H1N1 Influenza (Swine Flu) and Dialysis

[napala turki]

In my country Malaysia now is fighting hard against this virus, lates news just 44 was death, and the number are counting up. All goverment hospital was full with this type of patients.

I was told people like us the ESRF, has the most chances to be effective, I'm not sure about it, this morning the nurse mentioned to me that one of the dialysis patient's wife has been effected, now laying down in the Gen Hospital...

Dont know what nexts will happen.... PREVENTINE is better then cure.... so just take care..

How about in your area..... kindly share.

[tyefly]

  Our flu season really dont start for a few more months..... even though I think there are several people here in the US that have had the virus.....  Has your courtry given advice on dealing with this.... are people doing anything different....   

[Bill Peckham]

In my country Malaysia now is fighting hard against this virus, lates news just 44 was death, and the number are counting up. All goverment hospital was full with this type of patients.

I was told people like us the ESRF, has the most chances to be effective, I'm not sure about it, this morning the nurse mentioned to me that one of the dialysis patient's wife has been effected, now laying down in the Gen Hospital...

Dont know what nexts will happen.... PREVENTINE is better then cure.... so just take care..

How about in your area..... kindly share.

There have been over 432 confirmed deaths in the US, the papers have reported 18 new US deaths in the last 2 days. It's summer here! There should be no flu cases this time of year let alone deaths among health people in the prime of their lives.

It is going to be a very bad flu season in the US. People with CKD are at increased risk to catch H1N1 and if someone with CKD does catch H1N1 it is more likely to be severe. Keep us up to date on what is happening in Malaysia turki. When does your flu season normally peak?

[tyefly]

Bill
 Do you have more information for us to help us prepare for the flu season.....

[Jean]

One of my friends, here in sunny California, who is maybe 45, has just been diagnosed with swine flu.

[Hanify]

Over here there have only been deaths of people who had other problems - usually to do with breathing.  No kidney patients here ahve died. We're almost through our flu season now.

[Des]

South Africa has had only 3 confirmed deaths..... one super healthy guy aged 22.. he got a lung infection.

Lots and lots of people have it though .... our docs do not test every flue case .... I think I might have had it when I had my SVT in ICU two weeks ago... who knows.

All the kids in the schools are forced to wear maskes if they have even mild flue symptoms so they do not infect others..... weird stuff.

[draven]

I was in hospital 2 weeks ago. shared a ward with a guy for 2 hours who was diagnosed with pneumonia. later found out he had swine flu. so they put him in isolation ward. 

who's idea was it to put a suspected swine flu patient with another patient on immunosuppresents in the same ward.

[Des]

Thats bad!

[draven]

It is. what i found really disturbing is the joking attitude of the docs and nurses when they told me.
i actually got the flu a week later. but im sure it was from my nephew. im just about over it now. so
dont think it was swine flu.

[LightLizard]

i'm pretty sure that i had H1Ni over the past month. i had all of the symptoms, but my doctors avoided the task of actually diagnosing me. probably a good thing. if they had hospitalised me, i probably would have been killed by their treatments. they gave me two weeks of antibiotics so it wouldn't progress into pneumonia. luckily, my immune system still has a little bit of punch to it.

[del]

Most people here are supposed to get the vaccine for H1N1 next month.  They think about 75% of the people will get the vaccine.  Nobody has died in Newfoundland from it.  Only a couple of people have been hospitalized.   

[Bill Peckham]

Most people here are supposed to get the vaccine for H1N1 next month.  They think about 75% of the people will get the vaccine.  Nobody has died in Newfoundland from it.  Only a couple of people have been hospitalized.

What I'm seeing in the US is the CDC moving its message from the first H1N1 vaccines doses in mid October to early November BUT you need two shots to receive immunity (assuming it works) and the second dose is planned, if all goes well, January. This means that no one will have vaccine induced immunity until January at the earliest.

You will hear about getting a SEASONAL vaccine shot in the next month. I'll probably get it BUT that will not help you against H1N1 and looking at the S Hemisphere there is very little seasonal flu circulating. Almost all - over 90% - of confirmed flu cases are H1N1.

Over here there have only been deaths of people who had other problems - usually to do with breathing.  No kidney patients here ahve died. We're almost through our flu season now.

I don't know about that Hanify. The latest update indicates cases are declining but flu always ebbs and flows. It will be very good news if NZ has seen the worst of it.

Bill
 Do you have more information for us to help us prepare for the flu season.....

One thing everyone on dialysis should make sure they have right now is the ability to be sick at home. At LightLizard said - you are not going to want to go to the hospital. The question is will your dialysis unit allow you to dialyze if you are showing flu like symptoms? NKC units want you to come to dialysis and are prepared to dialyze their patient but I am very worried that is the exception rather than the rule.

We should all have the ability to feed ourselves during a period when we can't dialyze. The Emergency Diet. If you don't have this at home now, go out and get it today. I have Coast Guard emergency rations myself. They are renal friendly, store forever and can be eaten without preparation. Whatever you need you need to get it right now.

You will also want to have the ability to take your blood pressure, your temperature and your weight.

After you have what you might need were you to get sick and have to stay home then I would think about how you are going to avoid getting sick in the first place. Have enough food on hand so you don't have to go to the store when cases are peaking in your community. If you can find respirators or masks get a bunch because you'll want them over a period of months.

If you rely on funded transportation to get to and from dialysis then you are especially vulnerable to people not showing up to work. Think about how you will get to dialysis if your normal method is not available.

[Hanify]

Yes, here they stopped actually diagnosing a while back, and just told people to stay home.  So no one knows whether they had swine flu or not.

