Hot Topics - Diseases and vaccines - Flu/flu vaccine

March 1-7, 2004

February 23-29, 2004

February 16-22, 2004

►February 16, 2004 - A flu jab for all toddlers? - The Scotsman

►February 16, 2004 - State to determine whether avian flu outbreak involved live virus (requires registration) - AP via www.pennlive.com

►February 16, 2004 - Parents pay up for jabs - Evening Mail via icBirmingham.co.uk

►February 16, 2004 - What are dangers of the bird flu? (registration required) - United Features Syndicate via The Post and Courier

►February 16, 2004 - Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in Thailand -This is a Follow-up report (No. 1) via OIE on the recent outbreak of Avian Influenza in Thailand. - Poultry News via www.thepoultrysite.com

►February 16, 2004 - Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in the US - This is a report via OIE on the recent outbreak of Avian Influenza in America. - Poultry News via www.thepoultrysite.com

►February 16, 2004 - A hint of the flu - The Globe and Mail - "Health experts fear that somewhere in the world today -- perhaps in Asia, where avian flu has killed at least 19 people -- a particularly dangerous genetic change may be taking place in a known influenza virus and creating something new, like the SARS virus, to which humans have no immunity. If such a virus were able to spread easily from person to person, a pandemic could occur similar to the one in 1918-19, when Spanish flu killed an estimated 50 million people around the world...Flu viruses undergo such antigenic changes frequently (though thankfully with less dire consequences).

►February 15, 2004 - Bird-Brained Flu Hype - New York Post - "AVIAN flu, if it morphs into a human-to- human virus, could cause another worldwide epidemic like the one in 1918, when almost a billion people got sick, 50 million died and the Great War ground to a halt. This is the public health message that has been broadcast over the media megaphone recently...The U.S. public, tired of influenza from December's over-hyped outbreak, and not that concerned about health care in other countries to begin with, isn't buying this message. But because the public is sure to buy some later message about some other hyped bacteria or virus, we must look at how public health officials choose to inform - or misinform - us."

►February 14, 2004 - Mortality from avian flu is higher than in previous outbreak - journal article (BMJ) - "The mortality in Vietnam of between 60% and 70% is much higher than the 30% mortality of the 1997 outbreak in Hong Kong, said Professor David Hui, a respiratory medicine specialist at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. Professor Hui is in Vietnam as part of a team of specialists who are training medical staff in infection control and treatment of H5N1 avian flu...."This is a puzzle... we are trying to find out: is the virus changing in structure? Is it becoming more virulent? Is the clinical spectrum different from 1997?' Professor Hui told Reuters Television."

►February 15, 2004 - State confirms avian flu in Lancaster County flock - The state Agriculture Department confirmed an outbreak of avian flu at a Lancaster County farm, but said the strain infecting the flock is not likely to be harmful to humans. - AP via Nepa News

►February 15, 2004 - China Finds More Bird Flu Ahead of Crisis Talks - Radio Free Asia

►February 16, 2004 - Ban on farm hit by avian flu may be lifted - The Japan Times

►February 16, 2004 - Bird Flu Outbreak Has Farmers Jittery (requires registration or subscription) - The New York Times - "The influenza strain, known as H7, is not a danger to humans, and is not even particularly deadly for chickens. But if allowed to spread, health experts say, it can mutate into a more virulent strain for animals. Consequently, the state typically orders entire flocks destroyed when even a single bird becomes infected."

►February 16, 2004 - Flu illness 'may bring on asthma' - Catching flu early in life may actually increase the chances of a child developing asthma later, say experts. - BBC - "Their finding, in a study of mice, contradicts the suggestion that early infections have a protective effect...Writing in the journal Nature Immunology, the team from Stanford University say that flu boosted the body's allergic responses."

February 9-15, 2004

►February 14, 2004 - Thailand's PM confident bird flu is beaten - www.abc.net.au

►February 15, 2004 - Concern as bird flu makes the jump to other species - Taipei Times

►February 14, 2004 - China's bird flu claim suspect - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

►February 14, 2004 - Flu jabs scandal puts old at risk - icBirmingham.co.uk - "Half a million elderly people in the Midlands are at risk of catching killer flu because of a vaccination flop...The prediction comes after it was revealed that less than HALF the primary care trusts in the region had hit Government targets for offering the life-saving jabs."

Comment:  Is the government ignorant of the fact that this year's flu vaccine probably doesn't work, or do they just don't care?

►February 13, 2004 - Bird flu strain in Pennsylvania said no threat to humans - Reuters via Forbes

►February 13, 2004 - New Flu Vaccine Provides Insight into Immunity Development, Says Stanford Researcher - Stanford University Medical Center via Business Wire

Comment:  Wouldn't it be better to understand immunity prior to using vaccines, rather than use them under the assumption that they both work and are safe?

