Swine Flu Cases Rising Across Globe

Most things I view as overblown or scare tactics, this one makes me nervous more then the usual pandemic fears. So far two in Kansas and now 8 in New York. New Zealand?

As health officials from New York to Mexico raced on Saturday to combat a rare and rapidly spreading influenza virus, eight students at a Queens high school tested positive for a type of influenza that is probably swine flu, and possibly the same strain that has killed as many as 68 people in Mexico City.

How bad is it?

Officials with the W.H.O. were discussing whether to declare an international public health emergency, a move that could involve travel advisories and the closing of borders.

In Mexico, where the flu outbreak is believed to have started, the president assumed emergency powers to deal with the crisis. All public gatherings were banned, including more than 500 concerts and sporting events and the popular bicycle rides on closed boulevards. A few dozen more suspected cases were reported.

Details are as of yet sketchy especially if the students had recently been to Mexico and we have a family quarantined in Texas. From what I have read this strain can be treated by tamiflu and a vaccine is in the works, either way I don't like it. Now we have a an Emergency Declared.
Facts on Swine FLU

From the CDC:

Swine Influenza (Flu)

Swine Influenza (swine flu) is a respiratory disease of pigs caused by type A influenza that regularly cause outbreaks of influenza among pigs. Swine flu viruses do not normally infect humans, however, human infections with swine flu do occur, and cases of human-to-human spread of swine flu viruses has been documented. See General Information about Swine Flu.

From December 2005 through February 2009, a total of 12 human infections with swine influenza were reported from 10 states in the United States. Since March 2009, a number of confirmed human cases of a new strain of swine influenza A (H1N1) virus infection in California, Texas, and Mexico have been identified. An investigation into these cases is ongoing. For more information see Human Swine Flu Investigation.

General Information about Swine Flu
Questions and answers and guidance for treatment and infection control

Human Swine Flu Investigation Apr 25, 2009
Information about the investigation of human swine flu in California

CDC Health Advisory April 25, 2009, 3:00 EST (03:00 PM EDT)
Investigation and Interim Recommendations: Swine Influenza (H1N1)
Distributed via Health Alert Network
CDCHAN-000281-2009-04-25-ALT-N

Why its such a Concern:

Fears of a lethal pandemic lie in the nature of flu germs, which mutate readily and can become virulent by exchanging genes with related influenza viruses. While the H5N1 bird virus that spread across Asia in the last few years, killing millions of fowl and several hundred people, never gained genes to spread easily among humans, the Mexican swine flu already has, said Malik Peiris, a microbiologist from the University of Hong Kong.

“The concern is that this virus has the ability to transmit from humans to humans because a number of the cases who got infection have had no direct exposure to swine,” said Peiris, who has studied the SARS and avian flu viruses. “That is certainly a cause for concern.”

Health officials said they are trying to determine how the virus gained its ability to infect and spread among humans.

Swine-Flu Emergency

Mexican President Felipe Calderon declared a swine-flu emergency, giving him powers to order quarantines and suspend public events in the nation, where 1,324 patients are hospitalized with flu-like symptoms.

Its now being viewed as a global concern.