The 2009 outbreak of swine flu or H1N1 virus is recently hugging the limelight due to the potential harm or effects it can have on a patient or on a community. Unfortunately, the source of the virus still cannot be traced.

Before the first case in the United States was discovered, the illness was believed to have started in Mexico which eventually spread to other countries. Recently, the first case of swine flu was reported in
Costa Rica. Alarmed that it could grow into a worldwide flu epidemic, the World Health Organization of the United Nations and the Center for Disease Control Prevention (CDC) in the United States raised its pandemic alert level to Phase 5, which signifies that a "pandemic is imminent."
While experts believed that the recent outbreak is not as fatal as previous epidemics, such as the SARS virus, health officials believe that the number of cases could go up as the new flu is expected to make its way throughout the United States.

The new swine influenza strain is apparently a new variant of four strains of influenza A virus subtype H1N1. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, one of the strain is endemic in humans and birds and a couple are endemic in pigs.

However, according to scientists the 2009 H1N1 outbreak is of swine origin which is associated with the virus isolated in North America in 1998. To hasten understanding of the current outbreak as well as in coming up with a vaccine, scientists from Canada have completed the full genetic sequencing of the H1N1 virus.

The new strain of H1N1 has become widespread in Mexico and the United States with confirmed cases in 18 countries and suspected cases in 42 others. Travelers have been warned not to travel to affected countries such as Iceland, Singapore, Thailand, South Korea, Hong Kong, Singapore, to name a few.

In addition, warnings have also been issued warnings to visitors of countries affected by the outbreak. It is advisable for visitors to see the doctor right away if they experience flu-like symptoms.
In Mexico, schools, universities, and all public events were suspended from April 24 to May 6, 2009. In the United States, over 400 schools were closed as of May 3, 2009, which included schools in Texas and about 250,000 confirmed or probable cases.

Dr. Keiji Fukuda, who is the Assistant Director-General for Health Securiy and Environment of the World Health Organization confirmed that efforts to control the outbreak is already too late and should now focus on lessening the effects of the virus. He also clarified that closing borders or limiting travel to infected areas will do little in stopping the spread of the H1N1 virus.

On April 28, 2009, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention suggested that as much as possible, people should avoid non-important travel to Mexico.

According to Dr. Ira Longini, who is an expert in the mathematics and statistics of epidemics, staying at home, seeking medical care, closing public venues, and making anti-flu medicines accessible can help reduce the sickness by almost two-thirds.

Finally, according to Dr. Longini, the focus of efforts is to slow transmission until there is a vaccine that can be developed and made available for controlling swine flu outbreaks.

The Center for Disease Control has probably had some very wild times this past decade. First SARS, then the bird fle, and now today's potential epidemic is the swine flu. First manifesting itself in Mexico this past April, this new and terrible strain of Type A H1N1 influenza is one of those things that every microbiologist and health care professional is afraid of.

The reason for that fear is pretty simple. Like the bird flu, this particular strain crossed species. Specifically, it crossed over from the swine population, a species that has an in-built resistance to it, to the human population, a population that does not. If this spreads and becomes a full blown epidemic, the swine flu may reach the heights of the 1918 Spanish Flu, which killed fifty to a hundred million people worldwide and devastated the post-World War I generation.

The CDC has stepped up its alert levels and some governments have instituted quarantine procedures, but still more and more cases are emerging across the world. Mexico City has most of the fatalities though, with most other cases outside of city being less severe in symptoms. However, this is just a month into the outbreak and anything can still happen. With the continuing spread of the disease, let's talk about how this affects you.

Let's be honest here, after all that I've just said, there's actually no real reason to panic. Actually, we shouldn't panic. That's because panic just confuses people and to deal effectively with something of this magnitude, being confused is not the state of mind you want to be in. What you really need to be is to be aware and knowledgeable about what you're dealing with. This and quick ddecisive action is what got the world through SARS and the bird flu, and it most likely will help us make sure that the swine flu isn't the one that kills us all.

The swine flu is pretty much like your normal human flu. It has all the same infection vectors, all the same symptoms, and all the same treatments. It's all just heightened by a factor of two, mostly because humans haven't any natural resistance to the disease. If you want to avoid getting infected do all the same things that you'd do to avoid getting the flu: wash your hands regularly, take your vitamins, and avoid sick people.

