Swine Flu – the word that shaking whole world.By the time we are writing this post, totally 1080 members are infected and 26 people are died.Our sincere condemns to all of them. We Collected some useful information about Swine Flu, symptons of Swine flu, how to prevent it and Treatment for it.Hope this post helps atleast few of you.
What is Swine Flu?
Swine influenza (also called swine flu, hog flu, and pig flu) refers to influenza caused by those strains of influenza virus, called swine influenza virus (SIV), that usually infect pigs.Swine influenza is common in pigs in the midwestern United States (and occasionally in other states), Mexico, Canada, South America, Europe (including the United Kingdom, Sweden, and Italy), Kenya, Mainland China, Taiwan, Japan and other parts of eastern Asia. – Wikipedia
Symptoms
The symptoms of swine flu are similar to those of influenza and of influenza-like illness in general, namely chills, fever, sore throat, muscle pains, severe headache, coughing, weakness and general discomfort.
Transmission of Flu from Pigs to Humans
When transmitted, the virus does not always cause human influenza and often the only sign of infection is the presence of antibodies in the blood, detectable only by laboratory tests. When transmission results in influenza in a human, it is called zoonotic swine flu. People who work with pigs, especially people with intense exposures, are at risk of catching swine flu.
However, only about fifty such transmissions have been recorded since the mid-20th Century, when identification of influenza subtypes became possible. Rarely, these strains of swine flu can pass from human to human.
Prevention
Prevention of swine influenza has three components: prevention in swine, prevention of transmission to humans, and prevention of its spread among humans.
Prevention in swine
Methods of preventing the spread of influenza among swine include facility management, herd management, and vaccination. Because much of the illness and death associated with swine flu involves secondary infection by other pathogens, control strategies that rely on vaccination may be insufficient.
Prevention of pig to human transmission
The transmission from swine to human is believed to occur mainly in swine farms where farmers are in close contact with live pigs. Although strains of swine influenza are usually not able to infect humans this may occasionally happen, so farmers and veterinarians are encouraged to use a face mask when dealing with infected animals. The use of vaccines on swine to prevent
their infection is a major method of limiting swine to human transmission
Prevention of human to human transmission
Influenza spreads between humans through coughing or sneezing and people touching something with the virus on it and then touching their own nose or mouth.Swine flu cannot be spread by pork products, since the virus is not transmitted through food.The swine flu in humans is most contagious during the first five days of the illness although some people, most commonly
children, can remain contagious for up to ten days. Diagnosis can be made by sending a specimen, collected during the first five days for analysis.
Treatment
If a person becomes sick with swine flu, antiviral drugs can make the illness milder and make the patient feel better faster. They may also prevent serious flu complications. For treatment, antiviral drugs work best if started soon after getting sick (within 2 days of symptoms). Beside antivirals, palliative care, at home or in hospital, focuses on controlling fevers and maintaining fluid balance. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends the use of Tamiflu (oseltamivir) or Relenza (zanamivir) for the treatment and/or prevention of infection with swine influenza viruses, however, the majority of people infected with the virus make a full recovery without requiring medical attention or antiviral drugs.
2009 flu outbreak
The 2009 flu outbreak in humans, known as “swine flu”, is due to a new strain of influenza A virus subtype H1N1 that contained genes most closely related to swine influenza.The origin of this new strain is unknown, however, and the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) reports that this strain has not been isolated in pigs.This strain can be transmitted from human to human, and causes the normal symptoms of influenza.
First Case
The new strain of swine flu was first diagnosed as such when the CDC received a sample on April 14 from a patient who fell ill on March 30 in San Diego County, California. A second case was confirmed on April 17 who had fallen ill on March 28 in Imperial County, California.
First Death
The first death from swine flu occurred on April 13, when a diabetic woman from Oaxaca died from respiratory complications.
The flu has been blamed for 26 deaths: 25 in Mexico and one in the United States, according to the World Health Organization.
