Pathfinder
Editor, Senior Moderator
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=topstoryheading vAlign=top width=400>Report: 2009 H1N1 Pandemic in Boston</TD></TR><TR><TD class=topstorybody vAlign=top width=400>
BOSTON -- As spring turned to autumn in Boston, the 2009 H1N1 influenza virus moved from children and teens to older age groups, virtually disappeared from some neighborhoods but hung around in others, and continued to disproportionately impact communities of color, according to a new study released today by the Boston Public Health Commission.
The study, titled ?The State of the 2009 H1N1 Pandemic: Boston,? was released as National Influenza Vaccination Week kicked off; this year it runs from Jan. 10-16. The report revealed the unpredictable twists and turns of the virus as it swept through Boston neighborhoods from last April through December, raising the prospect that a third wave of H1N1 flu could strike the city at anytime.
?This study is proof positive that we can ill-afford to let down our guards,? said Dr. Barbara Ferrer, executive director of the Boston Public Health Commission. ?Now more than ever people should be vigilant and get vaccinated, which is the best protection against the 2009 H1N1 virus.?
The study, based on surveillance data collected and analyzed by the Commission?s Infectious Disease Bureau, found that people between ages 5 and 17 accounted for 44 percent of confirmed H1N1 and non-specified influenza cases in the spring, or between April 16 and July 25, 2009. But by the time the virus?s second wave hit, the picture had changed: people between ages 18 and 44 accounted for 44 percent of reported cases between Aug. 30 and Dec.12.
The same held true for hospitalizations: 26 percent of the people hospitalized in the spring were ages 5 through 17; in autumn, 31 percent were between 18 and 44.
?It?s a typical pattern for flu ? it starts with young, school-age children, then spreads to their moms and dads, and eventually gets into the older adult population,?? said study author Julia Gunn, director of the Communicable Diseases Division in the Infectious Disease Bureau.
Among other findings based on 1,487 reported flu cases:
More disturbingly, racial disparities persisted throughout spring and autumn, with black and Hispanic residents more often hospitalized. Of hospitalized flu cases, 37.5 percent were black and 29.7 percent were Hispanic, compared to 24.1 percent of whites.
Dr. Ferrer said the data will be used to inform the Public Health Commission?s education and outreach efforts and media campaign, which are swinging into high gear for National Influenza Vaccination Week. ?We?ve likely not seen the end of the 2009 H1N1 outbreak and the public needs to know that and get vaccinated,?? she said. ?We will keep repeating that message until flu season ends or there?s no more flu in Boston.?
For a copy of the full report, visit www. bphc.org; to find a free flu clinic call 617-534-5050.
(Full Report: http://www.bphc.org/programs/infectiousdisease/infectiousdiseasesatoz/influenza/Forms%20%20Documents/BostonFluReportJan2010.ppt)
http://www.bphc.org/Newsroom/Pages/TopStoriesView.aspx?ID=139
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Boston Public Health study finds flu?s second wave hits multiple age groups
BOSTON -- As spring turned to autumn in Boston, the 2009 H1N1 influenza virus moved from children and teens to older age groups, virtually disappeared from some neighborhoods but hung around in others, and continued to disproportionately impact communities of color, according to a new study released today by the Boston Public Health Commission.
The study, titled ?The State of the 2009 H1N1 Pandemic: Boston,? was released as National Influenza Vaccination Week kicked off; this year it runs from Jan. 10-16. The report revealed the unpredictable twists and turns of the virus as it swept through Boston neighborhoods from last April through December, raising the prospect that a third wave of H1N1 flu could strike the city at anytime.
?This study is proof positive that we can ill-afford to let down our guards,? said Dr. Barbara Ferrer, executive director of the Boston Public Health Commission. ?Now more than ever people should be vigilant and get vaccinated, which is the best protection against the 2009 H1N1 virus.?
The study, based on surveillance data collected and analyzed by the Commission?s Infectious Disease Bureau, found that people between ages 5 and 17 accounted for 44 percent of confirmed H1N1 and non-specified influenza cases in the spring, or between April 16 and July 25, 2009. But by the time the virus?s second wave hit, the picture had changed: people between ages 18 and 44 accounted for 44 percent of reported cases between Aug. 30 and Dec.12.
The same held true for hospitalizations: 26 percent of the people hospitalized in the spring were ages 5 through 17; in autumn, 31 percent were between 18 and 44.
?It?s a typical pattern for flu ? it starts with young, school-age children, then spreads to their moms and dads, and eventually gets into the older adult population,?? said study author Julia Gunn, director of the Communicable Diseases Division in the Infectious Disease Bureau.
Among other findings based on 1,487 reported flu cases:
- <LI class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">232 of reported cases required hospitalization <LI class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">37 were pregnant women <LI class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">86 were health care workers
- 7 Boston residents died between April and December of confirmed H1N1 and non-specific influenza
More disturbingly, racial disparities persisted throughout spring and autumn, with black and Hispanic residents more often hospitalized. Of hospitalized flu cases, 37.5 percent were black and 29.7 percent were Hispanic, compared to 24.1 percent of whites.
Dr. Ferrer said the data will be used to inform the Public Health Commission?s education and outreach efforts and media campaign, which are swinging into high gear for National Influenza Vaccination Week. ?We?ve likely not seen the end of the 2009 H1N1 outbreak and the public needs to know that and get vaccinated,?? she said. ?We will keep repeating that message until flu season ends or there?s no more flu in Boston.?
For a copy of the full report, visit www. bphc.org; to find a free flu clinic call 617-534-5050.
(Full Report: http://www.bphc.org/programs/infectiousdisease/infectiousdiseasesatoz/influenza/Forms%20%20Documents/BostonFluReportJan2010.ppt)
http://www.bphc.org/Newsroom/Pages/TopStoriesView.aspx?ID=139
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