Swine Flu (Swine Influenza Virus A [H1N1 and H3N2v])

Swine Flu (Swine Influenza Virus A [H1N1 and H3N2v])

Swine Flu (Swine Influenza Virus A H1N1 AND H3N2v

Swine Flu (Swine Influenza Virus A [H1N1 and H3N2v])

Came influenza A virus (H1N1 virus and H3N2v)

Swine flu is a respiratory disease caused by the influenza virus that infect the respiratory tract of pigs and causes a coughing doggy, decreased appetite, runny nose, and apathetic behavior; The virus can be transmitted to humans.

Swine flu can mutate (change) so that they are easily transmissible among humans.

The outbreak of swine flu in April 2009 (pandemic) was due to infection with the H1N1 virus and was first observed in Mexico.

The symptoms of swine flu in humans are similar to most influenza infections: fever (100 F or more), cough, runny nose, fatigue and headaches.

The incubation period of the disease is about one to four days.

Swine flu is contagious about one day before developing symptoms in about five to seven days after the onset of symptoms; Some patients may be contagious for longer.

The disease lasts about three to seven days with more serious infections of about nine to ten days.

Vaccination is the best way to prevent or reduce the risk of infection with the flu virus.

Primary Care Specialists

Pediatricians and emergency physicians usually treat the disease, but other experts can be consulted if the flu is severe or complicated.

Two antivirals, zanamivir (Relenza) and oseltamivir (Tamiflu) have been reported to help prevent or reduce the effects of swine flu when taken within 48 hours of onset of symptoms. Some researchers 

agree and suggest that antiviral agents have no effect.

There are several methods listed in this article to help people get the flu.

Some home remedies are available, but patients should consult with their physicians before use; 

Over-the-counter medications can help reduce symptoms.

The most serious complication of the flu is pneumonia.

What is swine flu?

Swine Flu (Swine Flu) is a respiratory disease caused by influenza viruses (viruses) that infect the respiratory tract of pigs, resulting in nasal secretions, coughing dogs in a decrease in appetite and dumb behavior . Swine flu produces most of the same symptoms in pigs as human influenza in people. Swine flu can last from one to two weeks of surviving pigs. 

Swine flu was isolated from pigs in the 1930s in the United States and has been recognized by pig producers and veterinarians to cause infections in pigs around the world. 

In several cases, people have developed a swine flu infection when they are closely related to pigs (eg farmers, pork processors), and even sometimes pig populations have been infected with human influenza infection . In most cases, interstitial infections (virus from pigs to humans, human influenza virus to pigs) have remained in local areas and have not caused national or international infections in pigs or humans. Unfortunately, this species crusade with the flu virus had the potential to change. The researchers decided that the strain called "swine flu" as of 2009, seen for the first time in Mexico, should be called the new H1N1 virus, since it has mostly been infected people and has two major surface antigens, H1 (hemagglutinin Type 1) and N1 (type 1 neuraminidase). The eight RNA chains of the new H1N1 flu have a strand derived from human influenza strains, two strains of avian (poultry) and five strains of pork.

How is swine flu spread? Is swine flu contagious?

Swine flu is transmitted from person to person through inhalation or ingestion of droplets that contain sneezing or cough viruses; It is not transmitted by consumption of cooked pork products. 

The swine flu virus caused more recent swine flu type H3N2v (commonly called H3N2v) started as an epidemic in 2011. The "V" means that the virus is a variant that normally infects only swine, but began to infect the humans. There have been small outbreaks of H1N1 since the pandemic; A recent one in India, where at least three people died.

What is the incubation period for swine flu?

The incubation period for swine flu is approximately one to four days, averaging two days; In some people, the incubation period can take about seven days in adults and children.

What is the period of contagion of swine flu?

The period of contagion of swine flu in adults usually begins one day before symptoms develop in an adult and it takes about five to seven days after the person is sick. However, people with weakened immune systems and children may be contagious for a longer period (for example, approximately 10 to 14 days).

How long does the swine flu last?

In uncomplicated infections, swine flu usually begins to resolve after three to seven days,

However, discomfort and coughing can last for two weeks or longer in some patients. Severe swine flu may require hospitalization increases the duration of infection around nine to ten days.

