“Recommendations to avoid travel to Mexico, or to any other country or area with confirmed cases, serve no purpose. They do not protect the public. They do not contain the outbreak. And they do not prevent further international spread,” Said Chan.
Prompt swine flu response by Mexico
Mexico, the epicenter of the current swine flu epidemic, attracted all the praise because of its vigorous and timely response to the flu.
"Mexico gave the world an early warning, and it also gave the world a model of rapid and transparent reporting, aggressive control measures, and generous sharing of data and samples,” Chan acknowledged.
The effort put in by Mexico delayed the initial spread of the virus. This provided an opportunity to the other nations to gear up and combat the influenza.
Back home, the going was not easy for the Mexican President Felipe Calderon who had to face stubborn officials wanting to hide the real numbers for fear it would cause panic.
"For many people across the world, Mexico was demonized precisely because it was providing truthful information," Calderon said.
The widespread menace
Chan noted that with over 100 countries reporting cases of the flu, the virus is virtually unstoppable.
More than 90,000 people have already been affected by the nasty swine flu. The lethal flu is also to be blamed for 382 deaths globally.
Argentina, Australia and Chile have been severely hit by the influenza in recent weeks. Argentina has reported 26 deaths from the virus, while Australia and Chile have reported nine deaths and two deaths respectively.
The United States has been worst hit with close 34,000 confirmed cases of the flu. 170 people have lost their lives in the country due to the virus.
Swine Flu - none in central Mx
I was in Pto Vallarta and nearby areas last month and noone had heard of anyone getting the flu; no swine flu there. My nephew, a doctor, said the government did take huge precautions early on, by stopping all work in the entire country for weeks (except for medical workers) so that if there was any virus, it wouldn't spread among workers. I thought that was concientious.
I live in Yucatan, a state
I live in Yucatan, a state in Mexico. We had 913 cases over a week ago. The day before we had about 600. That's right people, about 300 new cases in a day!
And because the elections are only a few days away (tomorrow) the government stopped updating those numbers. I had a fever last week too, and I wasn't about to go to a public hospital where I could catch the swine flu if I didn't have it in the first place, and I wasn't about to spend over $100 seeing a private doctor.
Public hospitals are a mess, they just can't handle the situation.
Don't praise the Mexican government, their handling of this situation went from hysteria to total denial.
Swine Flu mutates and turns resistant to Tamiflu
Here is a new class of AntiViral Medication called NOV-205 and made by Novelos Therapeutics.
I suggest someone test NOV-205 to possibly eliminate swine flu viral load.
http://www.novelos.com/
Thank You for you time,
Alex Kalman
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