Serious flu risk could be identified with genetic test
Findings show that the severity of infection can be partially governed by a person’s genetic make-up, and opens the door to new types of anti-viral drugsPeople who are at risk of falling seriously ill with the flu could be identified by a genetic test and encouraged to have the seasonal vaccination, researchers say.The NHS offers flu jabs for people who are known to be most in danger from the virus, including the over-65s, pregnant women, and those with underlying health problems, such as asthma. Continue reading... (Source: Guardian Unlimited Science)
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - September 8, 2015 Category: Science Authors: Ian Sample, science editor Tags: Genetics Science Flu Swine flu Bird flu Biology Vaccines and immunisation Health British Science Festival Source Type: news
Adjusted Flu Vaccine Options Available to Seniors This Year
Dear Savvy Senior, What can you tell me about this year's flu shot? Last year's vaccine was ineffective at preventing the flu, especially among seniors. What options are available to me this year? --Seeking Protection Dear Seeking, You're right. Last season's flu shot was not very effective at preventing the flu. In fact, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), people who got the shot were just 19 percent less likely to visit the doctor for flu than people who did not get the shot. In good years, flu shot effectiveness is in the 50 to 60 percent range. The reason for the shot's ineffectivenes...
Source: Healthy Living - The Huffington Post - September 7, 2015 Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news
Scientists Take Huge Step Toward Universal Flu Vaccine
A universal flu vaccine -- one that provides immunity against every strain of the influenza virus for multiple years -- is the holy grail of flu research. It would be a medical breakthrough on the order of penicillin, with the potential to save hundreds of thousands of lives every year. And scientists just got one crucial step closer to making it a reality. Two separate groups of scientists published papers this week demonstrating that a new type of flu vaccine can provide protection against multiple strains of the disease, rather than just one. Though a truly universal flu vaccine that could be given to humans remain...
Source: Science - The Huffington Post - August 28, 2015 Category: Science Source Type: news
Scientists Take Huge Step Toward Universal Flu Vaccine
A universal flu vaccine -- one that provides immunity against every strain of the influenza virus for multiple years -- is the holy grail of flu research. It would be a medical breakthrough on the order of penicillin, with the potential to save hundreds of thousands of lives every year. And scientists just got one crucial step closer to making it a reality.
Two separate groups of scientists published papers this week demonstrating that a new type of flu vaccine can provide protection against multiple strains of the disease, rather than just one. Though a truly universal flu vaccine that could be given to humans remain...
Source: Science - The Huffington Post - August 28, 2015 Category: Science Source Type: news
Universal flu vaccine a step closer as scientists create experimental jabs
Annual vaccinations could be a thing of the past as scientists have successfully tested vaccines on animals infected with different strains of influenzaA universal flu vaccine that protects against multiple strains of the virus is a step closer after scientists created experimental jabs that work in animals.The vaccines prevented deaths or reduced symptoms in mice, ferrets and monkeys infected with different types of flu, raising hopes for a reliable alternative to the seasonal vaccine. Continue reading... (Source: Guardian Unlimited Science)
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - August 25, 2015 Category: Science Authors: Ian Sample, science editor Tags: Medical research Science Flu Vaccines and immunisation Biology Microbiology Flu pandemic Health Bird flu Swine flu Source Type: news
Researchers 'a step closer' to universal flu vaccine
Conclusion
These studies have developed two different flu vaccines that could potentially offer broader protection against a variety of flu strains than current vaccines.
As yet, this research has only been conducted in animals, with one study showing an effect against different flu strains in mice and monkeys, and the other showing an effect in mice and ferrets.
As monkeys are more similar to humans than mice or ferrets, the results from these experiments are likely to be the most representative of what would happen in humans.
While the results are encouraging, it is likely that additional lab and animal research on bo...
Source: NHS News Feed - August 25, 2015 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Medical practice Medication Heart/lungs Swine flu Source Type: news
Did swine flu jabs give scores of children a sleeping sickness?
Scottish 16-year-old Chloe Gasson, pictured with mum Sandy Young, is one of 100 Britons believed to have been affected by narcolepsy as a result of receiving the Pandemrix vaccination for swine flu. (Source: the Mail online | Health)
Source: the Mail online | Health - July 17, 2015 Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news
Woman who developed narcolepsy after swine flu jab had 'no quality of life'
Family of 23-year-old Katie Clack, who took her own life after struggling with the terrible effects of her incurable sleep disorder, vows to fight for justiceA 23-year-old nursery assistant who developed narcolepsy after receiving a swine flu vaccine took her own life last year, telling her family that living with the incurable sleep disorder had become unbearable.Katie Clack’s death raises fresh questions about the government’s long refusal to compensate about 80 people who developed narcolepsy as a rare side-effect of the vaccine, on the basis that the condition is not serious enough to merit payouts. Continue readin...
