August 24, 2009
WHO urges vaccine support for poor nations
The World Health Organization's (WHO's) flu chief urged wealthy nations and drug makers to donate more novel H1N1 vaccines to the world's poorest countries, according to an Aug 22 Associated Press (AP) story. Dr. Keiji Fukuda said, "It is clear that the poorest countries in general are just the most vulnerable to any number of diseases." Two drug companies have already agreed to donate 150 million doses to developing countries, while a third is looking at reduced pricing.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gGBK5q0LgRNjBQCvYaHi4SlH0RwgD9A7SDCG0
Aug 22 AP article
HHS tallies US ventilator capacity
The US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has enlisted the help of the American Association for Respiratory Care to gauge the supply of mechanical ventilators in the nation's hospitals, according to the respiratory therapy journal RT. The HHS requested the inventory, due Sep 10, to help assess how to boost ventilator capacity in advance of an expected fall wave of pandemic H1N1 flu. The report will be confidential and will not be used to relocate machines.
http://www.rtmagazine.com/news/2009-08-21_01.asp
Aug 21 RT story
CSL launching H1N1 vaccine trials
CSL Biotherapies, one of five companies making novel H1N1 vaccine for the US government, today announced the launch of clinical trials of the vaccine in adults and children. Plans call for enrolling 1,300 adults and 450 children (aged 3 months to 9 years) in the trials. The subjects will receive two doses 3 weeks apart; three different doses will be tested in the adult trial and two doses in the children's. The children's vaccine will be in a thimerosal-free formulation.
http://www.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20090824005229&newsLang=en
Aug 24 CSL news release
PLoS launches preliminary flu research findings site
Public Library of Science, a nonprofit, open-access scientific publisher, recently introduced a new portal for rapidly disseminating preliminary influenza-related research findings. Articles on the Web site, called PLoS Currents: Influenza, are screened by a board of moderators but are not thoroughly peer reviewed. The site currently contains 10 articles, including one on pandemic H1N1 virulence and another on the outbreak and intensive care capacity.
http://knol.google.com/k/plos/plos-currents-influenza/28qm4w0q65e4w/1%23#
PLoS Currents: Influenza Web site
South Korea delays school openings over flu
Because of the rapid spread of H1N1 flu, some South Korean schools are delaying their semester start, scheduled for yesterday, to slow the spread of the virus, the Korea Herald reported. The schools include 3 middle schools, 12 high schools, and 1 international school that reported a total of 38 confirmed H1N1 infections. The number of South Korean cases reached 3,113 yesterday with 188 new cases in that day alone.
http://www.koreaherald.co.kr/NEWKHSITE/data/html_dir/2009/08/25/200908250038.asp
Aug 25 Korea Herald story
Kyrgyzstan reports first novel flu cases
Public health officials in Kyrgyzstan today confirmed the country's first novel H1N1 cases, a 24-year-old man and his wife who had traveled to Dubai in mid August, Trend News Agency reported. The two were admitted to an infectious disease hospital on Aug 18 with flu symptoms. Lab tests in Moscow confirmed the diagnosis.
http://en.trend.az/news/other/1527502.html
Aug 24 Trend News Agency story
