Worst of the winter flu outbreak is past

The worst of the winter flu outbreak of 2010-11 is over, latest figures show. A clutch of indicators, including the number of GP consultations and patients in intensive care suggest the disease is in decline. Total UK deaths doubled last week from 50 to 112, but experts said the sharp increase was due to the time lag from the date of infection and...- 13/01/2011, Health News

Call for ban on private flu jabs for healthy

Healthy people who are not considered to be "at-risk" of contracting the flu virus should be banned from having private vaccinations, the chairman of the Royal College of GPs has said. Dr Clare Gerada said healthy individuals buying the flu jab from pharmacies have contributed to shortages in the NHS and left those at greatest risk vu...- 11/01/2011, Health News

Swine flu could lead to universal vaccine

Scientists have found that people infected with H1N1 swine flu have an extraordinary immune response, producing antibodies that are protective against a variety of flu strains. - 11/01/2011, Health News

Flu: How to beat the bugs

It has been an unusual year for flu. But the virus always catches us by surprise. Last year the first pandemic of the 21st century, caused by a "novel" H1N1 virus dubbed swine flu (because it originated in Mexican pigs), was less nasty than feared. The 65,000 deaths it was estimated might result in May, under a "reasonable worst case scenario", were reduc Th...- 11/01/2011, Features

Swine flu survivors offer clues to new vaccine

People who recovered from the 2009 H1N1 "swine flu" pandemic developed unusual antibodies that protect against a variety of different flu strains, US researchers said Monday.- 11/01/2011, Health & Families

How to survive a post-holiday stomach bug

'Tis the season for rampant stomach viruses, known as gastroenteritis, which can lead to a host of miserable symptoms. While there is no shortcut to recovery as the virus passes through your body, an expert reveals a few ways to help the process along.- 10/01/2011, Health & Families

'Avoidable errors' killed flu women

A number of “avoidable” medical errors contributed to the deaths of eight pregnant women during Britain’s first swine flu outbreak, a report has found. The Centre for Maternal and Child Enquiries, Britain's leading clinical body for the investigation of maternal death, found that there were delays in admitting the mothers-to-...- 08/01/2011, Health News

Leftover swine flu vaccine to be used as death toll rises to 50

An extra 12 million doses of swine flu vaccine are being made available to GPs, England's Chief Medical Officer announced yesterday, in a tacit acknowledgement that the NHS had failed to meet a late surge in demand for the jab.- 07/01/2011, Health News

11 more flu deaths recorded across UK

Eleven more people have died from flu across the UK, taking the total to 50, the Health Protection Agency said today. Of these, 45 died with swine flu and five with another strain, flu type B. The deaths are mostly among children and young adults, with five cases in the under-fives and eight cases among those aged five to 14. Another 33 case...- 06/01/2011, Health News

Britain faces flu vaccine shortage

The Government has admitted that there is a shortage of flu vaccinations in some parts of the country. Suppliers are being asked to gather left-over flu jabs licensed for use in the UK from factories across Europe. Patients have complained of being unable to get jabs from their GP. Around 15 million doses of seasonal flu vaccine are ordered by GPs ...- 06/01/2011, Health News

Parents urged to get at-risk children vaccinated

Parents were urged today to get their children vaccinated against flu if they fall into at-risk groups. The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) said it was "concerned" about the rising number of flu cases, and how it is affecting younger children. Flu has been striking the under-65s, with relatively high rates in...- 04/01/2011, Health News

Health chiefs prepare for flu case surge

Parents are being urged to remain vigilant over the threat of flu amid an expected rise in new cases as people return to work and school following the Christmas holidays. Health experts also stressed that it was not too late for members of "at risk" groups, including those with chronic respiratory problems, to be vaccinated against fl...- 04/01/2011, Health News

Fears of flu epidemic rise as schools start new term

Health experts are warning of a "surge" in flu cases this week as schools reopen and the UK returns to work in earnest after the Christmas and New Year break. As deaths and hospitalisations from the disease continue to soar, the increase is expected to push the crisis towards an epidemic. The death toll from the flu now stands at 39 since October and ...- 02/01/2011, Health News

Jeremy Laurance: It is too late to lock the stable doors now, Mr Lansley

Flu always catches us by surprise. Last year Britain braced itself for the first flu pandemic of the 21st century.- 01/01/2011, Health News

Swine flu: is it too late to vaccinate?

It could be too late for those still unprotected against swine flu to gain maximum benefit from the vaccination, experts admitted yesterday, as deaths and serious illness caused by the disease continued to soar. Latest figures show that the number of cases with flu in intensive care has risen to 738, a 60 per cent rise in a week. The total is now four times ...- 01/01/2011, Health News