Life in the Fast Lane Medical Blog
Emergency Medicine education blog
Ameritous Professor Broughton-Delirium noted with pleasure the official announcement by the WHO this week that the influenza pandemic was officially over. In a moment of psephological lucidity, he realised that this may explain the steady waning of local interest in pollyvirus infections.
A clinician’s view of the spate of adverse reactions to the flu vaccine in Western Australia that led to all vaccinations in those aged <5 years being ceased.
A 36 year-old immunosuppressed male was infected with swine-origin influenza virus requiring mechanical ventilation. Overnight the inspiratory pressures needed to maintain his tidal volume had progressively increased and his face had become markedly swollen.
A 32 year-old male with no previous medical problems, other than a history of smoking cigarettes, was infected by swine-origin influenza virus (SOIV) and developed severe ‘FLAAARDS’ (‘flu’-A associated acute respiratory distress syndrome) requiring treatment with ECMO (extra-corporeal membrane oxygenation). His chest and abdominal radiographs are shown. Q1. Describe the findings on the chest and [...]
The sun is making more frequent cameos in our part of the world, suggesting summer may be on its way. Another, but less obvious, indicator of the change in seasons is the gradual decline in patients with swine flu (H1N1 09 influenza) needing treatment in our intensive care units. The last ‘Life in the Fast [...]
I read a book called ‘The Coming Plague‘ when I was in medical school. It was fascinating. It formed a picture of the world in my mind as a bubbling soup of seething micro-organisms waiting for the right circumstances to break out, to come forth and multiply – at our expense. It also introduced me [...]
Despite the cessation of ‘pig kissing frolicks’ it looks as though the WHO will eventually declare that 2009 H1N1 influenza A (‘swine flu’) has reached pandemic proportions (phase 6).
