As swine flu is now prevalent in 41 states, doctors are getting plenty of chances to study the workings of the disease. They now know that in severely ill patients, intense inflammation in the lungs prevents oxygen from being tranfered to the blood stream. Says physician Robert Fowler:
“Most patients are still able to take breaths, but these breaths are ineffective" [Science News].
That oxygen deprivation can cause widespread organ damage. The speed with which swine flu patients can go downhill marks the H1N1 virus as strikingly different from the seasonal flu virus, doctors say.
"In severe cases, patients generally begin to deteriorate around three to five days after symptom onset. Deterioration is rapid, with many patients progressing to respiratory failure within 24 hours, requiring immediate admission to an intensive care unit" [Reuters]
, says World Health Organization doctor Nikki Shindo. Doctors say that severely ill patients should promptly be ...
