How the Internet Can Calm Swine Flu Hysteria

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With every new death, illness, or possible illness from swine flu, the hysteria increases. Swine flu hasn't become a major pandemic, but the hype certainly has. We need to calm down and employ the Internet to put swine flu in perspective. We need to use Internet tools -- graphics, mainstream news articles, blogs, Twitter, and social networking sites -- to inject rationality into discussions.

ThinkerNet blogger Jart Armin and Editor-in-Chief Terry Sweeney have ably discussed some of this irrationality. Sweeney reviews the hysteria and useless information. Armin examines swine flu spammers who could infect your computer with a "real" (albeit electronic) virus to steal information or exhort you to pay for non-existent products.

However, knowing there's a problem is only the first step. The next step is employing the Internet to do something about it, which I haven't seen discussed.

Firstly, Internet articles using "pandemic" need to ensure that readers know what that really means. It doesn't mean everyone dies or even the majority of people die. It means that a disease spreads across a wide geographic area. By that definition, the common cold is a pandemic. Therefore, articles need to define the term, either in the text or with a link to a glossary.

Secondly, readers must understand the history of pandemic scares that have been far less terrible than the hype anticipated. Remember SARS? I'm not downplaying the potential seriousness of such diseases, but rather the idea that every potential pandemic wreaks tremendous havoc. Again, the Internet's linking capabilities might come into play to provide supplementary information to calm the hysteria.

Thirdly, I'd make sure to include data in maps and charts that puts the swine flu in perspective. For decades, 37,000 to 41,000 people have died every year from automobile accidents -- and that's just in the United States. More than 650,000 people die from heart disease, and more than 550,000 people die from cancer annually in the U.S. On average, 36,000 Americans die each year from "seasonal" flu and its complications, with 250,000 to 500,000 dying annually worldwide.

So when I see fancy Internet maps and charts detailing swine flu illness and deaths, I also want to see -- on the same Web page -- deaths from heart disease, cancer, automobile accidents, etc., that correlate to the regions with swine flu. I'd also like to see those Web pages include deaths and illnesses from pollution; for instance, it's been estimated that 656,000 Chinese die annually from air pollution.

On April 28, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a state of emergency because of swine flu, which may have caused one death in the state. In contrast, in 2008, California recorded 3,451 traffic deaths. But that's a drop in the bucket compared to perhaps 24,000 Californians dying annually of air pollution.

As a result, I call upon corporate Websites, bloggers, and Twitterers to support my own modest proposal: Gov. Schwarzenegger must immediately declare a state of emergency that bans every vehicle and shutters all industries emitting pollutants until California can halt the tens of thousands of deaths from the pollution pandemic. We cannot allow this pandemic to kill Californians or cause them to lose their sense of smell!

To be very clear: I'm not minimizing the horrors of a swine flu pandemic that sickens and kills huge numbers of people -- if it actually occurs. Even a single death is sad. But the Internet has been used to mercilessly hype this disease, and it's time to use this marvelous global network to undo the incorrect and misleading information.

— Alan Reiter, President, Wireless Internet & Mobile Computing

Swine flu cases rise to 91 in U.S. with one death

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A toddler from Mexico has died in a Houston hospital. The top U.S. health official says more cases, hospitalizations and deaths are likely.

As the swine flu outbreak spread to four more states overnight, bringing the total to at least 91 cases, the United States reported its first death from the new virus, a 23-month old child who died in a Houston hospital.

The boy was a Mexican national from Mexico City who had traveled to Matamoros on a commercial flight with his family to visit relatives in Brownsville, Texas. After his symptoms grew more severe, he was taken to Houston to seek medical treatment.

Arizona, Massachusetts, Michigan and Nevada joined the list of states with new cases. Texas said its total has now climbed to 16 cases, New York has 51, and California has 14.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said there have been more hospitalizations as well and reported on its website that "a pattern of more severe illness associated with the virus may be emerging in the United States."

"We expect to see more cases, more hospitalizations, and, unfortunately, we are likely to see more deaths from the outbreak," Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius told reporters on her first day at work following Senate confirmation Tuesday... More

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Schwarzenegger, Obama ramp up efforts against swine flu

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California's governor declares state of emergency, opening the door for quicker action by state agencies. Obama seeks $1.5 billion to fight swine flu; Napolitano forming Homeland Security task force.


As isolated outbreaks of swine flu continue to be confirmed around the world, with new cases reported today in Canada, Israel, France, New Zealand, Costa Rica and South Korea, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger proclaimed a state of emergency and the White House asked Congress for an additional $1.5 billion to fight the outbreak.

FOR THE RECORD: An earlier version of this article said the Los Angeles County coroner's office reported that two deaths were linked to swine flu. The deaths were not linked to swine flu.

The emergency proclamation orders all state agencies and employees to provide all possible assistance to the Department of Public Health, authorizes that department to enter any necessary contracts for materials and services to combat the outbreak, makes it easier to purchase materials and waives some certification requirements for public health laboratories.

State health officials have been aggressively working to combat the outbreak, and the proclamation is simply one more step in that effort, not an indication that the outbreak in California has become more severe.

