H1N1 Vaccine

This is a topic that I believe everyone should be educated on, considering that we are all in contact with public facilities and socially interact with various individuals on a daily basis. The H1N1 flu (subtype of the influenza A virus) has been now been classified as a global pandemic. This creates the importance of making sure that we are all knowledgable about what exactly this virus is. With this virus, only a mild number of symptoms are experienced by its victims. There are small subsets of patients, even among young persons previously healthy, in which the patient rapidly develops severe pneumonia, typically 3 to 5 days after initial onset of symptoms. Deterioration can be very rapid, with many patients progressing to respiratory failure within 24 hours, requiring intensive care and ventilation support. And there is a somewhat different pattern in which a child, including a child who is generally quite healthy, seems to be recovering and then relapses with high fever. This can be a secondary infection of bacterial pneumonia, which needs treatment with antibiotics. Like other influenza viruses, novel H1N1 influenza is spread by coughing, sneezing, or touching contaminated surfaces and then touching the nose or mouth. Symptoms, which last up to a week, are similar to those of seasonal flu, and can include fever, sneezing, sore throat, cough, headache, and muscle or joint pains. To avoid spreading the infection, the CDC recommended that those with symptoms stay home from school, work, and crowded settings.

The Vaccination for the H1n1 Virus is now available. If you haven't given any thought as to whether you might get the vaccine, here is a list of individuals who at highest risk to the flu:

- people with chronic medical conditions under the age of 65

- pregnant women

- children six months of age to under five years of age

- people living in remote or isolated communities

- health care workers

- household contacts and caregivers of individuals who are at high risk

- all those with weakened immune systems (asmtha, diabetes, obesity, heart disease)