The flu season is still months away, but it appears that Americans are already preparing for something big. The website of Mollen Immunization Clinics, one ot the nation's leading operators of flu shot clinics, has been groaning under the strain of a sudden jump in traffic that started in the middle of the day today.
The site provides visitors with information about flu vaccines and why it's important to get immunized, information about other communicable diseases, information for travelers, and a clinic locator that lets users find out when and where Mollen immunization clinics will operate in their area.3n
But anyone who tried to use the clinic locator in the last few hours probably received an error message or a page full of code describing a "runtime error" in a server application.
Why the sudden rush of activity? Maybe it has something to do with the development of a new vaccine -- the Mollen Immunization Clinics home page touts "one flu shot that protects you against many flu viruses this season, including H1N1, the new strain H3N2 and B/Brisbane."
H3N2 virus may be behind sudden interest in Mollen Immunization Clinics flu shots
In that sentence may be a possible clue to the surge in interest. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued an alert earlier this month warning healthcare providers to be on the lookout after small outbreaks of A/H3N2 influenza were reported in Iowa, along with isolated cases in 11 other states.
According to an Iowa Department of Public Health update relayed to the CDC, H3 cases have been reported recently in Minnesota, Arkansas, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, and Hawaii.
The strain appears related to the A/Perth H3N2 strain first identified in early 2009.
The CDC notes that flu seasons where H3N2 viruses predominate are usually more severe than those where H1N1 or type B viruses dominate. The emergence of the A/Perth H3N2 strain last year was crowded out by the worldwide H1N1 "swine" and "bird" flu pandemic, which was successfully limited in its human impact by the rapid development and deployment of an effective vaccine. The CDC's H1N1 public health emergency declaration expired on June 23, and the World Health Organization declared the global pandemic officially over this week.
In the meantime, in the Southern Hemisphere, where it's currently winter, H3N2 and H1N1 viruses are appearing in roughly equal numbers, which raises the possibility that in the coming flu season, H3N2 may be dominant.
If that's the case, then maybe the sudden rush on Mollen Immunization Clinics represents Americans paying heed to the lessons of last year's H1N1 pandemic and getting an early start on defending themselves against a potentially more virulent strain this year.
0 comments:
Post a Comment