President Barack Obama, in a letter to Congress, asked for the money with "maximum flexibility to allow us to address this emerging situation." It said the money could go toward stockpiling antiviral medicine, vaccine development, disease monitoring and diagnosis and assisting international efforts to limit its spread.

"In our opinion, this is about prudent planning moving forward," White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs told reporters.

Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said today that she is forming a special swine flu task force to coordinate U.S. efforts, and noted that the government has now made 12 million doses of antiviral drugs available to states. She said her agency is also resisting calls from Capitol Hill to screen inbound air travelers from Mexico and those crossing at border checkpoints.

"Our focus is not on closing the border or conducting exit screening," she said. "It is on mitigation."

The total number of cases in the United States has now reached 67 and worldwide has climbed to more than 100, not counting the still-unknown number of cases in Mexico. At least some of the new cases, moreover, appear to have risen from human-to-human transmission outside Mexico.

Such community transmission is one of the early earmarks of a pandemic, and if it continues to be observed, experts predicted, the World Health Organization is likely to raise its alert to Level 5, from the currently elevated Level 4. Such an increase might involve more travel restrictions and stronger efforts to control the spread of the virus.

At a morning press conference in Geneva, Dr. Keiji Fukuda, assistant director-general of WHO, said a pandemic is not inevitable, but that if one does occur it is likely to be mild -- a conclusion drawn from the lack of deaths outside Mexico.

But he cautioned that the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic, which killed millions worldwide, started out mild also. In the spring of that year, there was a mild pandemic that petered out, only to return with a vengeance in the fall.

"I think we have to be mindful and respectful of the fact that influenza moves in ways we cannot predict," he said.

Moreover, he added, it is unlikely that health authorities will be able to contain its spread. "At this time, containment is not a feasible option," he said.

One ray of good news is that the outbreak may be leveling off in Mexico, where the first cases appeared. Mexican Health Minister Jose Angel Cordova said today that the number of new cases in that country had declined from 141 on Saturday to 119 on Sunday and 110 Monday.

At least 152 people have died in Mexico from influenza and its complications, and more than 2,000 cases have been reported. It is not clear, however, what proportion of those deaths and cases are attributable to swine flu. So far, only 26 of the deaths have been firmly linked to the virus.

This morning, Mexican authorities ordered all restaurants in Mexico City to begin serving only take-out food in an effort to limit spread of the virus. Officials had already requested that bars, movie theaters, pool halls, gyms and churches in the city close. All schools are closed until May 6.

As more countries around the world warned against unnecessary travel to Mexico, soccer's regional governing body, CONCACAF, said it was canceling a beach soccer tournament scheduled for Puerto Vallarta on Wednesday. The group had already suspended an under-17 tournament, the semifinals of which were to be played Wednesday in Tijuana.

Two new confirmed swine flu cases were reported in Sacramento County on Monday evening, bringing the California total to 13. One new case was reported this morning in Indiana, a young adult in the northern part of the state.

Three new cases were also confirmed in Texas, bringing that state's total to six, and 17 probable cases in New York were confirmed. Authorities had previously confirmed 28 cases in New York, two in Kansas and one in Ohio, and more confirmations are expected hourly as testing continues.

New York city health officials also said that two people with swine flu symptoms unconnected to the outbreak at St. Francis Preparatory School in Queens have been hospitalized.

All of the previous confirmed U.S. cases have been mild, but five of them have now involved hospitalizations, Besser said. Three of them were in California and two in Texas.

There have been no known deaths from the virus outside of Mexico. The Los Angeles County coroner's office was reported to be investigating two deaths thought to be linked to swine flu, but in a statement today it said that the deaths were not linked to swine flu.

New Zealand authorities said today that 11 residents who had recently traveled to Mexico showed symptoms of the virus. Swine flu was confirmed in three and the authorities are assuming that all have it, Health Minister Tony Ryall said.

Canadian officials said seven new cases have been confirmed in that country, bringing the total in Canada to 13.

Israel's health ministry confirmed two cases in that country among travelers, and Spain confirmed a second case there. South Korean authorities said they have found a case there in a recent visitor to Mexico. There is also a newly confirmed case in Costa Rica and a "probable" case in France.

Two cases had previously been confirmed in Great Britain.

All of the cases have been mild, but the victims have been hospitalized for quarantine, standard procedure in light of fears about the spread of the virus.

Cuba today became the first country to suspend flights to and from Mexico, ordering a 48-hour cessation. Mexico has been a major transit point for flights to that isolated country. Cuba has not yet reported any cases of swine flu.

Carnival Corp. also said today that it would cancel stops in Mexico for its cruises for the immediate future.

In New York, the accounting firm Ernst & Young initially said one of its employees was among the cases confirmed Saturday, but later backed off and said the case was only suspected swine flu. The victim is the mother of one of the students at St. Francis Preparatory School in Queens, where the outbreak occurred among students who had visited Mexico on spring break. (An earlier version of this story had said the parent was a man.)

The firm said the floor of the office building where she works has been sealed off for cleaning and decontamination.


Source: http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-sci-swine-flu29-2009apr29,0,2342287,full.story