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University of Illinois Medical Immunologists on H1N1 Influenza
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PookztA
IsraTrance Junior Member
Started Topics :
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420
Posted : Oct 23, 2009 00:08:47
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The following is the reply of my fellow Immunology, Microbiology, & Virology professors' replies in regards to a very biased, misleading email, regarding the H1N1 flu and its vaccine. This is the word-for-word email reply that was sent to our M1 medical student class, after they found out that the misleading email was circulating. These people know what they are talking about, so I thought I would share it with all of you. (I also included a link to a very informative website at the bottom)
"An e-mail was sent out on the M1 social listserv yesterday regarding the H1N1 vaccine. Unfortunately, this e-mail was indicative of the rumor and innuendo that has circulated regarding the vaccine. You, however, are being trained as a medical professional and should be dealing with only evidence-based medicine. Given that you are scheduled to be vaccinated tomorrow, we felt compelled to give our overall opinion.
Here are the facts as we see them. We are in the midst of a bona fide H1N1 influenza pandemic. This is not hysteria, this is real. This virus is different enough from the flu viruses that have been in circulation over the last 50 years that it is spreading through an immunologically naïve population. One manifestation of this is the fact that the "flu season" has begun early and the number of cases in North America this fall already exceeds what we would normally see in the beginning of winter. The CDC reported today that 1 in 5 U.S. children had flu-like illness earlier this month, likely H1N1, and 7 percent of surveyed adults had a flu-like illness in the past week. There has indeed been much concern at all levels regarding this flu pandemic. We are fortunate that the current H1N1 virus is not more severe and deadly. But, as you well know, flu viruses change rapidly, and the virulence of this virus could indeed increase as the flu season progresses. But “severity” is relative and 43 children have died in this country since August 30. (See the attached FluView document from the CDC.) The majority of these were confirmed to be H1N1 cases. This is most certainly an underestimate. You should know that these individuals did not die from the flu virus per se but almost certainly had a secondary bacterial infection as a complication of their H1N1 infection.
A college campus is an excellent environment for the spread of infectious disease and there have been hundreds of cases of flu this semester at the U of I. Your chances of getting H1N1 flu are significant. If you do get it, you will likely miss at least a week of class and you will feel miserable. Your chances of dying from this infection are small but not infinitesimal.
The H1N1 flu vaccine is formulated identically to the seasonal flu vaccines that have been administered to millions of individuals over the last several decades. This new vaccine has been deemed safe by the CDC and has already been administered to thousands of individuals. Data from initial vaccination trials have been published (see attached article in the NEJM). The medical students are first in line to receive the vaccine on this campus because you are considered part of the response team in case the pandemic becomes more severe.
No one can guarantee that an individual will not have some adverse reaction COINCIDENT with receiving any vaccine. But epidemiological data tells us that for the flu vaccines serious adverse reactions are extremely rare; usually so rare that no causal relationship can be established. In other words, the risk of infection FAR outweighs the risk of vaccination. Of course other seasonal flu viruses are also serious and yearly flu vaccination is encouraged.
Good scientists rarely make definitive statements. Thus, the language used by the CDC and Health and Human Services is often nuanced and, to the uninitiated, could be viewed as equivocal. In contrast, it is easy to state anecdotal information and misinterpreted science as fact and post it on the Internet. Unfortunately, seemingly reputable news agencies also look for the sensational; good scientific data is often boring. But as a health care professional, good science must be your guide. I have also included a great article by Paul Offit on the data supporting the safety of the current vaccines administered to our children and I encourage you to read it.
I will close by saying that when the H1N1 vaccine becomes more available, the only people that I am letting get in front of me in line are my wife and children. We encourage you to take advantage of the vaccine tomorrow."
Jim Slauch (Microbiologist / Immunologist)
Co-signed:
Nora Few (Dean)
Jim Hall (Dean)
Janet Jokela (Professor)
Joanna Shisler (Virologist / Immunologist)
Richard Tapping (Immunologist)
Dixie Whitt (Microbiologist / Immunologist)
P.S. - Here is a very good, unbiased, informational link from one of the leading health-care clinics in the nation, the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, regarding H1N1 and vaccination: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/swine-flu-vaccine/MY00816
Take care,
-Abe
  Abrahm
Spreading Psytrance and Love in the Midwest USA
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PookztA
IsraTrance Junior Member
Started Topics :
20
Posts :
420
Posted : Oct 23, 2009 03:48
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the Immunology professors said that H1N1 is a very weak strain, so it is nothing to worry about at the moment. Yes, it is going to infect a lot of people because it is foreign to our immune systems, but since it is a very weak strain, it won't do much harm. Most of us are not much at risk, it is mainly young children, old people, and people with weakened immune systems.
The biggest fear is that it may mutate into a more severe form, which would be bad. still, it is nothing to freak out about.
the point though is, Flu Vaccinations are not a bad thing. the H1N1 vaccine is nearly identical to that of the regular Influenza vaccine, it just has different viral particles in it.
there are so many bullshit rumors going around, that it has mercury in it, that it has this harmful thing and that harmful thing in it... the truth is that it is no more risky than the regular seasonal Flu vaccine, so people should strongly considered getting vaccinated just to help stop spreading it.
anywho, i am just letting people know that it is deserving of our attention, but it is not deserving of fear or hysteria.
here is the most recent data regarding H1N1 from the CDC (Center for Disease Control): http://www.cdc.gov/flu/weekly/
as you can see, the rate of infection and H1N1 hospitalization is at its highest rate ever, and is increasing steeply.
I am hoping it remains a weak strain! please do not lose sleep over this, but please set the rumor spreaders / mis-informers straight if you hear people saying that the vaccine is toxic or deadly, or if you hear people saying that the H1N1 threat is a lie. yes, the media blows things out of proportion, but that is why we are here, to tell our friends and family that it really is nothing to worry about, but it is something to pay attention to.
all the best to ya,
-Abe
Abrahm
Spreading Psytrance and Love in the Midwest USA
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PookztA
IsraTrance Junior Member
Started Topics :
20
Posts :
420
Posted : Oct 23, 2009 22:11
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got my H1N1 flu shot at 11am today 
Abrahm
Spreading Psytrance and Love in the Midwest USA
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