►February 12, 2004 - Chiron to Testify to Congress on Influenza Vaccine - President and CEO Howard Pien to Appear at U.S. House of Representatives Government Reform Committee Hearing Today - PRNewswire-FirstCall via http://interestalert.com - "'"Chiron is committed to meeting demand for flu vaccine in the United States, today and tomorrow,' said Mr. Pien...'Strengthening our public health infrastructure -- to increase immunization rates in the inter-pandemic years -- is the single most important initiative today to prepare for tomorrow's pandemic.'"

►February 12, 2004 - Flu bugs more dangerous than terrorists, county officials told - Billings Gazette

►February 13, 2004 - Bird Flu Vaccine Is Called Feasible - Boston Globe via www.immunizationinfo.org (abstract)

►February 10, 2004 - Indonesia Importing Bird Flu Vaccine From China, Despite Concerns About Its Quality - AP via www.intelihealth.com

►February 13, 2004 - Bird flu viruses have geographic features - Xinhuanet via China View

►February 13, 2004 - Bird flu victim's father sues Thai government - Financial Times - "The angry father of a six-year-old Thai boy who died of bird flu has filed a legal complaint against the Thai government, accusing it of covering up the lethal disease, with fatal consequences for his son...Chamnan Bounmanut, whose son Captan was the first of five Thais to die from the H5N1 bird flu virus, says the boy would be alive today if the government had issued public warnings that bird flu was sweeping through Thai poultry and could infect people."

►February 13, 2004 - Officials Say Avian Flu Poses No Threat in New Jersey (requires registration or subscription) - The New York Times

►February 13, 2004 - New Zealand not to ban cold and flu medicine - Xinhuanet via China View - "The New Zealand government has decided not to ban common cold or flu medicines on pharmacy shelves in the country, New Zealand Press Association reported Friday...Pseudoephedrine, a major ingredient in many medicines, not onlysoothes cough and cold but also is used in the manufacture of the illegal drug methamphetamine (speed), which was reclassified as a Class A drug last year."

►February 13, 2004 -  WHO bird flu study finds virus infects humans fast, kills quickly - AFP via www.channelnewsasia.com - "The first study of Asia's bird flu cases shows the virus has an alarmingly high fatality rate and that victims typically die less than two weeks after falling ill with raging fever and breathing difficulties...The World Health Organisation (WHO) survey of 10 human cases of bird flu in Vietnam, where 14 people have died of the disease, found that of the group eight died, one recovered and another remains in a critical condition."

►February 13, 2004 - FAO: bird flu not under control yet - Xinhuanet via China View

►February 13, 2004 - Leopard Dies of Bird Flu - A leopard has died from bird flu in a Thai zoo, it was disclosed today. - The Scotsman - "An official at the zoo said the leopard’s death 'may have been as a result of it eating chicken infected with bird flu'...The World Health Organisation said it had little information about the case – but if confirmed it could be the first time the disease has jumped to exotic animals or members of the cat family."

►February 13, 2004 - Vietnam rejects WHO criticism over handling of bird flu outbreak - AFP via www.channelnewsasia.com

►February 12, 2004 - Avian flu found at four New Jersey live chicken markets; officials say no danger to humans - AP via The Hannibal Courier-Post

►February 13, 2004 - Bird flu short incubation: study - AP via The Australian

►February 13, 2004 - WHO assurance on bird flu scare - The World Health Organisation (WHO) has dispelled fears of bird flu being transmitted by humans in Vietnam. - Aljazeera.net
►February 12, 2004 - MedImmune thinking twice about staying in vaccine business - CNS via www.sunherald.com - "The research chief of Gaithersburg-based MedImmune told a House committee Thursday that the company may get out of the vaccine-production business, following disappointing sales of its nasal-spray vaccine this flu season."

Comment: "BL Fisher Note (from the NVIC newsletter): When America's free enterprise system is allowed to work properly, without government coercion, then those products the public needs and wants will be purchased and consumed and those the public does not need or want will not be purchased and consumed. That leaves the way open for other manufacturers to build a better mousetrap and persuade the public to use that better mousetrap, which is as it should be...A good example is the Prevnar vaccine. The Prevnar vaccine, without any government mandates, was the best selling new drug/biological in 2001. Wyeth can't make the product fast enough to satisfy public demand...In any given year, only about one quarter of the US population has voluntarily chosen to purchase and consume flu vaccine of any kind. Only when government interferes and mandates use of a vaccine or subsidizes manufacturers of vaccines is America's free enterprise system not allowed to work as it should. At the end of the day, the public should not be forced to use a product it does not want...There were very good reasons why the FDA did not approve FLUMIST for use in children under five or adults over 50. MedImmune and Wyeth both know why. MedImmune is wise to read the writing on the wall rather than ask for government bailout of a vaccine that the public, for whatever reasons, obviously does not want."

