Shiloh
Editor, Senior Moderator
Source: http://www.theinglesideindex.com/articles/2009/12/16/news/news01.txt
Today's Date: Wednesday December 16, 2009
Swine flu's third wave imminent
By Michael Cary
Wednesday, December 16, 2009 4:54 PM CST
With the news of a fourth swine flu-related death in San Patricio County recently reported, Dr. James Mobley, county medical director, warned that a third wave of the virus is expected between the Christmas holiday and the end of January.
"Most of the folks catching the swine flu are age 25 or below, and most folks who have died are age 40 and below, it's cutting people off in the prime of their lives rather than the end of their lives. It really is holding true for cases we've seen and the people who have passed away, they have been considerably younger than most folks," Mobley said.
Mobley urges anyone who has not gotten an H1N1 flu vaccination to get one as soon as possible.
The Wal-Mart store in Aransas Pass will have a flu vaccination clinic at its pharmacy on Friday, Dec. 18, the time to be announced.
One of the recent deaths related to the H1N1 virus was Aransas Pass resident Mark Tognacci, who died on Dec. 8 in a Beeville Hospital. He had been a correctional officer in that city.
*
"We're done with the second wave of the virus, which began on Labor Day and peaked October 15. We expect the third wave between Christmas and the third week of January. It's purely my guess, but I think we're going to see an uptick around New Year's Eve, although the Texas Department of Health is saying it will be in winter/spring," Mobley said.
The doctors said ways to prevent catching the virus is to "use good sense. Wash your hands, cover your mouth when coughing or sneezing."
Mobley said the H1N1 virus and other flu viruses are "highly mutagenic," but "it is hard to say how it would happen. It is constantly mutating and can find the right turn and find a lot of people that are vulnerable. When that occurs, we have a very different thing."
"No mutation has happened yet, but it could still happen. In 1918 everyone was overwhelmed, and folks would die in 48 hours. There were military recruits leaving from San Francisco to New York to go to Europe, and by the time they got to New York 30 percent of the recruits were dead," Mobley said.
"The vaccine will help stop the mutation, and whether it mutates or not, as soon as the vaccine is available, folks should definitely get it. And everybody needs to own a thermometer and know how to use it. if you have a fever see your doctor right away, you will need Tamiflu within 48 hours," he said.
Dolores Bacon, county health coordinator, said the county held a vaccination clinic in Aransas Pass schools last week, and plan to be in Sinton and Odem this week.
"The schools are where it is spread, and we will pick up the rest of the school districts," Bacon said.
The next school districts to get the vaccination clinics will be Gregory-Portland, then Ingleside ISD.
Today's Date: Wednesday December 16, 2009
Swine flu's third wave imminent
By Michael Cary
Wednesday, December 16, 2009 4:54 PM CST
With the news of a fourth swine flu-related death in San Patricio County recently reported, Dr. James Mobley, county medical director, warned that a third wave of the virus is expected between the Christmas holiday and the end of January.
"Most of the folks catching the swine flu are age 25 or below, and most folks who have died are age 40 and below, it's cutting people off in the prime of their lives rather than the end of their lives. It really is holding true for cases we've seen and the people who have passed away, they have been considerably younger than most folks," Mobley said.
Mobley urges anyone who has not gotten an H1N1 flu vaccination to get one as soon as possible.
The Wal-Mart store in Aransas Pass will have a flu vaccination clinic at its pharmacy on Friday, Dec. 18, the time to be announced.
One of the recent deaths related to the H1N1 virus was Aransas Pass resident Mark Tognacci, who died on Dec. 8 in a Beeville Hospital. He had been a correctional officer in that city.
*
"We're done with the second wave of the virus, which began on Labor Day and peaked October 15. We expect the third wave between Christmas and the third week of January. It's purely my guess, but I think we're going to see an uptick around New Year's Eve, although the Texas Department of Health is saying it will be in winter/spring," Mobley said.
The doctors said ways to prevent catching the virus is to "use good sense. Wash your hands, cover your mouth when coughing or sneezing."
Mobley said the H1N1 virus and other flu viruses are "highly mutagenic," but "it is hard to say how it would happen. It is constantly mutating and can find the right turn and find a lot of people that are vulnerable. When that occurs, we have a very different thing."
"No mutation has happened yet, but it could still happen. In 1918 everyone was overwhelmed, and folks would die in 48 hours. There were military recruits leaving from San Francisco to New York to go to Europe, and by the time they got to New York 30 percent of the recruits were dead," Mobley said.
"The vaccine will help stop the mutation, and whether it mutates or not, as soon as the vaccine is available, folks should definitely get it. And everybody needs to own a thermometer and know how to use it. if you have a fever see your doctor right away, you will need Tamiflu within 48 hours," he said.
Dolores Bacon, county health coordinator, said the county held a vaccination clinic in Aransas Pass schools last week, and plan to be in Sinton and Odem this week.
"The schools are where it is spread, and we will pick up the rest of the school districts," Bacon said.
The next school districts to get the vaccination clinics will be Gregory-Portland, then Ingleside ISD.