What causes swine flu?

The cause of the swine flu in 2009 was a type of designated H1N1 flu. In 2011, a new swine flu virus has been detected. The new strain called influenza A (H3N2) v. Only a few people (mostly children) became infected for the first time, but officials at the Centers for Disease Prevention and Prevention (CDC) reported an increase in the number of people infected during the 2012-2013 season. flu. Currently, there are not a large number of people infected with H3N2v. Unfortunately, another virus called H3N2 (note that there is no "v" in the name) has been detected and cause the flu, but this strain is different from H3N2v. In general, all of the influenza A has a structure similar to that of the H1N1 virus; Each type has a different H and / or N structure.

Why do not swine flu infect humans?

Many researchers now believe that two major series of events can lead to swine flu (and bird flu or bird) to become a major cause of influenza illness in humans.

First, influenza viruses (types A, B, C) are RNA viruses wrapped with a segmented genome; This means that the genetic code of viral RNA is not a single RNA strand but exists as eight different RNA segments in influenza viruses. A human influenza virus (or bird) can infect a respiratory cell swine along with a swine flu virus; Some of the human virus replication RNA strands can be mistakenly blocked in the virus with swine influenza envelope. For example, a cell could contain eight swine flu and eight RNA segments of human influenza. The total number of RNA types in a cell would be 16; Four RNA segments of swine flu and four human flu could be incorporated into a particle, which is a viable influenza RNA segmented from the 16 available types of segments. Several combinations of RNA segments may lead to a new virus subtype (this process is known as antigenic shift), which may be able to infect humans preferentially but has specific swine flu characteristics (see Figure 1). It is even possible to include RNA strings of avian, swine and human influenza virus viruses in one if a single cell is infected with all three types of influenza (eg, bird flu, three swine flu and three RNA segments of the Human flu to produce a new viable type of new viral genome of the flu). The formation of a new type of virus is considered an antigenic change; Small changes in a segment of individual RNA in influenza viruses are called antigenic drift (see Figure 1) and cause minor virus changes. However, these small genetic changes can accumulate with sufficient time to produce minor changes that cumulatively alter the composition of the virus over time (usually years).

Second, pigs can play a unique role as a resident through new types of influenza because the respiratory cells of pigs can be directly infected with avian, human and other mammalian flu. Therefore, the respiratory cells of the pig can be infected by many types of influenza and can function as a "pot mixer" for influenza RNA segments (see Figure 1). Avian influenza, which usually infects gastrointestinal cells And many species of birds, spread in the excrement of birds. Pigs can remove these viruses from the environment, and this appears to be the main way that RNA segments of avian influenza virus enter the mammalian influenza virus population. Figure 1 shows this process in H1N1, but the figure represents the genetic process for all influenza viruses, including human, porcine and avian strains.

H1N1 AND N3N2

Symptoms of swine flu are similar to most flu infections: fever (100 F or more), cough (usually dry), nasal secretions, fatigue, headache, fatigue in more infected individuals. Some patients may also suffer from a sore throat, rash, body pain (pain), headache, chills, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. In Mexico, many of the first patients infected with the H1N1 virus were young adults, which has allowed some researchers to speculate that a strong immune response, as seen in young people, can cause collateral damage to the tissue. The incubation period from exposure to first symptoms is approximately one to four days, with an average of two days. The symptoms last for one to two weeks and can last longer if the person has a serious infection.

Some patients develop severe respiratory symptoms, such as shortness of breath, and require respiratory assistance (such as ventilator breathing to the patient). Patients can obtain

Pneumonia (secondary bacterial infection) if viral infection persists and some may develop seizures. Death often occurs from secondary bacterial infection of the lungs; Appropriate antibiotics should be used in these patients. Typical mortality (death) typical of influenza A is approximately 0.1%, whereas the Spanish flu in 1918 was an estimated mortality rate of 2% to 20%. The swine flu (H1N1) in Mexico was about 160 dead and about 2,500 confirmed cases, which would correspond to a mortality rate of around 6%, but these initial data have been revised and the mortality rate in the world was much weaker. Fortunately, the H1N1 mortality rate was low and similar to that of conventional influenza (average mortality rate for conventional influenza is approximately 36,000 per year, the projected H1N1 influenza mortality rate 90,000 per year in the United States United as determined by the President's Advisory Committee, but has never come close to high).