►February 12, 2004 - Drug company greed hurts effort on flu (requires registration) - opinion - The Central Florida Future - "What Bush's privatization plan would essentially do to the U.S. pharmaceutical landscape is put our unenviable drug dependency more in the hands of companies whose sole interests are profits. That almost definitely will result in a drop in vaccine availability nationwide."

►February 12, 2004 - Flu Vaccine Makers Say Gov't Must Increase Demand - Reuters, UK - "Vaccine makers can not guarantee enough future supplies of flu vaccines unless the government can help ensure profitability, drug company officials told U.S. Congress on Thursday...Unless the market is expanded -- either by ensuring that more at-risk people get vaccinations for influenza or simply more people in general, companies have little incentive for innovation, the executives said...'Raising demand is key to raising supply,' Howard Pien, president and chief executive officer of Emeryville, Calif.-based Chiron Corp. said...'A universal recommendation... will in turn provide the impetus on the part of vaccine manufacturers to increase their production capacity to meet routine demand,' James Young, president of Research and Development at MedImmune, said."

Comment:  Can this really be happening?  Are they going to get away with it?  If history is any judge, they just well may.  For more on the flu and the flu vaccine, go to Dr. Sherri Tenpenny's articles at www.redflagsdaily.com .

►January 15, 2004 - Jury Still Out On Flu Vaccine - HealthDay via The Atlanta Journal-Constitution - "The CDC is still urging flu vaccination, especially for such high-risk persons as children and older people, because history shows that the vaccine probably is preventing the disease in many cases and reducing the incidence of complications in those who develop the disease, says Dr. Nidhi Jain, a CDC epidemiologist..."Remember, there are three different strains in the vaccine," Treanor says. "One of those strains could pop out later this year...And the record of past years in which there was a mismatch between the virus used for the vaccine and the most common strain in the population shows that the vaccine did reduce the number of infections and the potentially life-threatening complications in those who developed influenza, Jain says."

Comment:  Even though the CDC says "This study does not provide data that permits an assessment of the effectiveness of TIV (trivalent inactivated vaccine) against laboratory-confirmed influenza and its complications. Additional studies to provide such data are under way. Because TIV was effective against laboratory-confirmed influenza and influenza-related complications in previous years in which it was not effective against ILI (8,9), and because influenza B and influenza A (H1N1) viruses might cause serious illness later this season, influenza vaccine continues to be recommended for persons at increased risk for influenza-related complications, their household contacts, and health-care personnel.", it is still difficult to see how the CDC can continue to recommend this vaccine.  This is particularly true given that their own preliminary studies confirm that it appears the vaccine is not likely to be protective.  (After all, it is not as if there are no adverse flu vaccine-associated reactions reported to VAERS.  Between 1990 and now there have been 20,174, probably at a minimum representing over 200,000.) That is, it is hard to fathom unless they view their primary job to be protecting the vaccine manufacturers rather than the public.   And unless they have conducted studies comparing those who were vaccinated to those who were not vaccinated against the flu (breaking it down by "never vaccinated" and all the various vaccine combinations), there is simply no basis for the argument that a mismatched flu vaccine offers at least some protection against the flu.

►February 12, 2004 - Call for bird vaccinations - Chickens may get the jab to stop spread of bird flu. - Nature

Comment:  But if a recent article in New Scientist is correct, vaccinations may be part of the problem, rather than part of the solution.

►February 11, 2004 - Avian Influenza - Advice from The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - Travel VideoTelevision News

►February 11, 2004 - Spinoff of vaccine firm raises doubts on flu plan - Canadian Press via the Toronto Star - "The backbone of the federal pandemic flu plan, which will be released Thursday, is a contract to buy enough vaccine to inoculate all Canadians. But a question mark is hanging over the future of the vaccine manufacturer, leaving some to wonder how firm that backbone really is...A crucial feature of the federal plan is that Canada has secured a domestic supplier of vaccine, Shire Biologics of Laval, Que. Having a domestic supplier ensures flu shots bought, paid for and destined for Canadian arms couldn't be nationalized by another government desperate to protect its own citizens from an influenza pandemic sweeping the globe...But the British company that owns Shire Biologics is in the process of divesting itself of the vaccine manufacturer, a move that has drawn purchase offers from a number of other companies. That situation is prompting questions about how iron-clad the procurement contract is."

►January 5, 2004 - Nasal Flu Vaccine Safe for Kids - HealthDay via The Atlanta Journal-Constitution - "Here's some good news for parents who have to drag their kids kicking and screaming to get their annual flu shot...It turns out an influenza virus vaccine delivered as a nasal spray protects healthy children against certain strains of influenza, says a report in the January issue of The Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine...Doctors at the Scott & White Memorial Hospital and Clinic in Temple, Texas, found children who received the nasal vaccination were protected against influenza infection during the 2000 flu epidemic."

