Swine flu/H1N1 advice from Dr. yet?

[luv2sew]

Have any of you that recently visited your doctor received any particular advice or information related to the H1N1/Swine flu pandemic? Its been on my mind a lot the past few days.

About 2 weeks ago we had the first 2 confirmed cases in this small community where I live. Just recently I found out that one of these first two cases was a woman who works downstairs in the same building I do. They don't know how she got it for sure. It was probably from someone who came in for help (she works on a public service desk). Her's developed into pneumonia after a few days, but she is actually recovering well and not contagious anymore at this point, and we don't know of anyone else in this building that has it so far. The 2nd case was a man who is a parent of a student where DH teaches (luckily school is out here now).

I guess I am feeling like I am at a pretty big risk, especially once school is back in session this fall (I work at a university, DH is a middle school teacher). I have a Dr. appt next week and I plan to talk to him about it then, but I just wondered if anyone else here was in a similar situation and if your doctors had given you any advice/precautions, etc. Do you know of anywhere else in MDC where people are discussing this at all? I tried to search around, but didn't find anything yet.

I usually work 1 shift a week on a public service desk, so I am taking myself off that for now, and my supervisor is totally cool with that. Other than that, I don't know what I can do (or what I should do), if anything.

Anyone?...

[jimblejamble]

No advice yet. Last I heard there were 6 (?) cases of it in Utah. One of my friends is an EMT and he said he dealt with someone with swine flu, so I've been avoiding him a little. Other than that I haven't heard a word about it since the huge uproar a few weeks ago.

[ein328]

I'm not any more worried about swine flu than I am during flu season. I think that common-sense things like washing your hands frequently, covering your mouth when you sneeze, etc. go a long ways in preventing transmission. From what I've researched, it's no more dangerous than the regular flu- it's just that we don't have a vaccine for it yet. Besides, thousands of people die of the regular flu every year- and you don't see people getting hysterical over that! To me, it's not worth worrying over, unless you have a degraded immune system.

[mkksmom]

It's quite spread throughout my state, and they aren't even confirming cases unless people require hospitalization. My plan if I get fever and body aches is to get to the doc right away and not wait it out to see if I have a mild case or a severe case. If anyone in my family gets the flu, same plan... get them to the doc. I think I'd consider starting Tamiflu or the other med right away if I got it.

The pregnancy is making me short of breath already. The last thing I need is the flu on top of it. I'm glad my daughter is home from school now because I can control how much she washes her hands. I am much more concerned about sending her to full day kindergarten in September.

Last year, she had to have the flu vaccine for preschool, and I was not happy about it at all. However, I got really really sick with the flu the year before. I was afraid of that happening again, so I ended up getting it too. My fertility doc really wanted me to get it, and I did it during a month when we could not TTC. I was glad I got it because I think I'd actually consider getting the swine flu vaccine now after having had the regular flu vaccine and doing OK with it. I just won't be among the first group to get it. I'd like to let a month or so pass before I do and then look up how BFing moms and their babies are doing after it and decide.

[2boyzmama]

No word, no cautions, no fliers in the office, nothing.

In all honesty, the current strain of H1N1 is less virulent than many other viruses circulating. In theory, being pregnant, you could be more susceptible to some secondary illnesses because of the slight drop in your immune system, but at this stage in your pregnancy, the baby's major organs are done developing and baby can handle mom being sick for a few days. Baby should be perfectly protected via the placental barrier.

Pertussis circulates at much higher rates and has higher rates of complication than H1N1.

The seasonal flu affects MANY more people, and kills MANY more people.

Rotavirus circulated in my household this spring and got us ALL sick, including my younger son being in the hospital for a week.

If you look up rates of chicken pox and/or measles in your area, you'll likely find that there are many more cases of both of those illnesses.

Bottom line...H1N1 is not circulating at an alarming rate, it's not virulent, its symptoms are almost always easily treatable, and being pregnant only ever so slightly increases your risk of anything.

Not something I'm worried about

[luv2sew]

There are a lot more than 6 cases in UT. On the Center for Disease Control website they give 688 as the number of confirmed and probable cases and 2 deaths as a result of H1N1 in Utah. They aren't even testing everyone for it at this point(takes too much time), they are just assuming that if you have flu like symptoms its H1N1 and proceeding with treatment accordingly. I just happen to live in UT also, which is why I have been looking up this info. Another article I read on the CDC website that indicates that pregnant women that get H1N1 are more likely to develop pneumonia and/or go into labor early, whereas regular people are usually able to fight the virus just fine. It may be that there's not much we can do besides wash our hands and limit exposure to crowded places.

