H1N1 FLU BREAKING NEWS: Rapid tests in children, vaccine delay in Nepal, vaccine controversy in Poland, mortality rate high in India

H1N1 2009 Pandemic Influenza

Feb 15, 2010

H1N1 rapid tests most sensitive in young children
A prospective study of the accuracy of rapid diagnostic tests for H1N1 influenza has found that the test returns more accurate results for children and teenagers than it previously has for adults. The study among 820 children treated at Toronto's Hospital for Sick Children found that the test was sensitive to H1N1 flu for 62% of the children tested and was most sensitive in children who were younger than 5 or whose symptoms had begun less than 2 days earlier.
http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/abstract/peds.2009-2669v1
Feb 15 Pediatrics early-release article

Production delay stalls vaccine delivery to Nepal
Deliveries of donated pandemic H1N1 vaccine for Nepal have been delayed by about a month because of production problems at the company that pledged the vaccine, a World Health Organization (WHO) official told the Himalayan Times. He projected that Nepal would receive the vaccine by the first week of March. The health ministry has prioritized healthcare workers and their dependents, pregnant women, people with underlying medical conditions, young children, and seniors to receive the vaccine.
http://www.thehimalayantimes.com/fullNews.php?headline=Swine+flu+vaccine+delayed&NewsID=227503
Feb 13 Himalayan Times story

Polish government feuds over flu shots
Disputes within the government of Poland over its health ministry's refusal to purchase H1N1 flu vaccine have broken into the open with a threat by the government's ombudsman to sue the health minister, BBC News reported. The ministry declined to buy the shots because of fears of side effects; the ombudsman, who caught the flu himself, contends that the decision put the country's citizens at risk. Poland has recorded 172 swine flu deaths.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/8512475.stm
Feb 12 BBC News story

Virologist decries India's lack of H1N1 data
An Indian virologist says it is "shameful" that no epidemiologic analysis of India's H1N1 epidemic has been published. Writing in Current Science, Shahid Jameel of the International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology in New Delhi said it is not known why India's H1N1 mortality rate is three to four times the global average. He said more information is needed for targeting of a vaccine that India expects to deploy this summer. The country has had 1,152 deaths, he said.
http://www.ias.ac.in/currsci/10feb2010/306.pdf
Current Science commentary

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    As cattle detections track northward, Mexico recently reported its first human case.

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  2. Meta-analysis: Zika-infected pregnant moms 4 times more likely to have babies with microcephaly

    Five of 22 studies noted that over 50% of newborns had microcephaly, and the same number of studies observed that over 5% had congenital Zika syndrome. 

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  3. Woman dies of Creutzfeldt-Jakob almost 50 years after taking prion-contaminated growth hormone

    The patient, who presented with gait imbalance and tremors, wasn't diagnosed until she was in a coma, shortly before she died.

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  5. HHS expected to discontinue COVID vaccine recommendations for some groups

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  6. Texas announces more measles cases, including first in Dallas area

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  7. WHO advisers say current strains OK for COVID vaccine production

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  8. Saudi Arabia confirms 9 MERS cases, including hospital cluster

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  9. Flu vaccine efficacy 41% overall and 26% in older adults, per 2023-24 estimates

    Estimated effectiveness was 68% against influenza B and 32% against type A.

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    Flu shot going into arm

  10. Long COVID tied to substantial loss in work productivity

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