PANIC: Did anyone actually know anyone who got SARS or Asian bird flu in the last two media-induced flu non-epidemics?

[CountessDracula]

jsut out of interest

pmsl

love it

D'y know, I'd competely forgotten about SARS altogether.

No, I know noone and tonnes of my friends work as nurses. They never encountered any either.

No, though we were living in Singapore at the SARS time and DS2 was admitted to hospital with severe asthma during the outbreak - which was pretty much the most dangerous place to be, even though he was not on the fever ward. We had to take DS1's temperature every morning and log it in his reading record before they'd let him into school!

singersgirl was that you at the other end of the table last night at the leaving drinks of J & C's nanny?

No, and don't think I know J & C, but it sounds as if it might have been more fun than a night in here! I think I saw you at the park though yesterday afternoon and your DD in the playground.

oh sorry
with Bettys/MrsTweedy
last week it was

Ah sorry I didn't see you yesterday
wasn't it lovely?!

No. But to be fair, it is possible. the flu pandemic (Spanish flu) in 1918 was similar in structure to the H1N1 and it had around 10% mortality. I am not yet stocking up on beans and bottled water but I am watching with interest.

Viruses can mutate very quickly and increase in virulence as they mutate. The current WHO status of H1N1 is phase 3. This means a crackdown on monitoring surveillance and diagnosis. Level 5 is pandemic status. I wouldn't be surprised if the risk level was upped to a phase 4(sustained person to person transmission) very soon. Again, I think most of the response to the swine flu thing has been in terms of preparedness for an outbreak, not lack of!

It was lovely. And not a pig in sight.

No, but I did pass the special mask wearing test at work so I could treat patients who had it

First DH thought he had bird flu, he started talking bollox and could not park the car...
Boom boom

I got flu the week SARS turned up in the UK - but was so poorly I got home, collapsed and didn't move for three days (literally, didn't even need to get up to go to the loo!) (sorry if tmi), had high temp for a couple of weeks and was wiped out for a couple of months.

It wasn't until about 6 weeks afterwards that I happened to be reading about it and read down a list of symptoms of SARS that I'd had every one of that I vaugely wondered if I had had SARS but then read the list of ordinary flu symptoms and it was pretty much the same so never really gave it another thought. In hindsight, maybe I should have checked something out at the time as I was on a course with a large contingent over from SE Asia, but once I'd collapsed that was it, DH didn't know about all the SE Asians on the course, I didn't know about SARS until I finally got much better and started listening to/reading the news again, by which time it was to late to bother with.

On a sort of related note, there seem to be quite a few people that have been on TV news with swine flu that seem to have more of a cold than flu. They are up and about and dressed and talking... Only thing I remember about having flu was that I wasn;t going anywhere other than staying in bed, you could have waved a million pounds under my nose and I wouldn;t have cared or even noticed.

And if the media is getting all hyped up over this, why does nobody even seem to mention 'ordinary' flu which kills lots of people around the world every year?

You think SARS was "induced" by the media? Wow

The virus was real - the extent of the problem was media fantasy, as is swine flu.

Radio just now "20 something cases in the UK - no-one particularly ill with it"

2 cases here in Italy. Both already out of hospital.
Everyone thinks they've got it though.
Pork is very cheap.

Yes, I read yesterday "This will be the Xth victim of swine flu in the UK" by victim of course they mean person who has got it - but that just does not read as well does it?

Really, if there are 20 people in the whole of the UK who have it and it seems to be a fairly mild flu so far then I don't think there is too much to worry about. I just wish the Great British Public would learn to read Media Speak rather than falling for the hype hook, line and sinker!

Sorry CD, in answer to your Op, No I know no-one and, AFAIK, no-one I know knows anyone either!

I know someone who got SARS - he's fine now. Was a student with an immune disorder on a flight with infected person. So I guess he was bound to get anything going.

I don't think anyone is going to know they've had the first round of swine flu though - if the symptoms are so mild they think they've just had a cold - I've just had a cold and D&V for a week - but I haven't seen a doc so how would I know what strain it is?

I'm stocking the freezer with pork as well, it is cheap at the minute!

I think believe it or not the NHS is great for things like this, if we did'nt have the free medication and healthcare would there be fatalities? I reckon that's why no one here is becoming so ill because they are getting the care they need fast.

I was worried at first now I am... meh! LOL.

Anyway will stop wittering and get to the point.

No I did'nt know anyone who had SARS but I do know someone who had suspected swine flu, turned ot to be just bad timing to catch the flu

I am SOOOOO glad that there are people out there who look through the media induced panic mongering.
How many people died of other infections last year and every year before that? And this swine flu is by all accounts a reasonable mild form of flu (bearing in mind that "proper" flu is a horrible and miserable illness to have and that, yes, some people will die from it).

Heyho, off to work to see more people who have sneezed twice, were on holiday to Mexico 2 YEARS ago, or know somebody whose nephew worked with somebody who'd been to Mexico - all demanding antivirals!!!

On TV last night the experts were saying that the mortality rate of this flu is at preent no more than 0.5-1%, if that.

What annoys me is that today I m ll. Have been last few days but esp so last 2 days. My throat and ears are very sore and I have a cough. I have not been to Mexico or know anyone who has been recently. I need to see the GP to rule out ear or throat infection (similar symptoms to last time I had one); I just know that when I get an appointment I am going to have people thinking I am one of the panicing populatin. I need a big sign saying "No I don';t think I have swine flu, but I still feel poorly!"

Hulababy, I am sorry you are feeling rubbish: do not worry, nobody is going to think you are being foolish for seeking medical advice. In fact, we would all be well advised to remember that normal illnesses will continue as usual.

Hope you feel better soon.