Brisbane Flu coming to Britain

[Dutchy]

On one hand this report seems a (sensationalist) speculation, on the other hand it is pointing to a plausible development.

Coming to Britain - the Australian flu virus that has already killed hundreds

By Daniel Martin

Last updated at 10:53 PM on 28th September 2008


A flu virus more deadly than any seen in two decades is threatening Britain.

The strain originates in Australia where it has claimed hundreds of lives, including those of children.

Called Brisbane H3N2, it is so virulent that health chiefs have had to change the make-up of flu vaccines to deal with it.

It affects three times the number of victims hit by other strains, with many deaths resulting from pneumonia.

Viruses from the southern hemisphere strike in their winter months - our summer - and tend to travel north for our winter.

And although that did not happen after Brisbane H3N2 ravaged Australia last year, experts fear Europe will not escape it this winter.

Hugh Pennington, professor of bacteriology at Aberdeen University, said: 'If this flu has been busy in Australia, it is reasonable to suppose that we may get a similar situation in the UK. Viruses travel round the world very quickly now.

We have had some very quiet flu years recently and every year we have to assume that it will be busier than last year.

'Sooner or later we will have a big outbreak, and the more cases there are, the more deaths there will be.

'There is no doubt that elderly people are more at risk. It can tear through an old folk's home and cause a lot of harm.'

The last major outbreak in England and Wales came in 1989-90, when 23,046 people died, compared with a seasonal average of around 4,000. The elderly are those most at risk because they have weaker immune systems.

The Australian flu outbreak affected even fit young adults, and New South Wales saw more than 800 deaths from pneumonia in just five weeks in June and July 2007. Many children died.

Experts speculated that several winters of mild flu had left the population with little immunity. Last year the Australian inventor of the flu vaccine, Dr Graeme Laver, said the outbreak in his country meant Britain was also in danger. 'If the seasonal flu is as bad as it was in Australia, you are in for a pretty bad time,' he said.

'You could have a really severe epidemic. Thousands will be ill and many will die.'

The World Health Organisation and Sanofi Pasteur, a vaccine manufacturer, have combined the Brisbane strain with two others, one also named after the city, in their latest flu vaccine.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1063737/Coming-Britain--Australian-flu-virus-killed-hundreds.html

[lilly]

Got my shot last week.

So Brisbane is in the mix. Good. Takes a while for your immunity to be established, better early than later.

[Solitaire]

Millions more people 'need to have flu jab'

Millions more people should get the flu jab this year, the Government's director of immunisation has said.

By Rebecca Smith, Medical Editor
Last Updated: 1:15AM BST 03 Oct 2008


Ahead of the influenza season, Prof David Salisbury said less than half of those under the age of 65 who were at risk of serious complications if they contract flu were actually getting vaccinated.

'Millions more' need to have the jab, he warned.

The UK has had eight years of mild flu seasons and 'this cannot continue forever', Prof Salisbury added.

"We have got good vaccine coverage in the over 65s but there is a group with risk factors under the age of 65 who ought to get vaccinated and only 46 per cent do currently. We ought to do better. "It may be simply that people do not take flu very seriously but for some, the flu virus can be potentially life-threatening."

The Department of Health launched its annual campaign to encourage people in 'at risk' groups to have the vaccine.

Everyone over the age of 65 is routinely offered the jab as are younger people with long-term conditions such as heart disease, diabetes, asthma, multiple sclerosis, serious kidney and liver disease.

Around 15 million people in the UK have the jab, which must be administered every year as it is altered each year to match the flu strains in circulation.

It is thought an additional four million people with long-term conditions could benefit from having the vaccine.

Research commissioned by the Department of Health found that people are putting themselves at risk because they believe flu is no more dangerous than a heavy cold, where as in reality it kills thousands in the UK each year.

Half of people did not know that failing to cover their mouth when sneezing, or washing hands after coughing, are among the most common ways of spreading the flu virus.

Fears have been raised that a particularly virulent strain of flu has caused severe problems in Australia and is heading to the UK this winter.

But Dr Keiji Fukuda, head of the World Health Organisation's Global Influenza Programme, said there was no reason to believe this year's flu season would be any worse than recently. The southern hemisphere had seen a 'mild' season and the virus strains in the vaccine for this year are a good match for the strains that are expected this winter, he said.

He said pregnant women and children are amongst the groups which are most likely to be admitted to hospital with complications if they contract flu but he stopped short of calling for the UK to include these groups in the annual routine immunisation programme.

UK experts have said it was 'very likely' that pregnant women will be offered the influenza vaccine next year after new research showed the jab can protect the newborn baby against the disease for the first six months of life when they are particularly vulnerable.

The poll of more than 1,000 adults, also found that while 61% knew of the risks for older people, 24% did not know flu was potentially fatal for those under 65 in at-risk groups.

Dr Hilary Jones, who regularly appears on television, said: "The continued reliance on 'old wives' tales' is worrying - and could be put millions at risk by failing to protect themselves properly during the winter months."

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/3124171/Millions-more-people-need-to-have-flu-jab.html