not worried at this point, and I work in a hospital.