Influenza Disease Updates

Los Angeles, CA (US) – CORRECTION on quote “500 deaths due to influenza”
(posted within “Disease Updates – 1/6 to…” thread) —
Someone was quoted out of context in a TV interview, and this error was
picked up by every radio, print & TV news outlet – incorrect quote was
“500 deaths due to influenza”. Here is how it happened, with correction…
The CDC tracks nationally the proportion of deaths each week of the
influenza season – 10/1 thru 4/30 – that have an underlying cause of
pneumonia or influenza. Since influenza is usually a clinical diagnosis,
few cases are actually confirmed. However, during an outbreak one can
expect to see a rise in the death rate approx. 2 to 4 weeks after
influenza arrives.

According to the “P & I Index” (Pneumonia & Influenza), for 12/97 a
preliminary total of 11.7% (580/4900) deaths in Los Angeles County listed
pneumonia as a contributing or underlying cause. What was left out was the
12/96 total, 12.3% (617/5000) – indicating there hasn’t been an increase
IN DEATHS associated with pneumonia, and certainly not 500 deaths due to
influenza specifically.

This does not mean there hasn’t been an increase in cases, it just
means there was no increase in deaths.

The number of influenza cases did rise suddenly in mid- to late
December ’97, in southern CA, with numerous doctors & hospitals reporting
capacity crowds.

According to physicians, there appears to be TWO DISTINCT ILLNESSES –
one is clearly influenza (influenza A/Sydney – see 1/11 post for details),
the other hasn’t been identified but it doesn’t have typical “flu”
symptoms of high fever & muscle ache, it consists mostly of low fever and
chronic dry cough that lasts for weeks. (I would think doctors would know
bronchitis when they see it, this illness hasn’t been identified as
bronchitis.)

These illnesses appear to have spread from Los Angeles County, to
Orange, Riverside & San Bernardino Counties, with ancedotal reports of
extremely busy outpatient services.

CHILE – The Ministry of Health reported 33 cases of cholera, 12 confirmed,
which have occurred since the last week in December ’97. All occurred in
rural areas of northern Chile, near the border with Bolivia.

Nairobi, KENYA – An outbreak of Rift Valley fever – already believed to be
the cause of 300+ deaths – has killed another 21 people in northeast
Kenya, authorities said today.
Red Cross officials urged residents to burn all animal carcasses, one
source of the virus.

Another source has been mosquitos, after recent flooding scattered the
insects’ eggs.

Symptoms of Rift Valley fever include high fevers, headaches and vision
problems. In severe cases, fatal hemorrhaging from the nose & other
orifices can occur.

SOMALIA – In the region just across the border from Kenya, dozens of
people have also died recently from Rift Valley fever. Exact figures not
available yet.

HONG KONG – A 25-year old woman, who contracted influenza A/H5N1 before
the chicken slaughter here, became the sixth person to die from the
outbreak.

Her death, on Wednesday, wasn’t expected to change an official
assessment, made earlier this week, that the ‘bird flu’ has been stopped.

HONG KONG – It was learned late Wednesday that a woman, 34, who died on
Sunday from chronic lupus was also infected with the so-called ‘bird flu’,
influenza A/H5N1 virus. She had been hospitalized since Dec. 28, 1997. She
was the fifth confirmed death, out of 18 confirmed cases & 1 suspected
case.

A Deutsche Presse-Agentur article, quoting a Hong Kong Health Dept.
official, reported a sixth death as of yesterday. This death has not been
confirmed yet, currently labeled a “suspected case of”.

Montreal, QUEBEC (Canada) – An influenza outbreak has hit ice-storm
victims, many of whom have been forced to live in crowded emergency
shelters due to the weather and power outages.

More than 60 cases of what UPI reported as “potentially fatal flu” have
been recorded so far. Public health officials are administering flu
vaccines in an attempt to head-off a possible epidemic among the estimated
14,000 Quebec residents still in over 150 shelters as of late Saturday.

Hydro-Quebec power officials said most areas should have power by
Wednesday.

Quebecians should thank their lucky stars they aren’t in Ontario, which
may not be up to close-to-full power until at least NEXT weekend.

Beijing, CHINA – Victims of the earthquake in northern China need
medicine to combat (guess what?) influenza, bronchitis and pnuemonia,
according to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent
Societies (IFRC), the result of people sleeping in the open since the
destruction of their homes, with outside temperatures dropping as low as
27 Celsuis (thats MINUS 16.6 F)

The IFRC will also provide food because stocks in the province were low
following drought last summer.

Even basic drugs are unavailable because clinics have also been
destroyed.

The IFRC has launched an appeal to raise 1.7 million Swiss francs
(equal to $1.14 million US dollars) to provide this aid, which was
reported by Reuters this weekend.