Edit: I just read some of the other responses that got posted while I was writing this. I'm glad you guys don't seem too worried. It helps me not freak out so much.

[confustication]

I had to go cover a story at a nursing home yesterday. It wasn't until after I'd been there for a good while that they revealed they had 4 residents (it's a very small nursing home) with H1N1.

Meh- I do have a compromised immune system, but I'm not going to obsess. I washed my hands, wnd when I came home I did choose to change my clothes and grab a shower- but that isn't out of the ordinary for me anyway. I don't see much difference between this and the flu we have circulate every year- though our 'plain old flu' is far more fatal.

[2boyzmama]

Yes, being pregnant can increase your chances of secondary illnesses like pneumonia from ANY illness, not just from H1N1, and any significant illness can in theory increase your risk of premature delivery.

HOWEVER, you're much more likely to pick up a whole host of other illnesses, some of them much more virulent than H1N1.

The best thing you can do is keep your immune system strong and as intact as possible, by eating healthy food, drinking plenty of safe clean water, taking vitamin supplements as necessary based on your diet, get moderate exercise to keep your body functioning, keeping chemicals and preservatives away from you as much as possible, limiting your exposure to medications, etc etc etc.

I would disagree with going straight to the dr with the first sign of illness, too, the best thing you can do is stay home and treat symptoms. Dr offices are teeming with germs, and there's nothing they can do either except treat symptoms, and the dr is much more likely to treat symptoms with medications vs the often safer home treatments of rest, hydration, vitamins, etc. Tamiflu has its own side effects, and shouldn't be used unless you have confirmed influenza and are at high risk for side effects. To my knowledge, even the CDC doesn't recommend anyone sick with flu-like symptoms go straight to the dr and get medication.

The new rise to pandemic level by the WHO scares me, to be honest, but not because I'm afraid of H1N1, but because the vaccine manufacturers will now rush to develop a vaccine that will have no where near anything close to appropriate testing before they're released to the public. No one in my family will be getting any flu vaccine anytime soon, even my younger son who has a Primary Immune Deficiency with a malformed airway and other complicating medical issues.

[hipmummy]

Originally Posted by 2boyzmama

No word, no cautions, no fliers in the office, nothing.

In all honesty, the current strain of H1N1 is less virulent than many other viruses circulating. In theory, being pregnant, you could be more susceptible to some secondary illnesses because of the slight drop in your immune system, but at this stage in your pregnancy, the baby's major organs are done developing and baby can handle mom being sick for a few days. Baby should be perfectly protected via the placental barrier.

Pertussis circulates at much higher rates and has higher rates of complication than H1N1.

The seasonal flu affects MANY more people, and kills MANY more people.

Rotavirus circulated in my household this spring and got us ALL sick, including my younger son being in the hospital for a week.

If you look up rates of chicken pox and/or measles in your area, you'll likely find that there are many more cases of both of those illnesses.

Bottom line...H1N1 is not circulating at an alarming rate, it's not virulent, its symptoms are almost always easily treatable, and being pregnant only ever so slightly increases your risk of anything.

Not something I'm worried about

H1N1 is circulating at an alarming rate. WHO just declared a Pandemic Level SIX (the highest to be exact).
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/.../en/index.html
Presently it is not a point health wise where I will worry. WE know 6 people who have had in the high risk bracket and they all recovered smoothly. But in 6 months months when the strain of H1N1 is much more virulent and the regular seasonal flu is going around I will worry. Our FP is suggesting that if the VAX comes out in a safe form that DH get the Vax as he taked the commuter rail and the subway and works in a skyscraper. I will take my chance swith DS as he will hopefull stil be nursing (so much for weaning), as form the new baby he will be ebf throught the flu season and I will take my chances. If Ds or get it we can take one of the anti-virals. I am a selective delayed vaxer so I would rather not use a new form of any vax. I just got in a huge argument with a relative who is a pharmacist about this. She can'y understand why I would not get the Vax if there was one. She started giving the whole you studied this for 6 years you are very intelligent woman how can be so negligent..... I was a tad angry and I let her spew. I don't argue with No it alls because it is not worth it. She has done some intensives on Vaxing but not even close to my background.

[2boyzmama]

Originally Posted by hipmummy

H1N1 is circulating at an alarming rate. WHO just declared a Pandemic Level SIX (the highest to be exact).
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/.../en/index.html

According to the link you provided, there are approximately 30,000 known cases of H1N1 worldwide.

The current world population is estimated at about 6,786,117,488.

According to my math, that is about 0.04% of the world's population (someone please check those numbers, I'm notorious for screwing up decimal points!!)

