Are we equipped to withstand a flu pandemic?

Question

Would the mortality rate be as bad as the flu pandemic in 1918 where 675,000 people were killed? How would our economy be affected? Any thoughts?

Answer 1

The 1918 pandemic killed more people than WW1. Times have changed, but we are still incredibly vulnerable to pandemic flu.

Virologist Dr. Robert Webster said this is the worst virus he has ever studied.

Most flu viruses are especially dangerous for young babies, elderly people and people with chronic illnesses. H5N1 virus is different. It is especially dangerous for healthy people with strong immune systems – healthy children, teens and young adults.

The virus produces such a strong assault on the body that our immune systems go into overdrive and unleash something called a cytokine storm in response. This cytokine storm damages our lungs and other organs.

In 1918 they say the fatality rate was 2.5% and 50 to 100 million people died.

The fatality rate for patients who have had H5N1 over the past six months is 76%. No one has immunity to this virus, and scientists say that 50% or more could be infected.

Since we can travel around the world by air flight, once a pandemic begins, it can spread across the globe in a matter of a few days.

Our modern healthcare system will not be of much help because it will be unable to handle such large numbers of patients. We will not have hospital beds, ventilators, nursing staff, medicine, etc. for even a small percentage of pandemic flu patients.

Companies are working on anti-viral medicines but the stockpiles are low – not enough for even 10% of our population – and several strains of the virus are already resistant to the anti-virals.

We don’t have a vaccine for H5N1. Scientists can’t produce a vaccine for the final pandemic virus until the virus finishes the final mutation needed to produce a pandemic. We are unable to produce a vaccine until we have the final virus

It will take at least 6 to 9 months to manufacture the first batches of vaccine and those will be given to first responders, healthcare providers, firefighters, police, etc.

Drug companies are working on what they call prepandemic vaccine – vaccines based on the current virus or the virus strain a few months ago, but the virus has mutated several times and virologists say they do not expect these to work protect against getting the pandemic strain.

Virologists say it is not a matter of if we will have a pandemic but when.

The U.S. government has already warned that we should be stockpiling nonperishable food water, baby food, pet food, medicines, etc.

Unfortunately, that warning hasn’t been made clear and many people are unaware of this danger.

Answer 2

Times have changed......if something like that were to happen, I'm sure the mortality rate would climb with the elderly, the very young and those with compromised immune systems. Also, the drug companies would be pumping out vaccine as soon as they possibly could. I believe we're equipped to handle this.

Answer 3

Not sure Rosche is the company with the patent! The stock has went flyhigh with this scare!

Answer 4

NOPE, we are screwed...