to think that if the media didn't make a big drama out of swine flu there'd be a lot less hysteria?

[spicemonster]

You're as likely to die from swine flu as you are from ordinary flu according to Professor Azra Ghani, an epidemiologist at Imperial:

"Our best estimate, based on the cases that come to the health system is around 1 in 200 (deaths) at a maximum which is very similar to the estimate you would see for seasonal influenza but that doesn't take into account many of those milder infections where individuals may stay off for a few days or not display any symptoms at all."

So not very likely at all. And yet we have people jamming NHS Direct lines, flooding their GPs' surgeries and hysterically avoiding wedding/M&T groups/any other group occasion.

Now, while I want to shout 'get a grip' at them, AIBU to think that the media hysterically reporting that someone has died is massively contributing to this mass panic? If they reported every single death from flu every winter, there'd be just as much panic, surely.

It makes me really, really cross.

YANBU

I am tending to agree with you spicemonster.

I personally think that it must increase the worry for people who already have conditions such as asthma which make it more likely that swine flu will be more serious should they contract it.

There should be more balance (imo). Yes, people need to know the risks, how to prevent the spread of flu etc, but I do feel that some parts of the media are being over dramatic.

I am avoiding looking at headlines etc at the moemnt. Prof Ghani (from what you say anyway) seems to have a more balanced opinion.

Agreed.

Same about the 'Credit Crunch' & Recession.....shut the fuck up and we'll all start feeling confident a damn sight quicker!

YANBU

hi fanny !! i text you t'other day, did you get it? hope you are well xxxxxx

A post after my own heart yanbu

You are sort of NBU BUT have to be honest, my father has a serious heart condition and my Mum is terrified of him catching Swine Flu as your risk of catching pneumonia from it is higher if you already have a serious condition. So it may be okay for all us healthy folk to snort at the hysteria but for people who have it hard every day of their lives, the risk of catching it is pretty frightening.

I posted that before I thought about it

Lulu - I didn't get it!???

The BBC medical bloke does a blog which is pretty sensible. Trouble is it's more indicative of the general level of sensationalist journalism around - sky, gmtv etc etc

Lulu I will start a thread on chat for us...

ok

I agree the media are making this feel very scary but I am also one of the people who is very worried. Yes normal flu can be just as deadly but those at risk would often be vaccinated against it (like my DD).

But that's my point fannybanjo (love that name ) - if you're health-compromised in any way, then yes, it's alarming. In the same way as ordinary flu is alarming. But we don't get flooded with threads every winter saying 'AIBU not to take my baby to [insert event] in case someone has flu' do we? Flu is nasty, it can kill but only if you have underlying health problems. I was talking to someone yesterday who was told not to bring their DD into nursery today because she had a bit of a cough yesterday! World's gone mad

Then YANBU spicemonster - I think epidemic/pandemics bring out the worst in hypochondriacs!

op;..so 1 in 200 will die?..is that corrrect?

I don't know spicemonster.

I remember when SARS was about to explode onto the scene and people were very worried. Same with major flu outbreaks.

We haven't had a widespread flu outbreak for a very long time.

I wondered that, 1:200 is a very large number of people, especially if a large percentage of the population are expected to get swine flu (either mildly or more seriously)

OP, can you just confirm that figure please. If it's correct, then I am more worried tbh.

As a woman who just had to ring around a whole load of mums of children under 4 and declare my swiney ways - I can say that I was met with nothing but sense and practicality.

So the media has failed in my neck of the woods - hurrah!

That said I am avoiding a family member who would do very well to avoid the flu, so in that respect the media has done a good job.

yes, I've read that statistic (1 in 200) which is similar to 'normal' flu I believe.

The difference here being how many people are likely to catch swine flu as opposed to normal flu.

(e.g. I've only ever had 'normal' flu once in my whole life!)

says 1 in 200 severe cases of swine flu may end in death

so not 1 in 200 of everyone who gets it I take it

fox; 1 in 200 is very high....[worried]

(i've never had "normal" flu)

I knew someone who wouldn't go to her local chinese restaurant because of fear of sars.

But foxinsocks - I remember when Beijing flu was happening (I got it). It was horrid but there wasn't mass panic, well not on the level there is now. And what I find really annoying/shocking/frankly distasteful about it is that people, like used2thebin's DD are not being vaccinated because there's just an absurd stampede which is causing our healthcare services to grind to a halt, putting those most at risk at even greater risk.

Here's some more info:

Flu expert Professor Peter Openshaw, of Imperial College London, says about one in every three people who become infected will not realise they have had swine flu because they will have had no or only very few symptoms.

"About 98% of people who get infected will recover fully without any hospital treatment so I think the public needs to be reassured."

"To put the scares in perspective, about half-a-million people die from common flus in an average year.

More than a million die on the roads. But governments are often more easily moved to tackle a short-term crisis than a long-term crisis, and on-going situations like road deaths don't register as news."

Still worried?

We had this discussion at work the other day (about the highish proportion of people having it without realising)

My dd1 had cold type symptoms but her temp wasn't massively high. She had been at her sports day in very hot conditions and I suspected she had had a touch of heatstroke on top of a cold. (I even posted on here I think on a thread about suncream/heatwave at schools or some such similar thread) I do wonder now if it was mild swine flu. My nurse manager had similar (he wasn't in contact with my dd btw). He said it was like a cold but he felt odd.

I did keep dd off because she wasn't well enough to attend school, and also in the back of my mind I wondered if it was swine flu. We'll never know, and fortunately she doesn't have any underlying health conditions.

Surely I am not the only one who knows more than one person who may well have had it?

ooh you don't want normal flu daftpunk

I'm ashamed to say I was one of those people who didn't take flu seriously till I had it and quite literally could only get out of bed for 3 days to go to the loo. I really thought I was never going to get up again .

I'm not worried about swine flu but the vaccine has not even been made yet and then it won't be suitable for egg allergy sufferers (I believe) which rules it out for the asthmatic ones in our household (who are the ones I'm most concerned about).

Am not really that bothered if I get it but don't like the thought of more vulnerable people getting it.

What I don't like is the whole government spin that it's almost ok if someone has died if they have underlying health complaints! They are people too!