H1N1 Influenza — Phase 6 Pandemic
2009 Swine Flu Deaths, Statistics, and Vaccine Information
Nov 2, 2009
Swine flu, or H1N1 influenza, has been under intense scrutiny by the World Health Organization (WHO) since the spring of 2009. In April, WHO introduced the flu outbreak as "a public health emergency of international concern;" in June, it was declared a phase 6 pandemic.
H1N1 Pandemic: Phase 6
When the influenza epidemic went global over the spring and summer of 2009, it officially became a WHO flu pandemic. A pandemic is any unusually high number of cases of a certain disease that is widespread throughout the world.
Phase 6 represents the height of a pandemic disease, with human infection widespread in several countries around the world. WHO hopes to get H1N1 under control and guide it through phases 7 and 8, the post-peak and post-pandemic phases, to see swine flu return to normal levels of occurrence.
Swine Flu Vaccine
Two types of H1N1 vaccine, a live virus nasal spray and an inactivated flu shot, were introduced in October to immunize humans against potential swine flu infection. Pregnant women, children ages six months to 24 years old, health care workers, medically compromised individuals, and child caregivers should be given first priority.
Influenza Pandemic Preparedness Plans from WHO
In the event of an influenza pandemic similar to the Spanish Flu outbreak of 1918, WHO expects:
- High demand and short supply of vaccines, antiviral agents, and antibiotics to treat secondary infections;
- Overburdened medical facilities; and
- Shortage of health and community personnel.
A global influenza preparedness plan outlining WHO's responsibilities and the responsibilities of national authorities, as well as tools and training to develop pandemic preparedness plans on the national, state, and local levels are available from WHO.
Current H1N1 Statistics
As of 25 October 2009, there have been over 440,000 laboratory confirmed cases of pandemic influenza H1N1 and more than 5,700 deaths worldwide reported to WHO. (WHO cautions that the mortality rate of the virus appears inflated in these statistics, since many countries are no longer reporting individual cases of swine flu infection.)
People should remember when looking at these swine flu statistics that even the normal seasonal strain of influenza is fairly deadly. For example, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) estimates that 36,171 people die each year from complications associated with regular seasonal flu in the United States alone.
Swine Flu Pandemic's Impact on Flu Season
WHO says that the annual influenza season lasts from October to May, and this year's statistics suggest an "unusually early start to winter influenza season in some countries." In Japan, for example, a sharp increase in influenza signals that start of flu season 10 weeks earlier than normal. The H1N1 pandemic is expected to complicate the normal flu season worldwide.
The H1N1 pandemic is currently at its height, officially a phase 6 pandemic as of June 2009. Health organizations are attempting to manage the swine flu virus with vaccination and pandemic preparedness plans, but officials still predict an unusually difficult 2009-2010 influenza season.
Sources:
"World now at the start of 2009 influenza pandemic" press release. Dr. Margaret Chan, Director-General of the World Health Organization. 11 June 2009.
"Questions and Answers Regarding Estimating Deaths from Seasonal Influenza in the United States," American Center for Disease Control.
"Pandemic (H1N1) 2009 - update 72," weekly update from the World Health Organization.
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