Swine flu is spreading

What is swine flu?
It is a swine respiratory disease caused by a Type A flu virus that regularly occurs among pig herds. This classical virus is identified as A/H1N1. Swine flu cases sporadically appear in humans but they are usually attributed to direct exposure to pigs.

The strain of H1N1 that is currently spreading can be transmitted from one human to another. Some infected people had no contact with pigs.

How is it transmitted?
Not from eating pork!

It is transmitted from person to person, probably the same way as a seasonal flu, through coughing and sneezing, or when the hand touches the mouth or nose after being in contact with the virus.

What are the symptoms?
They are similar to those of a regular flu: fever, coughing, sneezing, fatigue, loss of appetite, runny nose and headaches. People suffering with swine flu have also been vomiting and dealing with diarrhea.

How do we know if we're infected?
To diagnose Type A swine flu infection in humans, a respiratory sample is taken over the course of the first four or five days of the illness, the period in which a person is most contagious. Certain individuals, particularly children, may be contagious for 10 days or more. The samples from which human swine flu is confirmed are sent to the National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg.

Is there a vaccine?
According to the Public Health Agency of Canada, an adequate vaccine supply will be available for all Canadians who wish to receive it.

Since an influenza pandemic is a global health emergency, the WHO plays many key roles in the pandemic vaccine process.  These include coordinating the development of the seed stock for vaccine manufacture, recommending that manufacturers start making pandemic vaccine and providing advice for the use of pandemic vaccines.

The best case scenario is that immunization could begin in November 2009, in advance of the winter flu season. The current plan is to produce sufficient quantities of vaccine for Canadians and ensure their timely distribution in all communities.

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