What is worse Swine Flu or bird flu?

Answer 1

To date the Spanish flu of 1918 has been the worst flu pandemic on record killing millions of people. The present Bid flu (H5N1), which has only killed a few hundred people, remains only a threat as it still cannot be transmitted from human to human a requirement for it to become a pandemic.

Answer 2

Epidemiologists believe that the Avian (bird) flu is more dangerous because the symptoms and course of the disease are worse. It results in death in 50 to 60% of those infected. It is a more virulent flu, unlike the relatively mild Swine Flu (A-H1N1/09). Although the Swine Flu is spreading faster. The biggest concern is if the two types of flu combine to form one that is as rapidly spread as Swine flu and as virulent as Bird Flu.

Answer 3

So far, it is not. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has estimated that, as of 2/12/10, since the beginning of the pandemic, the US has had approximately 57 million cases of A-H1N1/09 Pandemic Swine Flu and approximately 11,690 resulting deaths. Based upon this, an estimate of the mortality rate in the US from the pandemic is 0.02%.

In comparison, the CDC and World Health Organization (WHO) have estimated that with seasonal flu, "we see over 30 million cases in the United States. We see 200,000 hospitalizations and, on average, 36,000 deaths." (During the entire fall and winter flu season.) Based upon this, the average mortality rate of seasonal flu in the US would be 0.12 %.

The statistics of this mortality rate variation and other information gathered during the pandemic are under study by epidemiologists. It may be attributable to the fact that the especially vulnerable demographic group of the elderly (age 65 and older) suffers the majority of the cases and deaths from seasonal flu (because their weakened immune systems are unable to fight it off before their frail bodies must attempt to deal with the symptoms caused by another new strain of virus).

In contrast, the majority of cases of the pandemic swine flu are among the younger and healthier demographic groups, so that, except for the very young and those with underlying medical conditions, most are able to survive the disease. It is not fully understood yet why the elderly do not contract this virus subtype as easily as the typical seasonal viruses, but speculation is that they may have acquired immunity through prior exposure to a similar virus strain.

Flu is a type of virus, and like any virus, can mutate frequently to new forms. It is thought that what was originally believed to be a more aggressive strain in Mexico was actually caused by faulty assumptions based on lack of full information on the numbers of infected people. This made it seem like the strain in Mexico was very different and more deadly than the strain affecting people in the US at the beginning of the epidemic in North America.

However, any flu can kill those with compromised immune systems, especially the very young, very old, the debilitated, or people with serious chronic diseases. The thing that made this strain of flu of more concern initially was that it was a brand new strain, so no one was thought to have had immunity to it yet. There had not been any flu vaccines developed for it yet, and so the potential of wide spread of this virus was greater than others.

"The Swine Influenza A/H1N1 viruses characterized in this outbreak have not been previously detected in pigs or humans." -WHO

How to Prevent Swine Flu

The 2009 swine flu is contagious through human to human contact. Close contact of any type can pass the virus from one person to the next. Swine flu is spread in much the same way as the seasonal flu or common cold. Similar precautions would be used.

Avoid sharing drinks, sneezing, coughing, hugging, kissing those infected.

In Mexico, people have been asked to avoid large crowds, refrain from kissing, and stay at least two meters (six feet) from one another. Troops gave out 4 million filter masks in Mexico City (which has 20 million residents), and schools and universities were closed until further notice. They are also considering shutting down the bus and subway systems. (Source: CNN)

Avoid anyone who has flu-like symptoms, especially those that have traveled from affected areas (e.g. Mexico). Washing your hands often will help protect you from germs. Get plenty of sleep, be physically active, manage your stress, drink plenty of fluids, and eat nutritious food.

NOTE: It is important not to overreact. If you have a minor headache or stomachache, this does not mean you are dying of swine flu. Worrying can weaken your immune system and actually make you more prone to illness.

Answer 4

It depends on how you define "worse". If in numbers of people made sick and spread of the flu, then H1N1/09, that caused a pandemic, would be the worst of the two. But, if you consider "worse" to mean having the worst symptoms and highest death rates, that would be the Avian ("Bird") flu where around 50% to 60% of those infected die and swine flu has a mortality rate below 1%. Luckily, Avian flu is not as easily spread as other flu viruses, and it does not spread from human to human in ordinary situations, it requires contact with a diseased bird or its feces, saliva or other secretions.

Most epidemiologists believe that the Avian (bird) flu is more dangerous because the symptoms and course of the disease are worse. It is a more virulent flu, unlike the relatively mild Swine Flu (A-H1N1/09). Although the Swine Flu has spread much faster and farther. Avian flu is still rare world-wide.

The biggest concern is if the two types of flu combine to form one that is as rapidly spread as Swine flu and as virulent as Bird Flu.

Answer 5

It depends on how you define "most dangerous". If in numbers of people made sick and spread of the flu, then H1N1/09 that caused a pandemic would be the most dangerous. But, if you consider "most dangerous" to mean having the worst symptoms and highest death rates, that would be the Avian ("Bird") flu where around 50% of those infected die. Luckily, it is not as easily spread as other flu viruses, and it does not spread from human to human in ordinary situations, it requires contact with a diseased bird or its feces or saliva or other secretions.