WHO Officially Declares Swine Flu a Pandemic

The World Health Organization (WHO) raised its alert level for Swine Flu / H1N1 to Phase 6 (out of 6), officially classifying the outbreak as a 'global pandemic underway'.

Don't freak out just yet, though; WHO is categorizing the outbreak as 'moderate' in severity and released a statement outlining three main reasons for that categorization:
* Most people recover from infection without the need for hospitalization or medical care.
* Overall, national levels of severe illness from influenza A(H1N1) appear similar to levels seen during local seasonal influenza periods, although high levels of disease have occurred in some local areas and institutions.
* Overall, hospitals and health care systems in most countries have been able to cope with the numbers of people seeking care, although some facilities and systems have been stressed in some localities.

A key stat to keep in mind is that out of approximately 30,000 confirmed cases of Swine Flu worldwide, there have been 150 deaths. That's a death rate of about 0.5%, with many of the fatal cases including other contributing. However, the real concern about the outbreak is what happens this fall and winter, as discussed previously. Hopefully a safe vaccine will be available by then.

Swine Flu Shot

Health officials report that if production and testing continue on schedule, a swine flu shot could be ready by this October.

With more than 13,000 confirmed cases in the U.S. which have resulted in 27 deaths, a vaccine is anxiously awaited. The number of cases continues to rise and will continue to do so until a shot has been created. As discussed previously, while there the current outbreak has not be particularly deadly, researchers are concerned that this winter, when flu viruses can spread much more quickly, swine flu could become a serious problem.


The CDC's Dr. Anne Schuchat said that her agency has been providing samples of the virus to drug makers and will monitor the progress of their work over the coming weeks.