Comment:  Note that the results of this study do not mean the nasal flu vaccine was protective against this year's flu.  Nor, in all likelihood, was it protective against this year's flu.  (Why they failed to make sure parents understood this, is beyond me.)

►February 11, 2004 - Vaccines Stockpile urged - New Zealand warning - Otago Daily Times - "Two University of Otago graduates have warned New Zealand must ready itself for the bird flu by stockpiling vaccines for the deadly disease...Dr Robert Webster and Dr Richard Webby - who now head a Memphis-based World Health Organisation laboratory for animal influenza viruses - have said there is a worldwide shortage of two drugs which can help fight bird flu, One News reported last night."

►February 11, 2004 - Genetic analysis probes bird flu's history - New Scientist - "Recent work also reveals that the virus has been mutating rapidly in response to 'unusual selective pressure' from an unknown source. Prominent virologists have warned that widespread vaccination of poultry against bird flu - as has been the case in China - could have this effect."

Comment:  How many new diseases are a result of vaccination?  How many researchers are even looking into this possibility?  How many diseases caused by vaccination are we now seeking to develop vaccines to prevent in the future?  How many of these new diseases are more serious, with humans less adapted to them than the original disease for which the vaccine was designed?

►February 11, 2004 - Thailand rejects WHO criticism over handling of bird flu outbreak – www.channelnewsasia.com 

►January Supplement 1, 2004 - Vaccination for pandemic influenza: a six point agenda for interpandemic years. - journal article (Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal)

►February 11, 2004 - A timely account of the 1918 flu pandemic - The Boston Globe

►February Supplement 2, 2004 - Pneumococcal resistance in perspective: how well are we combating it? - journal article (Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal)

►February 2004 - Safety of cold-adapted live attenuated influenza vaccine in a large cohort of children and adolescents - journal article (Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal)

►February 11, 2004 - Bird flu two years to control: WHO - The deadly bird flu sweeping Asia could take two years to get under control, the World Health Organization has warned. - CNN

►February 10, 2004 - Tests Show Avian Flu on Second Del. Farm - Delaware Officials Order Quarantine, Chicken Slaughter After Second Bird Flu Case Found - AP via ABC News

►February 10, 2004 - Bird flu linked to 1918 pandemic - The Telegraph, UK

►February 10, 2004 - Bird Flu Rattles U.S. Poultry Officials (registration required) - AP via The Kansas City Star

►February 9, 2004 - WHO says bird flu problem may take couple of years to contain - Canadian Press via http://cnews.canoe.ca

►February 9, 2004 - With diseased animals, disposal isn't simple - New York Times News Service via www.abs-cbnnews.com

►February 9, 2004 - Wyeth Sniffs at U.S. Warning That Grounded Flu Drug Sales - Financial Times via www.immunizationinfo.org (abstract)

►February 9, 2004 - 'Respiratory etiquette' cuts spread of disease - Evansville Courier & Press via Healthy News

►February 9, 2004 - Where's the Flu Bug? - www.kndu.com - "This is usually the time of the year when the flu bug is hitting the hardest...But after an early start, and a run on flu shots, we haven’t seen the big outbreak that was feared. It came early, and it looks like it might have left just as quickly."

►February 9, 2004 - As bird flu spreads, global health weaknesses are exposed - NY Times News Service via www.abs-cbnnews.com

►February 10, 2004 - More Singaporeans taking flu inoculations - Channel NewsAsia via Yahoo!

►February 10, 2004 - Despite drop in flu, vaccinations still encouraged - The Robesonian - "Even though the worst of the national flu epidemic seems to have passed, the Robeson County Health Department is urging at-risk individuals to take advantage of the limited number of flu vaccines still available...Bill Smith, health director, said flu season typically runs through March, and data from the past two winters show that flu activity has peaked during February and March."

Comment:  And in spite of the fact that they apparently do not work, even according to the CDC.

►February 10, 2004 - WHO wants more tests to ensure bird flu cannot be passed among humans - Channel News Asia

►February 10, 2004 - WHO raps Asia over handling of bird flu crisis as China reports new cases - AFP via www.channelnewsasia.com

►February 10, 2004 - EU warns Asian countries against bird flu cover-up - EU Business

►February 9, 2004 - Confidence the key in fight against bird flu - China Daily - "As the highly contagious bird flu virus spreads across Asia, the affliction has become embedded in the popular lexicon through media reports and ordinary conversation...The new crisis appeared when many in the region were still reeling from the bitter memories of SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome), and it has unavoidably triggered public panic in some places."

