H1N1

Influenza Still Widespread in AZ

By |2017-02-10T09:49:50-07:00February 21st, 2014|Prevention|

A report out by the CDC this week found that people between 18 and 64 years old make up 61% of all flu-related hospitalizations so far this season in the US.   In normal years only about 35% of flu hospitalizations are from this age group. H1N1 (the flu strain we saw circulating in the 2009 flu pandemic) is still the [...]

Influenza is Widespread in Arizona

By |2017-02-10T09:49:54-07:00January 24th, 2014|General|

Influenza has been steadily spreading in Arizona over the last few weeks and this week we hit the Widespread Influenza threshold.  In fact, the number of cases increased by 50% this week- and several Arizona emergency departments are backed up with substantial wait times.  CDC’s report is due to come out Friday… but I’d guess that most states will [...]

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Influenza Season Officially Arrives

By |2017-02-10T09:49:56-07:00January 3rd, 2014|Preparedness|

Flu season is here!  Parts of the country (mostly in the south) have had more intense flu activity in the last few weeks, and 25 states reported widespread flu activity for the week ending December 28th.   Meanwhile, in Arizona we are seeing an increase in the number of lab-confirmed flu cases reported to ADHS- but [...]

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Next Season’s Influenza Vaccine

By |2017-02-10T09:50:38-07:00March 5th, 2013|Preparedness, Prevention|

Just as our influenza season winds down (and it is), it's time to plan for the next one.  Every February the World Health Organization convenes a panel of experts to look at the most current data on the circulating flu strains from around the world and makes recommendations for the next season’s Northern Hemisphere flu vaccine.  [...]

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Influenza Still Increasing in AZ

By |2017-02-10T09:50:45-07:00January 25th, 2013|General|

Yesterday afternoon's weekly flu report shows that influenza is still circulating widely in AZ...  with a steep increase in the last couple of weeks.  The strain that’s circulating is mostly Type A - H3N2 which can be more severe than the 2009 H1N1, especially for seniors. There are plenty of B strains going around too.  But you can still find [...]

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The Silent Breakthrough

By |2012-11-26T11:32:40-07:00November 26th, 2012|Preparedness|

Until last week, influenza vaccine makers were limited to producing flu vaccines using a 40-year-old technology that depends on using fertilized chicken eggs to grow virus strains- meaning that it takes several months to make an influenza vaccine.  Makers needed to organize sterile egg supplies and incubate the virus in them before the vaccine could [...]

Flu Down Under- 2012

By |2017-02-10T09:51:02-07:00August 24th, 2012|Preparedness|

The Southern Hemisphere has its flu season during our Summer- so every year around now we watch influenza activity “down under” to get an idea of what we might expect for our upcoming flu season.   Here’s the scoop right now.  Flu south of the equator has already peaked and continues to decline.  There’s been a [...]

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Flu Down Under

By |2017-02-10T09:51:37-07:00August 4th, 2011|General|

This is the time of year that public health folks start watching the flu reports from the southern hemisphere.  We’re watching for a couple of things – the circulating strains and how it’s spreading.  The Australian Government Department of Health is reporting 6 times as many cases as they had at this time last season.  [...]

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FDA Approves Vaccines for the 2011-2012 Influenza Season

By |2011-07-25T08:48:43-07:00July 25th, 2011|General, Prevention|

The FDA approved the 2011-2012 influenza vaccine this week. The strains in this year’s vaccine were recommended by the CDC and the World Healthy Organization after studying virus samples collected from around the world to find the influenza viruses that are the most likely to cause illness during the upcoming flu season.  The strains selected [...]

ADHS Aces the 2010 Strategic National Stockpile Test

By |2017-02-10T09:52:08-07:00September 21st, 2010|Preparedness|

The Strategic National Stockpile is a national repository of antibiotics, chemical antidotes, antitoxins, life-support medications, IV administration, airway maintenance supplies, and medical/surgical items which are stored in a few locations around the country. The stockpile is designed to supplement public health agencies in case there’s a national emergency anywhere and at anytime within the U.S. [...]

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