If you somehow get sick, it's not the time to run around like a headless chicken. You immediately isolate yourself so you won't infect others and observe your symptoms, all of the while taking your regular flu medicine. Note that even if it is called swine flu, it's still a virus and antiviral drugs are pretty effective in putting a dent in the symptoms you may experience and help your immune system kick the infection out.

It your symptoms persist despite your efforts, you better start calling for a doctor. Don't worry if it really is the swine flu - the CDC has recommended the use of antiviral inhibitors that help stop the reproduction of the disease and the sickness is definitely treatable.

Let's all just remember that the swine flu maybe deadly, but it's still just a disease. And the only things you need to have to beat a disease is being smart and being careful. With all the noise that the media brings up about it, that fact may get lost in the shuffle. Remember it and it may just save your life.

Newsbreak on the flash: “A new strain of Swine Flu that has killed 149 and sickened nearly two thousand in Mexico has spread to the United States and is raising fears of a possible pandemic.” Through this article you will learn more about the disease and why it is causing concern among health officials and inform the readers about the two suggested antiviral drugs by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to fight Swine Flu pandemics.

This prescription of antiviral medication that can be used to treat influenza infections between children and adults is called Tamiflu. If their symptoms have started within the last two days they are advice to start taking the Tamiflu. This antiviral medication can also be used to prevent children, teens and adults if they are exposed to the influenza virus.

Relenza (ruh-LENS-uh) is more active than the Tamiflu. This kind of medicine, aside from treatment of influenza they can also prevent the suspect to getting the flu again. While some antiviral medicines only protect against influenza A, Relenza is effective against both influenza A and B. This Relenza drug belongs to neuramidase inhibitors group of medicines. These medications target the influenza virus and prevent it from spreading inside your body.

Relenza treats the cause of influenza at its source, rather than simply treating the symptoms like the role of Tamiflu. Simulations suggest that if physicians choose a second effective antiviral such as zanamivir. Zanamivir is the generic name of Relenza as first-line treatment in even a few percent of cases, but can solve to delay the spread of resistant strains.

The available antiviral treatments for influenza, the virus is resistant to rimantadine and amantadine, but sensitive to the oseltamivir and zanamivir. Oseltamivir is the generic name Tamiflu. This strain may mutate develop resistance of oseltamivir in the future.

Tamiflu and Relenza is highly recommended by the CDC for both treatment and prevention of the new strain. The shelf life of federally stockpiled Tamiflu from the original five years to seven years because studies indicated that the medication continues to maintain its effectiveness had already extended by the United States government and Roche Applied Science. Not only that, the other members of the G8 Countries extended their contract stockpiled of Tamiflu from vaccine manufacturers.

It is highly recommended not to buy from online pharmacies without an address of these two types of medications because their stockpiled are counterfeited. Consult to the World Health Organization for information about the antiviral drugs before making any steps in your country.

Swine flu is an illness that is affecting hundreds of individuals in the United States as well as worldwide. According to the CDC, the illness may take some more time. Since one is likely to become infected with the condition, they need to understand swine flu symptoms in order for them to obtain proper treatment or medicaion.

The Symptoms

The symptoms of H1N1 infection is similar to that of seasonal flu. Among the symptoms include cough, sore throat, running or stuffy nose, chills and fatigue, to name just a few. Several people infected with the virus have complained of diarrhea and vomiting. The high risk groups prone to H1N1 is not yet known at the moment but it is likely that they are similar to those suffering from seasonal influenza.

People at greater risk of serious side effects from seasonal flu include people more than 65 years old, children below 5 years old, pregnant women, and people with chronic medical consitions as well as those who are taking immunosuppressive medications or with HIV infection.

Avoid Social Contact

If you are feeling sick, your condition may last for more than a week. You should remain at home and refrain from making social contact. As much as possible, you should not communicate with other people to avoid the spread of the virus.

At the moment, the CDC believes that H1N1 has similar properties on the aspect of transmission with seasonal flu virus. If you go out of the house to consult your doctor, wear a mask or use a tissue when coughing or sneezing.

According to recent studies, people suffering from seasonal flu are at risk to transmit the disease a day prior to development of symptoms for up to seven days after getting sick.

Children are more likely to be at risk for a longer period of time so it is best to consult a healthcare provider.


