Swine Flu (H1N1 Virus) Homework
OVERVIEW: In the spring of 2009, a new variety of swine flu was detected in Mexico, where it seemed to be causing an unusually large number of deaths. Fear spread with the virus across continents and oceans and on June 11, 2009, the World Health Organization declared the A (H1N1) strain of swine flu to be the first worldwide pandemic in41 years. But as the number of cases rose, estimates of its lethality dropped sharply. When a second wave of the virus returned to North America in the fall, a vaccine had been prepared, although it was initially in short supply. By mid-November, federal officials were putting the death toll at about 10,000, far below the 30,000 to 90,000 range a presidential panel had predicted.
The outbreak showed many national weaknesses: slow vaccine technology; too much reliance on foreign vaccine factories; some major hospitals pushed to their limits by a relatively mild epidemic. But the virus and the vaccine cooperated. While the former proved highly transmissible in children, it was only rarely lethal, remained susceptible to drugs and has not mutated into a monster. Vaccine supply was a problem, but one small dose was enough.
It is now clear that this is the least lethal modern pandemic. The flu appears to kill about one of every 2,000 people who get it, American researchers say. (British researchers found half that death rate.) By contrast, the Spanish flu of 1918 killed about 50 of every 2,000, and the 1957 and 1968 pandemics killed about 4 of every 2,000.The flu has reached more than 200 countries.
The most common method of transmission is airborne, and it is also possible to become infected by touching a surface with the virus on it and then touching one's mouth or nose. The C.D.C. has advised people to wash their hands frequently, and avoid surfaces that might be contaminated.
Pandemic flus -- like the 1918 flu and outbreaks in 1957 and 1968 -- often strike young, healthy people the hardest. This flu strain it appears to infect an unusually high percentage of young people. The median age of patients is 17.
Swine Flu (H1N1 Virus) Homework Analysis
Part One: Vocabulary: Below are three words that the article used. Define these words.
Pandemic: ______
Median: ______
Lethal: ______
Part Two: Questioning the Text:
1) Why has this piece of text been written?
2) Who would find this article most useful?
Part Three: True/False Statements: Below are statements that are related to the text. Decide whether the statement is true of false. Label each statement with a T or an F and underline the sentence of the text that supports your decision.
1) The H1N1 virus killed less people than was expected by an American presidential panel. ____
2) The Center for Disease Control (CDC) recommends washing your hands to prevent transmission of the flu. ____
3) The Spanish flu of 1918-1919 was not as deadly as the swine flu outbreak of 2009. ____
4) The H1N1 virus is slow to mutate and thus has helped us to control the spread of the virus. ____
Part Four: Analysis:
1) What other information would you want this article to provide?
2) Did you get the H1N1 vaccine? Why/why not?