This is an update on the status of the H1N1 ( Swine ) Flu information since my post on Swine Flu and Autoimmune Disease (click here to view previous post). One June 11, 2009 Dr. Margaret Chan, Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) announced that the World Health Organization(WHO) raised the worldwide pandemic alert to a Phase 6 ( also known as the pandemic phase). This phase is characterized by community level outbreak via human-to-human spread of the virus in multiple parts of the world.
Currently more than 70 countries have reported cases of H1N1 (swine flu) infection. This number has been steadily increasing in recent weeks. The World Health Organization’s (WHO) decision to raise the alert level to Phase 6 means that the spread of the disease is worldwide. At this time it is unclear how serious or intense this pandemic will be. It is difficult to predict how many people will become infected and how serious the complications from this disease will be.. Because this is a new strain of the influenza virus many people have little or no immunity against it. As of this post there is no vaccine to protect against the H1N1 (Swine Flu) virus. However the U.S. Government is taking steps to process and manufacture a H1N1 (Swine Flu) vaccine. The CDC (Centers for Disease & Prevention) has isolated the virus and has made a candidate vaccine which will be used to create the vaccine. It generally takes several months to complete the process to make a vaccine.
Countries in the Southern Hemisphere are just beginning their influenza season. Information obtained from the Southern Hemisphere countries experiences during their flu season may provide valuable information to Northern Hemisphere countries in preparation for it’s own flu season
All 50 states in the U.S., the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico have reported cases of the H1N1 (Swine Flu) virus. Most people in the United States that have become ill with the H1N1 virus have recovered without medical treatment. Currently 33,902 cases of the H1N1 (swine flu) virus have been reported in the United States with 170 deaths reported. The Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) does anticipate that there will be more new cases of this virus reported, more hospitalizations and more deaths associate with this virus in the weeks to come. The CDC anticipates signification illness associated with the H1N1 (Swine Flu) virus in the fall and winter months which is typically the U.S. influenza season.
The CDC ( Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) has issued priority use for antiviral drugs during this outbreak to treat people that are at increased risk of severe illness and those hospitalized with the H1N1 virus. People at high risk include young children, people with chronic health conditions such as diabetes, asthma, metabolic disease, lung, heart or kidney disease or those with weakened immune systems and those with neurologic or neuromuscular disease.
The CDC has provided information on what to do if you become sick (click here for link ) and how to care for someone who is sick with the virus at home.(click here for link) The most important thing that you can do right now is to stay informed.
According to new research published June 28, 2009 in Nature Medicine, scientists have uncovered one molecular switch that triggers the immune system to attack the joints in people with rheumatoid arthritis. The authors of the study from Imperial College London state that blocking this signal may provide effective arthritis treatments in the future. Approximately 1 percent of the population suffers from rheumatoid arthritis the most common autoimmune disease. About half of all patients are not responding to the current treatments available today. Research scientists working on this study state that stopping this disease closer to the root of the problem could possibly be the best way to treat the disease. The results from their study suggest a new direction for therapies.
In healthy people when a microbe invades the body the immune system responds by turning on a molecular switch that sends the immune system into action to protect the body from disease. In this study, the signal molecule called tenascin-C can trigger the same molecular switch and activate the immune system. High levels of this signal molecule tenascin-C in joints may cause the activated immune system to attack the joint tissue that leads to persistent inflammation that is common in rheumatoid arthritis. The molecular switch is called TLR4. It is found on the surface of the immune cell and in prior research mice without TLR4 do not show chronic joint inflammation.
The researchers in this study are hopeful that scientists can develop new treatments that target the interaction between tenascin-C ( the signal molecule ) and TLR4( the molecular switch ). This may help to combat rheumatoid arthritis. Dr. Kim Midwood, the head author of this study from the Kennedy Institute of Rheumatology at Imperial College in London states that “We have uncovered on way that the immune system may be triggered to attack the joints in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. We hope our new findings can be used to develop new therapies that interfere with tenascin-C activation of the immune system and that these will reduce the painful inflammation that is a hallmark of this condition.”
The researchers conducted 5 studies. One study suggests that tenascin-C is needed to sustain inflammation. They produced joint inflammation in mice with and without the gene for tenascin-C and found that the mice without the gene for tenacin-C showed no swelling or tissue distructions however the mice with the gene that could produce tenascin-c had severe swelling in the joint and bone and cartilage damage. In a later study, mice joints were injected with the active part of the tenacin-C molecule. Researchers found that it caused the joints of the mice to become inflamed and with higher doses the reaction was more intense. In another study, scientist found that by taking human immune cells called macrophages and fibroglasts from the swollen joints of patients with rheumatoid arthritis and adding tenascin-C the cells produced more molecules that cause inflammation.The study authors are planning on working out the exact mechanism in tenacin-C that increases these levels of inflammation in the joint and explore way to inhibit it.
The President of the United States of America is inviting us all to join in the National online discussion on health care reform. This is an issue that will effect all of us at one time or another. It is especially important for those of us with chronic diseases. One thing seems very clear as it is right now the health care system does not work for all our citizens equally. Health insurance cost have risen to almost unattainable rates while coverage for benefits has dwindled over the past ten years. Whether you agree with President Obama or not this is your opportunity for you to share your ideas and concerns with the President and the American public via youtube
President Obama is asking for us to submit our questions and concerns via youtube by July 1, 2009. Questions or concerns are limited to a 20 – 30 second submission. The President will address as many questions and concerns as possible in an online Town Hall format.
In a study funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and Bristol-Meyers Squibb, researchers at the University of Maryland School of Medicine have found that Abatacept (Orencia) a drug for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and manufactured by Bristol-Meyers Squibb, reduced the severity of illness and death in mice exposed to the Influenza A virus. This may provide a new treatment for the influenza virus that would cut down on the immune response to the virus and still maintain the protective effects.