[Bill Peckham]

Here's what Australia's H1N1 numbers look like in historical perspective

I don't know what people are expecting to happen in the US in two months.

[del]

Hubby does home hemo so getting to dialysis won't be a problem.  Hopefully he won't get the H1N1 but I am a teacher and I am sure it will be in our school system before the year is over.He'll probably have me wearing a mask around the house!!! Luckily we both wash our hands a lot.  I am just hoping that the parents have enough sense to keep their children home if they have flu symptoms.  Teachers are some of the worse people for coming to school sick!! (Not me!!!) Hopefully they will stay home as well.  The school boards here are supposed to be developing a plan for an outbreak. Also supposed to be info going home to parents in the fall as well as training sessions for students on proper handwashing etc.

[cariad]

My understanding has always been that people don't die so much from the flu as the respitory problems, especially pneumonia. I am supposedly especially susceptible to death from pneumonia, since my spleen was removed as part of standard protocol during my transplant in 1976.

I get pneumovax injections every five years, as everyone should. Is this going to keep me from dying of pneumonia due to H1N1? I thought this strain of H1N1 was supposed to be less deadly than a standard flu outbreak - that's not so? I must be a few months behind in my information (par for the course with me).

[Bill Peckham]

My understanding has always been that people don't die so much from the flu as the respitory problems, especially pneumonia. I am supposedly especially susceptible to death from pneumonia, since my spleen was removed as part of standard protocol during my transplant in 1976.

I get pneumovax injections every five years, as everyone should. Is this going to keep me from dying of pneumonia due to H1N1? I thought this strain of H1N1 was supposed to be less deadly than a standard flu outbreak - that's not so? I must be a few months behind in my information (par for the course with me).

It is much worse than seasonal flu. You can't compare that 36,000 number with the deaths the CDC is announcing from H1N1 (41 more announced today). The seasonal flu number is based on modeling and looks at the statistical uptick in deaths among the elderly and very young during the flu season. The H1N1 virus is killing the young with over two thirds of the death coming in people 20 to 60.

The supposed number of seasonal flu deaths is about the same as the number of car deaths a year. Have you ever known anyone who was killed in a car crash? Have you ever known anyone who died of the flu?

Most people here are supposed to get the vaccine for H1N1 next month.  They think about 75% of the people will get the vaccine.  Nobody has died in Newfoundland from it.  Only a couple of people have been hospitalized.

What I'm seeing in the US is the CDC moving its message from the first H1N1 vaccines doses in mid October to early November BUT you need two shots to receive immunity (assuming it works) and the second dose is planned, if all goes well, January. This means that no one will have vaccine induced immunity until January at the earliest.

You will hear about getting a SEASONAL vaccine shot in the next month. I'll probably get it BUT that will not help you against H1N1 and looking at the S Hemisphere there is very little seasonal flu circulating. Almost all - over 90% - of confirmed flu cases are H1N1.

Oops. Spoke too soon. Now it looks like the CDC is trying to dial back expectations. Only about 25% of the vaccine they hoped would be available in October will be available in October. I don't think many people will have vaccine based immunity until next year - it is going to be a very challenging Fall.

In my country Malaysia now is fighting hard against this virus, lates news just 44 was death, and the number are counting up. All goverment hospital was full with this type of patients.

I was told people like us the ESRF, has the most chances to be effective, I'm not sure about it, this morning the nurse mentioned to me that one of the dialysis patient's wife has been effected, now laying down in the Gen Hospital...

Dont know what nexts will happen.... PREVENTINE is better then cure.... so just take care..

How about in your area..... kindly share.

I just saw that the H1N1 case fatality rate is higher in Malaysia than any where else - at least anywhere that is reporting. Stay safe NT.

[napala turki]

I'm back again.. in Malaysia latest news 67 has passaway due to H1N1.

The prevention taken by the private hospital, where I'm having my dialysis.
1. Children < 12 not allow to enter the area, unless as a patient
2. All visitors was checked their body temperature - free from fever.
3. All visitors and employees, MUST closed thier mouth with a mask.
4. All visitors leaving the area has to wash thier hand
5. All doors are closed except the main entrance thru the lobby.
6. Not encourage of visitors.

Now in Malaysia most of our citisen is wearing a mask duirng outing or in the streets.

Event the schools do monitoring each student entering the school area - should free from fever, or else will send them to the local hospital for further check up.

Hi take care.... simple practice - less outdoor ativities and regularly wash our hands, at least 5 x aday.

[tyefly]

    Thx for the update......   I have heard that here in my hometown   Portland Oregon USA  we now have our first confirmed case of H1N1...... They are starting to talk more about it on our local new....
 
         Good luck and stay healthy........

[Phraxis]

There were two cases of tamaflu resistant H1N1 in Seattle.  There has not been innoculations available yet but they should be here in October.

We have pretty strict contamination protocols at our clinic which I have adapted at the office (it is sometimes good to be the Boss) and home. Yes, you arrive for dinner and I take your coat, indicate the alcohol wash and serve you a drink. No wash no drink. :-)

[napala turki]

Im back again on the latest status of H1N! in Malaysia.

Today another victim is a 3 yrs old boy, died of the H1N1, become total of 70 casualty.

[Des]

Here in SA 8 pregnant women have died..... JUST SO BAD! In one case they saved the baby.... but the others did not survive.

[napala turki]

Our local newspaper - in the world total of 72, 280 victims has died.  In my country Malaysia up to 72 casualty.

So take care.... always wash your hand > 5 times aday, used mouth mask in the public area.

[Rerun]

Is that 72,280 people have died???