►February 9, 2004 - China official threatens HK media over flu reports - Reuters AlertNet - "A Chinese official has threatened to take legal action against Hong Kong's journalists over their reporting of bird flu outbreaks on the mainland, newspapers here reported on Monday...Zhong Yangsheng, executive vice governor of China's southern Guangdong province, also insisted there was no outbreak in the province's Chaoan county although it has been confirmed by the central government."

►February 8, 2004 - Wyeth says warnings hurt flu drug sales - Financial Times - "Wyeth has blamed the US authorities in part for the poor performance of FluMist, its flu vaccine...Robert Essner, chief executive of Wyeth, said warnings by the government and health groups had triggered 'folklore' that the weakened, but live flu virus used in FluMist could be transmitted to other people, causing sickness. He said Wyeth was conducting a comprehensive review of its strategy for the product."

►February 8, 2004 - No human-to-human link, says WHO - Follow-up tests on Vietnamese sisters show no human genes in virus, meaning it has not mutated to a more lethal form - The Straits Times

►February 9, 2004 - WHO says Vietnam flu is not new - Taipei Times - "The WHO said the bird flu that killed two people in Vietnam was not a new, more contagious strain, and officials here rejected claims that pigs now have the virus...Meanwhile, China has confirmed three more outbreaks among birds...The UN agency said on Saturday that 'reassuring' test results from the two Vietnamese sisters, who died earlier this month, show 'both viruses are of avian origin and contain no human influenza genes.'"

►February 3, 2004 - Ferret shortage may cause a 'bottleneck' in pandemic vaccine production: WHO - Canadian Press via www.canada.com - "Efforts to create a prototype vaccine to protect humans in the event of a H5N1 influenza pandemic may be facing an unusual problem: a shortage of flu-free ferrets...The head of the World Health Organization's global influenza program says efforts to create what's called the viral seed for a pandemic vaccine are moving along at the expected pace, but there's been a delay in getting the ferrets needed to test whether the genetically altered virus is safe to work with."

►February 3, 2004 - Asia should change lifestyle to avoid bird flu: WHO - Xinhuanet via China View

►February 2, 2004 - Public health expects fewer vaccines next year - The Gillette News-Record

January 26 - February 8, 2004 (2 weeks combined due to illness)

January 19-25, 2004

January 12-18, 2004

January 5-11, 2004

December 22-28, 2003

►December19, 2003 - Flu-vaccine prices spikes with demand, deaths - Some pay more than twice the normal cost - The Denver Post - "Flu vaccine is becoming a hot commodity, with the tiny vials selling for up to $300, two-and-a-half times the normal price, in some parts of the country...At the beginning of the season, manufacturers on average charged $85 for a vaccine containing 10 doses...Things aren't quite so bad in Colorado. State health officials recently paid $165 a vial, nearly double the early-season $85...That, they said, was the best deal available after an early and deadly flu season led to a vaccine shortage."

►December12, 2003 - Update: Influenza Activity --- United States, 2003--04 Season - CDC/MMWR

►December17, 2003 - Health council: Flu not a crisis - www.mass.gov via www.townonline.com - "There is no precise count of flu cases in the state because so few illnesses are reported to doctors, but officials said they have investigated 17 outbreaks - identified as three to five cases clustered in one location - mostly in nursing homes but also in several schools. Emergency rooms, already crowded with slip-and-fall accidents after a week of icy weather, are nearing capacity, with many reporting a spike in flu cases, health officials said."

►December18, 2003 - Experts: Flu worst in 30 years in West - Could be worse that Hong Kong flu of 1968-69 - AP via Daily Southtown - "The current flu outbreak is the worst for young U.S. children in years, several experts say, perhaps worse in Western states than the Hong Kong flu of 1968-69...A government epidemiologist and other disease doctors predict flu deaths among babies and toddlers will exceed the estimated 92 who die in an average flu year."

►December17, 2003 - Race May Be Factor in Who Gets Flu Shots - HealthDayNews via The Atlanta Journal-Constitution - "Older black Americans have drastically lower flu vaccination rates than older white Americans, says a Duke University Medical Center study in the online journal BioMed Central Public Health."

►December19, 2003 - Flu is spreading but exact numbers are hard to pin down - AP via Sun-Sentinel - "How many will have died when it is over? Probably tens of thousands. Beyond that, exact numbers are hard to pin down...The reason: Most people who catch the flu never go to a doctor. And even if they do, they usually never get a definite diagnosis...The flu is difficult to distinguish from other winter viruses. In most cases, there is little reason for doctors to go to the trouble of identifying the culprit, which traditionally has required growing the virus in a culture, a process that takes two weeks...Even if they do, chances are good they will find nothing."

Comment:  But, hey, why should the fact that we don't know if it is an epidemic, or if more or less people are dying than usual, or even if it is flu that people are getting, prevent the media and others from creating hysterical demand for the flu vaccine? 