This drug does not interrupt the immune system’s attack in the lungs which helps to kill the virus, but it prevents the T-cells from overreacting which can make you feel sick and can lead to pneumonia. This “overreacting” immune response is most often found in young healthy people and is thought to be the leading cause of death from pandemic strains of flu. It is thought to be true in the early cases of the H1N1 (“swine flu”). Currently this drug is not approved by the FDA for treatment of influenza. It is however approved for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis.
The researchers tested the effectiveness of this drug on mice. After the mice were injected with a lethal dose of the influenza A virus, the survival rate for the treated mice was 30% higher than the untreated mice. The treated mice recovered faster and suffer less lung damage than the untreated mice. The scientist found that treating the mice with Abatacept (Orencia) minimized the amount of tissue damage caused by the immune response and still enable the body to fight off the virus. Treatment with Abatacept (Orencia) made a significant improvement to the survival of the mice infected with the lethal dose of the virus. The survival rate was 80% for the treated mice verses 50% for the untreated mice.
There are three types of seasonal influenza, A, B and C. There are numerous subtypes of Influenza A including the new strain H1N1 also known as the “swine flu”. Currently vaccination is the most effective way to prevent infection with the virus. The antiviral drug, Tamiflu can help to prevent the virus from spreading in the body if it is taken within the first 48 hours of the onset of symptoms.
You can’t turn a television on lately without hearing something about the possiblility of a swine flu pandemic. As of 11:00 am today EDT (Eastern Daylight Time) the CDC (Centers for Disease Control) in Atlanta, GA has reported 64 confirmed cases of the swine flu. The CDC has issued a travel warning recommending against non essential travel to Mexico. Yesterday the WHO (World Health Organization) raised the worldwide pandemic alert level from Phase 4 to Phase 5. Phase 4 means there is verifiable human to human transmission of infection. Phase 4 indicates a significant increase in risk of a pandemic but does not necessarily mean that a pandemic is a forgone conclusion. Phase 5 ” is characterized by human to human spread of the virus into at least two countries in one WHO region.” This means there is a strong signal that a pandemic is imminent and it is time to implement measures to deal with the reality of a pandemic
Currently there is no vaccine available for the swine flu. The WHO believes that having an annual flu vaccine may offer partial protection against the current strain. However this influenza strain is biologically different from the strain that is protected with the current vaccine. Currently the CDC is studying and developing a vaccine for the recent swine flu outbreak.
In Mexico there have been close to 1,600 suspected cases of this influenza strain. Scientist are working to understand why there are so many deaths in Mexico when the United States cases seem mild. Some believe that the infected people in Mexico waited until the were very ill before seeking medical attention. The concern is that most of those that died in Mexico were healthy young adults. As of yesterday there were 149 fatalities from this outbreak.
The United States government announced a public health emergency although President Barack Obama urged calm. Obama told a gathering of the National Academy of Sciences the swine flu outbreak “requires a heightened state of alert, but it is not a cause for alarm”. The acting director of the CDC, Richard Besser said the affected states ( New York, Ohio, Kansas, Texas and California) would be receiving 11 million courses of antiviral drugs.
So what does this mean if you are currently taking medication that suppresses your immune system, as many of us with autoimmune diseases do? It means that we need to extra vigilant when it comes to hygiene, make sure that you wash your hands often with soap and water. I always keep a alcohol based hand cleaner in my car and I use it after every shopping trip. Avoid contact with someone who is sick. If you should start to feel sick with flu like symptoms, runny nose, cough, aches,and fever call your doctor and stay home from school or work. Avoid touching your mouth, nose or eyes, that is how germs are spread.
The World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) are updating their websites regularly. Here are their links:
This is a long video on the importance of vitamin D, but it is really worth the time. Michael F. Holick PhD, MD from Boston University’s School of Medicine explains in great detail the importance of vitamin D and how deficiency in this vital vitamin effects the body. The lecture is at times humorous and very interesting. He touches on Rheumatoid Arthritis(RA) in this lecture as well as MultipleSclerosis(MS) and cancer as three specific diseases that can be tied to vitamin d deficiency. I really think that this video is worth the time investment. I know that I will be increasing my vitamin D intake after seeing this lecture and I wish I had see it before my earlier post on vitamin D and RA because I would have added this video to the previous post. I feel that what Dr. Holick has to say is really important and that is why I am revisiting the topic.
About a year and a half ago I went for physical therapy for my hands. I was having issues with some of my fingers being hyper-extended. While discussing with the therapist some of the challenges that I was experiencing with RA, she suggested that I try some hand exercises. They really did help my hands feel less stiff. A fellow twitterer sent me this link: Hand-Stretching Exercises for Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA). to a Web MD post about hand exercises that are very similar to the exercises the physical therapist showed me. I think that this article does a good job of explaining the exercises although I think some visuals would have been helpful too.
All information is intended for
your general knowledge only and is not a
substitute for medical advice or treatment.
You should consult your physician for any
health issues.
According to new research published June 28, 2009 in Nature Medicine, scientists have uncovered one molecular switch that triggers the immune system to attack the joints in people with rheumatoid arthritis. The authors of the study from Imperial College London state that blocking this signal may provide effective arthritis treatments in the future. Approximately 1 percent of the population suffers from rheumatoid arthritis the most common autoimmune disease. About half of all patients are not responding to the current treatments available today. Research scientists working on this study state that stopping this disease closer to the root of the problem could possibly be the best way to treat the disease. The results from their study suggest a new direction for therapies.
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