Sunday, May 3, 2009

Pandemic



There has been a lot of news lately about the possible pandemic of the “swine flu” (type A H1N1) that started in Mexico.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), a pandemic can start when three conditions have been met:

  • Emergence of a disease new to a population.
  • Agents infect humans, causing serious illness.
  • Agents spread easily and sustainably among humans.

A disease or condition is not a pandemic merely because it is widespread or kills many people; it must also be infectious. For instance, cancer is responsible for many deaths but is not considered a pandemic, because the disease is not infectious or contagious.

You must find and link to an article or web page or video about something to do with one of the following:

· What is the flu and why is it dangerous?

· A description of a pandemic or epidemic, from the past. (There have been many interesting ones.)

· Methods used to trace the progression of a disease outbreak.

· Methods used to fight the spread of a disease.

Finally you must write 2 paragraphs (each paragraph should be at least 3 well constructed sentences) about the site you have chosen, in a way that allows the reader to get the main points of the source.

This project is due by midnight, Friday 5/8.


8 comments:

  1. The swine flu is a very deadly illness. It can spead easly from people to people and even though animals. The swine flu is supposed to have the same symtoms as a normal flu but vacines are limited.


    Swine flu can not be caught by eating pork. The only way to catch the flu is by breathing in the viris or touching it and touching around your mouth.

    Swine Flu SpreadsJS YELLOW

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  2. The swine flu is a over rated sickness in my opiion. In my article it tells you that it is not from pigs but it is something that pigs can get. The swine flu of H1N1 is contagious and can spread from human to human very easy.
    The symptoms for swine flu is similar to the normal flu humans get. Some of the symptons are fever, coughing, sore throat, aches and fatigue. Ways that we can prevent getting the flu is washing our hands covering you mouth when you cough or sneeze, avoid touching your mouth or eyes and if your sick stay home.

    Link HereJC Green

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  3. Click HereThe "Spanish Flu" killed about 20 to 40 million people between 1918 and 1919. This desease killed more people in one year than the Black Plague that lasted four years.At one point fifth of the worlds population was infected with the Flu.If you were between the ages 20 to 40 and you had the Flu you were the most likly to die from it. 28% of americans were infected. The mortality rate was 2.5% and it dropped to 0.1%.


    This pandemic spreed all acroos the glob. It spred along trade routes and shipping line.Outbreaks swept through North America, Europe, Asia, Africa, Brazil and the South Pacific.India had about 50 deaths per 1000 people. It started in the trenches where there was bad condition and harsh weather.

    red MNM

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  4. Most people in america beleive the flu isnt that dangerous but theyre wrong. Every an average 36,000 people die from Influenza. The disease usually only kills young children, older adults and people who are already sick. The flu usaully spreads from person to person when someone infected coughs or sneezes. People can also get infected if they touch something someoen who is infected has touched and then touch their mouth or nose. Influenza is also a serious threat to embryos in the mother's uterus because it damages the way the baby's body functions.
    this video shows Facts on the fluSJB YELLOW

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  5. Polio and AmericaThe article I chose for my link has to do with the polio epidemic which seemed to first show up in the United States in the early 1900's. As the article states, in 1916, a polio epidemic hit the U.S. which affected thousands of Americans. When polio first started doctors were puzzled as to what the disease was and why it was striking so many children who all experienced the same symptoms. In June of 1916, doctors finally recognized that they were facing an epidemic of Infantile Paralysis, or polio.


    Perhaps one of the most famous people to have polio was president Franklin Delano Roosevelt. It was Roosevelt who created The National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis which became one of history's most successful health organizations. The organization used money for medical research for preventative measures which included the work of Dr. Jonas Salk who developed the polio vaccine. It was also the beginning of the famous March of Dimes campaign.

    AT Yellow

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  6. Click HereSwine flu is an infectous disease that is killing thousands of people. This disease is dangerous and is speading quickly around the world. This flu first originated in pigs.

    Swine flu symptoms are fever, cough, sore throat, body aches, headache, and chills. To prevent from getting this disease you should wash your hands frequently, get plenty of sleep, and stay hydrated. Experts say that they expect to see more cases of swine flu.

    LP Red

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  7. article.The swine flu is a new strain of a flu that we've already had before. It's now different and more dangerous because it has been passed from pigs, birds, and bugs to humans so it is mutated. Doctors are trying to figure out how to cure this but nobody is quite sure how to because we haven't dealt with it before. The best we can do is to try what we did before when we had a strain of it. Swine flu is able to also spread rapidly from person to person making it very infectious.

    Many people in Mexico have already died from the flu and even more are infected. It is now being passed to different countries and there have been a few deaths. Currently, we have no vaccine. This is very dangerous because unlike a normal flu virus, the swine flu is attacking young and healthy people. The best things to do are stay in if you're sick, cover your mouth when you sneeze or cough, and wash your hands a lot.


    AW Yellow

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  8. In the years 1918-1919 the influenza pandemic killed between 20 and 40 million people. Influenza was the killer of the elderly and young children. It had infected 28% of all Americans and it is estimated that 675,000 Americans died of influenza during the pandemic. This pandemic killed more people than the Great War.

    Click HereInfluenza pandemic spread along trade routes and shipping lines. Outbreaks swept through North America, Europe, Asia, Africa, Brazil and the South Pacific. Many thought that this virus was a result of trench warfare. One fifth of the world was infected with the influenza.

    LA yellow

    ReplyDelete