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - July 13, 2015 Category: Science Authors: Hannah Devlin science correspondent Tags: UK news Swine flu Health GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals industry Drugs Science Source Type: news
'Immunological Mistaken Identity' Led to Narcolepsy (CME/CE)
(MedPage Today) -- Tracking a link between H1N1 vaccine and narcolepsy (Source: MedPage Today Geriatrics)
Source: MedPage Today Geriatrics - July 5, 2015 Category: Geriatrics Source Type: news
On the Flu Vax?Narcolepsy Link
Researchers identify a peptide present in the swine-flu vaccine linked to narcolepsy that may be responsible for the sleep disorder. (Source: The Scientist)
Source: The Scientist - July 1, 2015 Category: Science Tags: Daily News Source Type: news
Swine flu jab and narcolepsy may be linked by autoimmune response
Vaccine may have caused narcolepsy by triggering the production of antibodies which destroy a sleep-regulating part of the brain, a new study suggestsScientists appear close to pinpointing why a swine flu vaccine given to six million people in Britain triggered the devastating sleep disorder, narcolepsy, in rare cases.The Pandemrix vaccine, made by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), and which was recommended by the UK government to high-risk groups during the 2009-10 swine flu pandemic, was withdrawn after medical records showed a spike in the number of cases of narcolepsy presenting in doctors’ surgeries. Continue reading... (Sourc...
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - July 1, 2015 Category: Science Authors: Hannah Devlin, science correspondent Tags: Swine flu Science Health Vaccines and immunisation Health policy UK news Source Type: news
South Africa: KZN Health MEC Urges People to Get Vaccinated for H1N1 Flu
[News24Wire] KwaZulu-Natal Health MEC Sibongiseni Dhlomo on Thursday urged people with weak immune systems to get vaccinated, but said there was no cause for panic about the H1N1 flu. (Source: AllAfrica News: Health and Medicine)
Source: AllAfrica News: Health and Medicine - June 19, 2015 Category: African Health Source Type: news
Four out of ten Brits may naturally show fewer flu symptoms
ConclusionA study of 1,414 unvaccinated people showed those with T cells targeting virus nucleoprotein still got infected by flu, but had fewer symptoms. The logic is that people with fewer symptoms are less likely to spread the virus through coughs and sneezes, which may slow the spread of both seasonal and pandemic flu strains.This is plausible, but was not directly tested in this study, so we don't know if it's true in real life. The research team suggested vaccines that boost T cell numbers might be worth exploring, as an alternative to those that try to stop virus infection altogether. An added potential benefit of th...
Source: NHS News Feed - June 16, 2015 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Heart/lungs Medical practice Medication Swine flu Source Type: news
Narcolepsy and the swine flu vaccine: the girl who falls asleep 40 times a day
Lucy Tonge was 13 when she developed narcolepsy after having the Pandemrix jab. She is appealing against the rejection of her compensation claimWhen Lucy Tonge started drifting off in front of the television as a 13-year-old, her parents put it down to typical teenage lethargy. And when she developed a strange habit of slumping forward when she laughed, her mum told her: “Stop doing that stupid thing when you laugh. It makes you look silly.” But she couldn’t.It was only when she started collapsing with no warning that her family sought medical advice that led to a diagnosis of narcolepsy. Soon afterwards, Tonge disco...
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - June 15, 2015 Category: Science Authors: Hannah Devlin Science correspondent Tags: Science Swine flu Health Pharmaceuticals industry GlaxoSmithKline UK news Source Type: news
Narcolepsy and the swine flu vaccine: the girl who falls asleep 40 times a day
Lucy Tonge was 13 when she developed narcolepsy after having the Pandemrix jab. She is appealing against the rejection of her compensation claimWhen Lucy Tonge started drifting off in front of the television as a 13-year-old, her parents put it down to typical teenage lethargy. And when she developed a strange habit of slumping forward when she laughed, her mum told her: “Stop doing that stupid thing when you laugh. It makes you look silly.” But she couldn’t.It was only when she started collapsing with no warning that her family sought medical advice that led to a diagnosis of narcolepsy. Soon afterwards, Tonge disco...
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - June 15, 2015 Category: Science Authors: Hannah Devlin Science correspondent Tags: Science Swine flu Health Pharmaceuticals industry GlaxoSmithKline UK news Source Type: news
