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Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons

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Geography

2009

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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Swine Flu Myths - Experts Debunk Four Common Myths About Swine Flu, Chiehwen Ed Hsu May 2009

Swine Flu Myths - Experts Debunk Four Common Myths About Swine Flu, Chiehwen Ed Hsu

Chiehwen Ed Hsu

To date, no evidence has been found to link eating or handling pork to contracting swine flu. As the cases of the new swine flu virus continue to rise, so too do the misconceptions about the illness. "By eating pork or handling pork products you won't [contract] H1N1," said Ed Hsu, an associate professor of health informatics at the University of Texas Health Science Center and a contributor to ABC News's OnCall+ Swine Flu site. "There is no scientific evidence or literature or any studies that suggest that one contracts H1N1 virus through eating pork or handling pork products." Additionally, …


Should I Wear A Mask To Protect Myself From The Flu?, Chiehwen Ed Hsu May 2009

Should I Wear A Mask To Protect Myself From The Flu?, Chiehwen Ed Hsu

Chiehwen Ed Hsu

It depends. If you already have H1N1 virus infection, you are recommended to wear a mask just to prevent yourself from spreading the virus to others.


Can One Get H1n1 Flu (Swine Flu) From Eating Pork?, Chiehwen Ed Hsu May 2009

Can One Get H1n1 Flu (Swine Flu) From Eating Pork?, Chiehwen Ed Hsu

Chiehwen Ed Hsu

there is no literature (study) suggesting that human being would get swine flu by eating pork or handling raw pork. Usually, if you prepare or cook your pork/meat product above temperature 70C (160F) the temperature could kill most of the germs and viruses, including h1n1 virus


Swine Flu Vs. Bird Flu: Which Is The Greater Pandemic Threat? New Research Hints At Why Swine Flu Overshadows Bird Flu In Pandemic Potential, Chiehwen Ed Hsu May 2009

Swine Flu Vs. Bird Flu: Which Is The Greater Pandemic Threat? New Research Hints At Why Swine Flu Overshadows Bird Flu In Pandemic Potential, Chiehwen Ed Hsu

Chiehwen Ed Hsu

Ed Hsu, associate professor of public health informatics at the University of Texas School of Health Information Sciences and School of Public Health, agreed. "This study renders potential explanations for why Avian Flu virus does not effectively transmit from human to human -- an important indicator for raising pandemic level." Take, for example, the virulence of bird flu. Despite the relative paucity of human cases of bird flu among humans, Hsu said, 258 people have died since 2003 as a result of the bird flu virus -- a case fatality rate of more than 60 percent. "Once [bird flu] viruses …


2 Billion Infected? Who Stokes Swine Flu Fear, Chiehwen Ed Hsu May 2009

2 Billion Infected? Who Stokes Swine Flu Fear, Chiehwen Ed Hsu

Chiehwen Ed Hsu

One could reasonably question the reliability of WHO's statement of mass infection," he said. "By making such statement without strong backing WHO may risk putting its accountability on the line. "I think that WHO could serve the world health better by providing a more evidence-based, sensible 'benchmark' of H1N1 infection," said Ed Hsu, associate professor of public health informatics at the University of Texas School of Health Information Sciences and School of Public Health. He argued that the 2 billion figure, based on past pandemics, does not take into account recent public health improvements. Moreover, his own research has suggested …


Swine Flu Likely To Return To U.S. Next Winter - Experts Can't Predict Whether It Will Be More Virulent Or Not, Chiehwen Ed Hsu May 2009

Swine Flu Likely To Return To U.S. Next Winter - Experts Can't Predict Whether It Will Be More Virulent Or Not, Chiehwen Ed Hsu

Chiehwen Ed Hsu

explained C. Ed Hsu, an associate professor of public health informatics at the University of Texas School of Health Information Sciences at Houston and associate director of health informatics at the Center for Biosecurity and Public Health Preparedness at the University of Texas School of Public Health. "How and when the flu spreads is dependent on other factors as well: the fitness and efficiency of the virus itself along with its innate ability to replicate; the susceptibility of the host; and the environment, which includes not only the weather, but also human behavior (for example, groups of people confined together …


Flu Experts Debate Potential Number Of H1n1 Infections Worldwide, Chiehwen Ed Hsu Apr 2009

Flu Experts Debate Potential Number Of H1n1 Infections Worldwide, Chiehwen Ed Hsu

Chiehwen Ed Hsu

According to ABC News. "I think that WHO could serve the world health better by providing a more evidence-based, sensible 'benchmark' of H1N1 infection," said Ed Hsu, associate professor of public health informatics at the University of Texas School of Health Information Sciences and School of Public Health. Hsu said that while the WHO's estimates are grounded in historic data, they fail to consider improvement in public health, and his research shows signs that the numbers of swine flu infections in the U.S. are stabilizing. "One could reasonably question the reliability of WHO's statement of mass infection," Hsu said. "By …


Protecting The Young From Pandemic Flu., Chiehwen Ed Hsu Apr 2009

Protecting The Young From Pandemic Flu., Chiehwen Ed Hsu

Chiehwen Ed Hsu

whether these past findings will be borne out with this new virus have yet to be seen, warns Ed Hsu, associate professor at the University of Texas School of Health Information Sciences and School of Public Health. "We may need another week until the H1N1 outbreak runs the full course of its incubation and infectivity period," he said. "By this weekend we should have enough data to make some meaningful inferences from worldwide distribution of the disease, including susceptibility or vulnerability by age over time."


Cautious Optimism On Swine Flu?, Chiehwen Ed Hsu Apr 2009

Cautious Optimism On Swine Flu?, Chiehwen Ed Hsu

Chiehwen Ed Hsu

"I'm cautiously optimistic that we will begin seeing a decline in swine flu cases by mid-May or in a couple of weeks," said C. Ed Hsu, director of Preventive Health Informatics and SpaTial Analysis at the University of Texas Health Science Center


Swine Flu -- Answers To Your Questions., Chiehwen Ed Hsu Apr 2009

Swine Flu -- Answers To Your Questions., Chiehwen Ed Hsu

Chiehwen Ed Hsu

Ed Hsu from the University of Texas predicts a rise in cases over the next week followed by a sharp decline thereafter: “Based on the analysis of the SARS data … and our analysis of worldwide H5N1 data, if the trends hold true for H1N1 [swine flu], we will see substantial increase …next week through early May. However, again if the trends hold true, we can also reasonably expect the cases will go down dramatically beginning the week after (i.e., week of 5/3). Note that the rise in cases in next week is normal and expected …Next week will be …


Public Health Informatics Perspective On Swine Flu, Chiehwen Ed Hsu Apr 2009

Public Health Informatics Perspective On Swine Flu, Chiehwen Ed Hsu

Chiehwen Ed Hsu

Despite the action being taken by national and international health organizations, some infectious disease experts, including Ed Hsu, say it is far too early to fear the worst -- a global flu pandemic.