►December19, 2003 - Flu is now rampant in 36 states, CDC says - Tens of thousands may die. A true toll will be hard to get since many never go to the doctor. - AP via The Philadelphia Inquirer

Comment:  Probably didn't go to the doctor because they got over it just fine without one.

►December17, 2003 - Health measures can help prevent colds and flu - Toledo Blade via Scripps Howard News Service - "Will the bug that's going around come around _ to me? Does my kid's flu virus have my name on it? Will that guy coughing at work today make me sick? How can I dodge it?...The answers depend on the virus, for instance, and your own immune system."

December 8-14, 2003

►December9, 2003 - Flu Shot Shortage Could Help FluMist - AP via Yahoo! - "Shortages of flu shots could boost disappointing sales of the needle-free vaccine FluMist this winter, but analysts say the drug's long term outlook is dogged by a high price and limits on who can use it."

►December9, 2003 - Flu Shot Shortage Could Help FluMist - AP via Yahoo! - "Shortages of flu shots could boost disappointing sales of the needle-free vaccine FluMist this winter, but analysts say the drug's long term outlook is dogged by a high price and limits on who can use it."

►December8, 2003 - CDC to Monitor Kids Flu Complications - AP via Yahoo! - "The nation's health agency plans to closely watch flu complications among children, who have swamped hospitals in some states and surprised doctors with the severity of their illnesses...A new concern is the rise of a common drug-resistant staph infection that is complicating efforts to treat children with the flu, an official with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (news - web sites) said Monday."

►December11, 2003 - Hospital sees flu surge in pregnant women - Flu cases among young pregnant women surged at a large public hospital, calling attention to yet another group at serious risk of the flu. - AP via CNN

►December11, 2003 - Advocate Says Government Should Release Flu Shot Data - www.newsmax.com - "A leading vaccine safety and informed consent advocate is calling on federal health officials and flu vaccine makers to be honest with the American people about the effectiveness of this year's flu vaccine...Transcripts from the February 20 and March 18, 2003 meetings of the FDA Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC) reveal that health officials around the world knew the genetically mutated Fujian strain was associated with significant morbidity and mortality and that last year's vaccine showed little protection against it.

►December12, 2003 - Miscalculations Lead to Flu Vaccine Shortage - Fox News - "Last year, three manufacturers made 95 million doses of the flu vaccine. Eighty million doses were used, and companies were forced to eat the cost of the unused portions. The outcome was costly — with pharmaceutical giant Wyeth (search) dropping out of producing vaccines this year, and the remaining two companies — Aventis Pasteur (search) and Chiron Corp. (search) — hoping not to make the same mistake...The government does not pay for the extra doses of flu vaccine. It works with drug companies to guess yearly demand based on the previous year's use."

►December11, 2003 - ID Biomedical Reports Positive Preclinical Data Against Variant Influenza Strains - Life Science News - "Results from pre-clinical experiments performed by ID Biomedical scientists and recently published in the September 2003 issue of the peer reviewed journal, Vaccine, provides evidence that nasal Proteosome(TM)- influenza subunit vaccines can protect against infection by variant strains of influenza virus that have 'drifted' from the strain present in the vaccine...ID Biomedical is a biotechnology company focused on the development of proprietary subunit vaccine products, including those based on its Proteosome(TM) platform intranasal adjuvant/delivery technology."

►December11, 2003 - Flu Mist anyone? - Does This Smell Bad? from the Health Sciences Institute newsletter via www.newmediaexplorer.org

►December7, 2003 - Experts fear mutant flu strain will be deadly - Several children have already died, vaccines are in short supply, hospitals filling up - AP via  www.thestate.com - "The last time there was a flu strain mutation similar to the one sickening thousands of Americans this year, nearly 65,000 died...And that was only five years ago...Flu experts say it’s clear this flu season will be much worse than in the past few years, but they are not ready to predict it will be one of the deadliest in modern times."

►December5, 2003 - MedImmune Flu Vaccines Show Response Against Current Strain - Dow Jones Newswire via www.immunizationinfo.org - "A new report from MedImmune indicates that its live, attenuated flu vaccine, FluMist, is 86 percent effective against the A/H3N2 flu strain, which circulated during the 1997-1998 season. MedImmune, which collected data from studies on children and ferrets, noted that the currently spreading strain is a drifted A/Fujian/411/2002 (H3N2)-like strain. "These new data demonstrate that live, attenuated, influenza vaccines may have a greater potential to produce a broad immunity to influenza, including drifted strains, than the inactivated strains," said Dr. Robert B. Belshe, a professor at St. Louis University and the lead investigator for the FluMist pediatric trial."

