New on the swine flu
It’s still one of the biggest news topics right now and I’m sure you’re eager to know what the latest is regarding the swine flu. Well, here goes….
Last week, Friday, we discovered that the swine flu had spread to New York City, where, according to an AP report, lead to the closing of three schools there and a very sick assistant principal who had to be hospitalized.
Not even a week later, the assistant principal died from the swine flu.
Hundreds of students were sent home sick in Queens, New York, while maintenance workers sprayed the schools down with disinfectants.
Also last week, in an AP report, a woman in Arizona was confirmed as the fourth person in the nation to die from the swine flu.
Keep in mind, this is all just last week.
New government reports indicate that at least 100,000 cases of the swine flu currently exist in the U.S. And in a report from the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control say that there have been at least 5,400 “confirmed and probable” swine flu cases, 200 persons that have been hospitalized and at least six deaths in the U.S. that have resulted from it.
And finally, the latest and greatest breaking news on the swine flu front is that CDC researchers believe that this current strain of the swine flu has been circulating for at least the last 10 years. They’re calling for intense future monitoring of pig populations and this new viral infection strain.
Final statistics as of today: As reported by the World Health Organization, the swine flu has caused a total of 11,000 people to become sick in 41 countries and has lead to the deaths of at least 85 people the world over.
There are people on both sides of this worldwide news story. Some say the swine flu is not big deal, just another branch of the common flu. They argue that 85 deaths in a world with more than six billion people isn’t something to worry about. Others point back to the flu epidemic that struck less than a century ago that killed an estimated 50 million people, that so-called “common flu” that shares many of the same flu symptoms as the swine flu.
Could the swine flu ever reach such proportions? At this point, it doesn’t seem as if anyone has that answer.
Brittany @ May 24, 2009