Constant use of 'mild' to describe swine flu misleading people about threat

Officialdom's mantra about swine flu - "it is overwhelmingly mild" - might seem incongruous if we knew the number of children, teens and young adults in ICU beds right now alive only because a breathing machine has taken over for their ravaged lungs.

[jean]

I agree with this article completely. The sudden downplay of swine flu has made people very complacent and in many cases thinking that the risk has passed..... that is until they or someone in the family gets it. This is exactly what happened in my family. 3 days after my child's graduation (less than one week ago), my child became very ill with fever and lethargy. When our dr tested for flu, it came back as positive for either A or B strain - which includes the swine virus. Our pediatrician said the office has already seen dozens of cases similar to my child. She also said she is pretty positive that they are all swine - because it is late in the season and many of these children (including my child) had received flu vaccines for regular flu. We have since found out that 2 of my child's classmates became ill the same day and I can only assume it's the flu.

In early June we had one case at my child's school that was "officially" positive for swine. I read in an on-line article that this child was allowed to return to school 3 days before the term ended. This news was printed in an obscure on-line paper and not in my local town paper and not told to parents of children attending this school. Our local newspapers have printed absolutely nothing about all the children in our town carrying or recovering from flu. I find this to be a grave mistake and when hearing of all the other children that are not being counted in the CDC flu cases, I can only believe that the official numbers are greatly off.

My child is recovering slowly but I acted quickly to be sure I got the proper flu medication. My child does not suffer from asthma or other lung disorders, and I worry for the children who do. My state has already had 5 deaths and in only 1 of those cases was the victim over age 50. Two were under the age of 14.

[Dave]

Yes, I agree. We need the news media to convince us once again that we're all going to die. Panic will carry us all through this crisis.

Honestly, I hope your child gets well soon, and you acted responsibly by getting your child the proper medication quickly. The problem with massive panic, though, is that people will start to stock up on and hoard flu medication, leaving none for people who are dying and desperately need it. Hospitals would be filled to capacity with people who have the common cold, and those who are really sick may not receive the necessary medical attention and treatment in time. And "all of the other children that are not being counted in the CDC flu cases", including your child, most likely have the regular flu. This is why they are not being counted. The regular flu has stuck around unusually late this year. I think it is to the public's benefit that the news media has toned down their initial alarmist response. We need to be responsible, not scared. Your decisions you took with your child all appear to be correct, I just take issue with the fact that you want the media to start scaring people again.

Just to stay current, NJ has 9 deaths now, ranging in age from 6-79. 7 were under 50, 4 of those 7 were under 40, and 3 of those 4 were children (under 18). At least 8 (and possibly all 9) had underlying medical conditions. People with asthma/heart conditions need to be extra vigilant, and should be in the front of the line when it comes to receiving treatment.