Here's some quotes from the WHO:

"On present evidence, the overwhelming majority of patients experience mild symptoms and make a rapid and full recovery, often in the absence of any form of medical treatment."

"Worldwide, the number of deaths is small. Each and every one of these deaths is tragic, and we have to brace ourselves to see more. However, we do not expect to see a sudden and dramatic jump in the number of severe or fatal infections."

"Many, though not all, severe cases have occurred in people with underlying chronic conditions. Based on limited, preliminary data, conditions most frequently seen include respiratory diseases, notably asthma, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, autoimmune disorders, and obesity."

There are other quotes about the potential severity of the disease, particularly in developing countries, but most of those do not pertain to us.

And here are some quotes regarding pregnancy:

"Without question, pregnant women are at increased risk of complications. This heightened risk takes on added importance for a virus, like this one, that preferentially infects younger age groups."

"Let me underscore two of many reasons for this concern. First, more than 99% of maternal deaths, which are a marker of poor quality care during pregnancy and childbirth, occurs in the developing world."


I believe that it is prudent that health organizations are monitoring this, no doubt, there is the potential for it to become more serious as the virus mutates. However, there have been many sensationalized "epidemic fears" in the recent past that never came to fruition, including the Bird Flu, SARS, Ebola, just to name three off the top of my head.

Does anyone have the link to the Mercola article about H1N1 that was posted a few months ago when this "outbreak" first started? I'd have to search for it again, but it gave some very good information about previous flu outbreaks including one where a vaccine was pushed onto the market way too fast and caused more issues than the flu itself.

[mom2tig99Nroo03]

Originally Posted by 2boyzmama

The new rise to pandemic level by the WHO scares me, to be honest, but not because I'm afraid of H1N1, but because the vaccine manufacturers will now rush to develop a vaccine that will have no where near anything close to appropriate testing before they're released to the public. No one in my family will be getting any flu vaccine anytime soon.

this. the main thing we won't be doing that we usually do with viral illnesses is take sambucol. we'll stick with vits.

[greeny]

2boyzmama - thank you for posting those quotes. They helped me relax a lot! I try to think rationally about swine flu, but it's really hard for me not to freak out a little (or sometimes a lot).

[Julia24]

You know, I'm not worried - YET. There's still a lot of 'if's' for me.

First of all, I don't feel like my immune system is compromised - I am healthy as a horse when I'm pregnant (I think it has something to do with increased boogies - I know it sounds strange, but I've been doing some research, and apparently, more boogies - helps clear the airways of MORE germs, so I practically NEVER get sick when I'm pregnant! In fact, I'm on my third kid and I haven't had so much as a cold during any of my pregnancies....)

Secondly - IF the virus mutates and becomes more dangerous, I wouldn't want to be in a hospital giving birth or having a new baby, so I may consider, closer to my duedate - changing plans and having a homebirth. Not what I really want, but whatever...I'll do what I have to do.

Beyond that, I certainly won't be getting any new fangled vaccine - nor will my children. I just don't want to be a human guinea pig and it happens, quite frequently, that the vaxs, drugs, etc. end up having side effects they weren't anticipating. We don't do flu vax in this house anyways - so I'm hoping that might actually prove beneficial and we have some natural immunities. (I read a few articles lately that is theorizing that the reason it is hitting the prime age groups, like us, is because the elderly generation - the people that USUALLY get these things, have been exposed to enough real flu germs to have been offered some immunities....people who are always getting the vax every year don't have the 'real' immunity, and thus we haven't built up our own immunities - just a hypothesis, but it's an interesting concept)

[2boyzmama]

Originally Posted by Julia24

(I read a few articles lately that is theorizing that the reason it is hitting the prime age groups, like us, is because the elderly generation - the people that USUALLY get these things, have been exposed to enough real flu germs to have been offered some immunities....people who are always getting the vax every year don't have the 'real' immunity, and thus we haven't built up our own immunities - just a hypothesis, but it's an interesting concept)

It's a VERY interesting concept, one that likely has a lot of merit! In fact, that's the basis of how the human immune system is SUPPOSED to work, otherwise anytime any virus mutated, humans would be dropping dead left and right, and throughout history, the truth is we have survived as a race long before vaccines were developed. The viruses and bacteria we've been exposed to before, and acquired immunity to, should provide at least partial immunity to the new viruses and bacteria in most cases. Living in large concentrated cities and being exposed to other environmental toxins lowers our immune systems' ability to work as it was designed, but that's where having as healthy an immune system as possible comes in.

[GiantGi]

I appreciate everyone's posts. I tend to freak out over this kind of stuff so its nice to read your posts and notice you are not freaked out. It gives me a sense of calm.