The swine flu pandemic alert level has today been raised to level 5 by the World Health Organisation. This is still not a full-blown pandemic, which means that the virus is being passed from person to person, but is the last level before this. It recognises that deaths have occurred in more than one country, since a Mexican toddler on a visit in Texas has become the first known victim of the virus outside Mexico.
It’s been just over two weeks since the first possible death from swine flu in Mexico, and just six weeks after the Mexican Government noted unusual levels of flu-like illness, and the disease is now present in at least eight other countries. It’s quite frightening how quickly and easily the virus has spread through our global community.
The seriousness of the threat is difficult to gauge as the WHO has in fact only confirmed that seven of the Mexican deaths can be attributed to swine flu, not the 150 or so reported by the Mexican Government. However, it seems odd that 150 people have died of another illness when swine flu is present.
Luckily the cases outside Mexico seem to be fairly mild. The ordinary seasonal flu can be a killer itself, claiming anything up to half a million lives throughout the world each year. Presumably, if the virus pool remains spread thinly, victims will receive only mild doses. This is a good incentive to exercise thorough quarantine precautions, to avoid allowing the virus to become more virulent.
In the last few years we have had the threats of bird flu and SARS. Compared to these, the reaction to this outbreak seems quite restrained. Perhaps because the virus was in New Zealand and the UK before any chance of media reaction. It has been seen that the results have not so far been calamitous. There is a feeling of ‘wait and see’, a slight nervous anticipation but life still goes on. Hopefully all we will see is people with the flu recovering rapidly and completely.