H1N1 4U

Swine Flu's out there, folks. Me, I got lucky and caught the bloody thing last spring. But the CDC is damn worried about this bug, and you should be as well.

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) have confirmed what public health officials have been saying for some time. The Swine Flu, pandemic H1N1, is unusually deadly for young people in the United States.

In a press briefing from the CDC on October 20, 2009, Dr. Ann Schuchat revealed the data from September 1 through October 10. With 27 states reporting a total of 4,958 hospitalizations related to Swine Flu, 53% of the patients were under age 24 and 92% were under age 65. With seasonal flu, 60% of the hospitalizations are in patients over the age of 65.

In other words, this one's putting a lot of young people in the hospital and worse.

28 states have reported a total of 292 laboratory confirmed deaths related to pandemic H1N1. 24% of the deaths are in young people under the age of 24. 88% of the deaths are in patients under age 65. This is in contrast to the deaths from seasonal flu, where 90% of the deaths are in patients age 65 and older.

When asked about underlying conditions adding to the risks from Swine Flu, Dr. Schuchat said “Well, pregnancy, as we've been seeing is disproportionately represented. Completely healthy women are coming down with horrible, horrible illnesses. “ She also mentioned that children with pre-exisitng neurological conditions such as muscular dystrophy and cerebral palsy are being seen with complications from Swine Flu. Children with asthma, even well controlled asthma, are also at greater risk of complications."

Needless to say, be careful out there this fall, especially anyone with kids or pregnant women.