Fortunately, however H1N1 has been developed in a pandemic (global) virus strain, the death rate in the United States and many other countries is approaching just the usual number of flu deaths worldwide. Speculation about the death rate has remained much lower than expected. Public awareness and public action have generated increased hygiene (especially handwashing), rather rapid development of a new vaccine and self-isolation of the patient if the symptoms developed.

What professional health tests do you use to diagnose swine flu?

Swine flu is presomptuellement clinically diagnosed by the history of the association of the patient with people know they have the disease and its symptoms listed above. A rapid test (for example, a nasopharyngeal sample shoe) is usually done to see if the patient is infected with influenza A or B. Most tests can distinguish between types A and B. The test may be negative ( No influenza infection) or positive for types A and B. If the test is positive for type B, the flu is not the swine flu likely. If it is positive for type A, the person may have a conventional flu or swine flu. However, the accuracy of these tests has been questioned, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has not completed its comparative studies of these tests. However, a new test developed by the CDC and a commercial company could reliably detect H1N1 in about an hour; The test was once available only to the military. In 2010, the FDA approved a test in the market that could detect H1N1 in four hours. Most of these rapid tests are based on PCR technology.

Swine flu is definitely diagnosed by identifying the particular antigens (surface proteins) associated with the virus type. In general, this test is performed in a specialized laboratory and is not done by many doctor's offices or hospital labs. However, medical offices may send samples to specialized laboratories if necessary. Due to the large number of new cases of H1N1 swine flu that occurred in the 2009-2010 influenza season (the vast majority of influenza cases [around 95% -99%] were due to the new H1N1 flu), the CDC is only recommended for inpatient influenza virus strains should be sent to reference laboratories for identification. H3N2v strains of influenza and other strains of influenza viruses are diagnosed by similar methods.

What types of health professionals treat swine flu?

Almost all patients with uncomplicated swine flu can be treated at home or by the patient's pediatrician, family doctor or emergency medicine doctor. For more complicated infections and / or severe swine flu, experts such as intensive care specialists, pulmonary specialists (pulmonologists) and infectious disease specialists are available.

What is the treatment for swine flu?

The best treatment for influenza infections in humans is prevention through vaccination. The work of several laboratories produced vaccines. The first H1N1 flu vaccine launched in early October 2009 was a nasal spray vaccine that has been approved for use in healthy people aged 2 to 49 years. The injectable vaccine, made of killed H1N1, became available in the second week of October 2009. This vaccine was approved for use in persons aged 6 months, including pregnant women. Both vaccines have been approved by the CDC only after conducting clinical trials to demonstrate that the vaccines were safe and effective. A new formulation of the influenza vaccine is the intradermal (trivalent) vaccine available; It works like shooting except that management is less painful. It is approved for 18-64 years.

Almost all vaccines have side effects. Common side effects of H1N1 influenza vaccines (alone or in combination with other influenza virus strains) are typical of influenza vaccines used in several

The years are:

Flu shots: pain, redness, minor swelling of the shooting site, muscle pain, low fever and nausea usually last no more than 24 hours.

Nasal spray include runny nose, low fever, vomiting, headache, wheezing, cough, and sore throat

Intradermal circulation: redness, swelling, pain, headache, muscle aches, fatigue

The flu vaccine (vaccine) is made from killed virus particles so that a person can not breathe flu. However, the nasal spray against the vaccine contains a live virus that has been modified to hinder its ability to replicate in human tissue. People with weakened immune systems should not be vaccinated with nasal spray. On the other hand, most vaccines containing flu virus particles are grown in eggs, so people allergic to eggs should not receive the vaccine, unless tested and recommended by their doctor they are eliminated to get it . Like all vaccines, rare events can occur in rare cases (eg, swelling, weakness or difficulty breathing). Approximately one in every million who receive the vaccine may develop a neurological condition called Guillain-Barré syndrome, which can cause weakness or paralysis, difficulty breathing, bladder and / or bowel problems and other nervous problems. If symptoms develop like this, get medical attention right away.