Unpredictable Flu

H7N9 flu

Aquatic wild birds are the reservoir of more than 100 influenza viruses whose subtypes (HxNy) have never been responsible for sustained infection in humans. As a matter of fact, humans are usually not infected by avian influenza A viruses. However, sporadic cases of avian influenza virus infection are observed every year, mostly in Asia. By subsequent adaptation these emerging viruses may resul...

'The flu'.

Flu Days

Shivering, you drag yourself, as if gun-shot, to the living room, to the old movie channel, to a Bogart festival, your mind fogged over (like the street on the screen) edging toward feverish sleep when Bogey snarls at Ida Lupino: “Of all the 14-carat saps...” Hours later when you wake, he’s smacking Peter Lorre: “When you’re slapped, you’ll take it and like it!” And as if cuffed, you black out,...

Flu furore

In January, just when H1N1 swine flu virus might well have been hitting the headlines as the cause of one of the UK's worst epidemics of all time, there was an outbreak of a rather different kind. This was an outpouring of media assertions that last year both scientists and the government had grossly exaggerated the virus's likely impact. Alleged reasons for needless panic-mongering ranged from...

Flu concerns

summed up a parallel that many health officials and journalists had noted: " Disturbing echoes of the great 1918 flu pandemic. " " The main danger of a new flu virus emerging from pigs is that it would not be recognised by the human immune system and so would result in severe infections that could quickly spread from one person to another, " The Independent noted. And there was no denying that ...