►December5, 2003 - Smart money is on flu shots - The Telegraph, UK

December 1-7, 2003

►December5, 2003 - As the Flu Spreads Early and Quickly, Colorado Expands Its Vaccination Campaign - The New York Times (registration and/or subscription required)

►December6, 2003 - With Flu Cases Spreading, Demand for Vaccine Grows - The New York Times (registration and/or subscription required) - "With influenza cases surging in at least 10 states, vaccine makers said yesterday that they had shipped out their entire supplies, and health officials said they were trying to determine whether there was enough vaccine left to immunize people who still want flu shots. More vaccine cannot be made in time for this year's flu season."

►December7, 2003 - Experts Not Ready to Predict Flu Severity - AP via ABC News

►December6, 2003 - Speakout: Flu epidemic exposes gaps, weaknesses in Colorado's health-care system for kids - Rocky Mountain News

►December6, 2003 - Flu virus attacks child despite vaccination - Health of twins declined rapidly after weekly - Rocky Mountain News - "On Monday, Dezmond got sick. Diego followed the next day...But the parents weren't worried - both boys had had their flu shots, and a doctor's visit ended with a prescription."

Comment:  Regardless the cause, this is a terrible tragedy.  But did this child die in spite of having been vaccinated or because of it?  While it sometimes is impossible to determine what happened in a particular child's case, only by doing population studies, comparing vaccinated to never vaccinated, can an understanding of the overall effects of vaccination be ascertained.

►December6, 2003 - An about-face on flu shots - Because of shortages, healthy people asked to forgo getting them - Rocky Mountain News

Comment:  Might there also be a connection between this "about-face" and the death of a flu vaccinated child?

Comment:  Reporting has also made it seem that children are being hit harder than usual.  But is it even true?

►November 30, 2003 - Next flu pandemic could wreak global havoc, scientists warn - USA Today

►December3, 2003 - Will This Year's Flu Shot Work? - Vaccinated People Who Do Get Flu Likely Won't Be as Sick - WebMD

►December2, 2003 - Young Children Are Main Victims in UK Flu Outbreak - Reuters, UK - "Britain's Chief Medical Officer has urged increased flu vaccination of high-risk children as figures show that this year's outbreak is hitting infants hardest...At least two children under four years old have died of suspected Fujian flu so far this year and the figures also show that the rate of illness in this age group is three times higher than among middle-aged and elderly people."

►December3, 2003 - Two Million Flu Cases Expected in France as Epidemic Hits Europe  - Agence France Presse via www.immunizationinfo.org

►December2, 2003 - At-risk children 'need flu jabs' - Up to a million children at risk from serious illnesses are being urged to have a flu jab. - BBC - "But they say there is no need for a mass vaccination of children...Around half a dozen children aged between 18 months and 16 are thought to have died from the Fujian strain of influenza this winter...But an inquest has revealed that 12-year-old girl Fern Summers from West Newton in Norfolk, who it was feared had died after contracting the flu strain, actually died after an asthma attack."

Comment:  It's encouraging to see such restraint on the part of public health authorities.

►December1, 2003 - Big Shot - Why you should get your flu vaccination. - MSN - "Have you gotten your flu shot this year? If you haven't, your excuse is most likely feeble."

►November 29, 2003 - Experts cast bet on flu vaccine -  Imperfect shield beat delivery delay - http://newsobserver.com - "Despite evidence that a flu bug had mutated and was defying the current vaccine, health officials around the world took a calculated risk not to change the formula for this year's flu shots...Part of the reason was that the new strain was difficult to grow in the lab. That could have delayed the vaccine's development and, thus, its availability.  Given two options -- a late but better vaccine or a timely but flawed shot -- health officials chose the latter."

►November 29, 2003 - Experts urge vigilance, not alarm, about flu - The Buffalo News

►November 29, 2003 - Officials: Late flu shot better than none - Federal, local government brace for worse-than-usual sickness season -  Ventura County Star

►November 30, 2003 - Flu shots for kids a judgment call - New strain hits children hard.  Little ones tend to be heartier than adults but there are many reasons to immunize - CP via www.canada.com

►November 30, 2003 - Health Department Pushes Vaccinations As Flu Cases Rise - www.ny1.com

Comment: I wonder if the Health Department is disclosing that the current flu vaccine is not the same strain as the current flu, and that it is only speculated that it will work. For more on this, see CDC News Conference Transcript.

►December1, 2003 - Country not Prepared for the Flu - Ivanhoe - "Researchers from the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital say two different outbreaks of bird flu were transmitted to humans this year and caused fatal infections. They say these bird-to-human transmissions may suggest certain flu viruses are evolving quickly enough to pose a serious threat the humans. These types of virus transmissions were unheard of before 1997...Although researchers have recently developed new, quicker ways to make vaccines, they say the time it takes to test and approve the new vaccines would still take a good amount of time."

November 24-30, 2003

►Workshop on Development of Clinical Trial Plan for Pandemic Inluenza Vaccines - CBER/FDA

►November 30, 2003 - New Campaign To Market Tough-Sell FluMist - by Sherri Tenpenny, DO - Online Vaccines Conference @ www.redflagsdaily.com

►November 28, 2003 - Flu threat puts parents on alert  - One child dies in Peterborough from bug - The Globe and Mail - "Despite experts' dire warnings that the world is overdue for a pandemic that will kill millions of people, that is unlikely to occur this year. A pandemic occurs when a strain jumps from animals to humans...'A/Fujian will not cause a pandemic, but that doesn't mean it's benign,' said Robert Webster, a virologist at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tenn...the child who died 'did have some underlying medical problems...'

►November 28, 2003 - Longtime dream spurs fight against paralysis - Washington County sheriff in 2nd term - www.ajc.com - "Smith was diagnosed with Guillain-Barre syndrome, a rare but rapid onset of weakness or paralysis in which the body's immune system typically attacks the body itself...The syndrome can be triggered by vaccinations and it has no known cause or cure. In Smith's case, a flu shot sparked the disease."

►November 27, 2003 - Few willing to pay through the nose for FluMist - Akron Beacon Journal

►November 27, 2003 - Officials reject flu risk claims - Claims that the UK may be unprepared if this year's flu season turns into "the big one" have been dismissed by the Department of Health.  - BBC

►November 26, 2003 - Flu outbreak may be shot in arm for hospital profits - The Tennessean

►November 25, 2003 - Severe strain of flu isn't included in this year's vaccine – AP via Star-Telegram

►November 25, 2003 - Worst Flu Season in 30 Years Predicted - AP via Yahoo!

►November 25, 2003 - Beware the new flu strain - Daily News Transcript - "Even though a different strain of the flu has been detected than what the current vaccine protects against, a state public health official said last week the public will still be protected...'There might be some reduced protection but that doesn't mean there's no protection,' said Dr. Susan Lett, medical director of the Department of Public Health immunization program."

►November 26, 2003 - Four Children in Colorado Die From Flu - AP via Yahoo!

Comment:  Is there something about this flu virus that is making it more dangerous or has something happened to make children more vulnerable to the flu?

►November 25, 2003 - Flu bug keeps breaking records - Colo. among states with the most cases - www.rockymountainnews.com

►November 24, 2003 - Should You Get The Flu Shot? - by Sherri Tenpenny, D.O. - Online Vaccines Conference @ www.redflagsdaily.com

November 17-23, 2003

►November 21, 2003 - Flu vaccine is a good option - The Pilot-Independent - "But before going further, let's dispel a couple of myths...First, the influenza vaccine cannot give someone the flu. It's impossible — the vaccine contains no active RNA and is basically an inactive shell of the influenza virus. However, after receiving the vaccine, some people — primarily those receiving it for the first time — experience a low-grade fever or some minor aches."

Comment:  Just out of curiosity, if it contains no active RNA, etc., why is it capable of causing "low-grade fever or some minor aches"?

►Influenza Vaccine - by Kris Gaublomme, MD - VRAN - "The most intriguing deception of the public, however, is the suggestion that the patient who gets an influenza-vaccination will not get the flu."

►November 18, 2003 - Early flu outbreaks have CDC worried - Abilene Reporter News - "But doctors are worried this year’s flu season could be brutal. Not only were the outbreaks early in Texas and Colorado, they involved a strain of influenza not targeted by the vaccine...Gerberding said the vaccine should still protect most people, because the strains are very similar. The changing flu strain is called a 'drift.'...'In the past, this has happened. It’s a very common thing,' she said. 'Whatever the drift is, the vaccine will still provide some cross-protection, so we’re optimistic that will be the case this year, but of course we’ll be watching it very carefully.'"

►November 19, 2003 - MedImmune Says FluMist Sales Are Far Short of Target - Md. Firm Cites High Cost, Safety Concerns - The Washington Post

►November 19, 2003 - Nasal Spray Mishaps - The New York Times - "It sounds like a marketer's dream - a flu vaccine that is given through a spray in the nose rather than an often painful shot in the arm. But attempts to sell such a vaccine this flu season have turned into a nightmare."

►November 19, 2003 - Flu season starts early, but vaccine supplies plentiful - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

►November 20, 2003 - Officials monitor flu outbreaks to study possible genetic shift - Amarillo-Globe News

►November 19, 2003 - Slow FluMist sales give chills to maker - MedImmune reduces outlook for quarter, year - www.sunspot.net

►November 19, 2003 - Flu vaccinations may not protect against new strain - The Michigan Daily

►November 18, 2003 - Flu Vaccine Faces Unexpected Strain - The New York Times - "The influenza vaccine now being given was not developed to protect against a strain of the virus that has surfaced in this country this fall, but the government is optimistic that this year's vaccine will stave off outbreaks, a top federal health official said yesterday."