Emergency Warning Signs

If you suddenly become sick and experience any of the following warning signs, this is your cue to seek emergency medical assistance.

In the case of children becoming ill due to H1N1infection, the following warning signs may require immediate medical attention:

* Fast or difficulty in breathing
* Bluish or gray colored skin
* Insufficient amount of liquids
* Severe or continuous vomiting
* Lack of sleep or interaction
* Irritability
* Recovery from flu-like symptoms but the symptoms come back with fever and worse coughing

Among adults, the following emergency warning signs demand immediate medical attention:

* Trouble with breathing or shortness of breath
* Abdominal pains or pressure in the chest
* The individual suddenly becomes dizzy
* The patient is confused
* Severe or continuous vomiting
* Recovery from flu-like symptoms but the symptoms come back with fever and worse coughing

Prevention Is The Best Treatment

You can do your part in preventing the spread of the H1N1 virus. Here are some tips on how you can take part in efforts for preventing the spread of infection.

* Be aware. Obtain information about H1N1 by visiting the website of the CDC.

* Use a tissue in covering your mouth and nose when sneezing. Afterwards, throw the tissue in the trash.

* With soap and water, wash your hands after coughing or sneezing. If possible, use alcohol-based sanitizers.

* Refrain from touching your nose or mouth as this could lead to easy transmission of germs.

By being aware of swine flu symptoms, the spread of the H1N1 virus would easily be prevented.

CAIRO – Iran says it is considering downgrading ties with Britain after days of rising tension over criticism of Iran's disputed presidential election.

Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki was asked about the option of reducing diplomatic relations with London after a Cabinet meeting in Tehran.

"We are studying it," Mottaki said, according to state television.

Iran expelled two British diplomats Tuesday after bitterly accusing Britain of spying and fomenting days of unprecedented street protests over the vote.

Supporters of opposition candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi say the election, called for President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, was tainted by massive fraud.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

CAIRO (AP) — A conservative candidate in Iran's disputed presidential election said Wednesday that he was withdrawing his complaints about voting fraud for the sake of the country, state television reported.

The announcement by Mohsen Rezaie, a former commander of the elite Revolutionary Guards, moved the cleric-led government one step closer to a final declaration of victory for President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. State TV reported that Ahmadinejad would be sworn in sometime between July 26 and Aug. 19.

Iran's supreme leader has said that Ahmadinejad won fairly but the government appears to be moving in stages toward a final declaration, perhaps to avoid provoking a resurgence of protests by backers of reformist candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi.

A close Mousavi aide told The Associated Press that police had raided offices of a newspaper owned by the candidate and detained 25 editorial employees.

Ali Reza Beheshti said the raid took place Monday evening in central Tehran as editorial members were preparing to relaunch the newspaper, Kalemeh Sabz, or the Green Word. The paper had been absent from newsstands for more than a week.

"Police in uniform raided the office and detained 25 members of the editorial staff," Beheshti said.

Mousavi's supporters claim massive fraud tilted the election and want the vote to be canceled and held again. The final tally gave 62.6 percent of the vote to Ahmadinejad and 33.75 percent to Mousavi, a landslide victory in a race that had been perceived as much closer. Rezaie came in third.

Mousavi has said little and remained out of the public eye as the government flooded the streets of Tehran with police and pro-government militia to deter further protests.

Source : Yahoo news

A process that happens if two different types of influenza virus infected a single cell and it can produce a new strain of influenza is called re-assortment. It will act as a "mixing vessel" in which re-assortment can occur between flu viruses of several species such as pigs are prone to influenza viruses that can also infect both humans and birds. This is because if the virus allows pieces of RNA from different viruses to mix together and form a novel type of virus as a new virus particles are being assembled from a virus splitting between eight independent pieces of RNA.

On the other hand, the World Health Organization raised the pandemic alert level from phase four to phase five, signaling that a pandemic is "imminent".

To know more about different phases of Swine Flu as defined by the WHO, I enlisted six of them" defined by the WHO:

If a virus circulated among animals but there are no reported cases of infections to humans will fall under phase one. An example of this phase is an outbreak of flu symptoms in your hog race backyard.
In phase two there is an identified animal flu virus and caused infections to human, and it will be considered a potential pandemic threat.

An example is when the owner either the child or an adult within the hog race backyard got infected with a flu from their animal symptoms.
Phase 3 specified that a confirmed animal or human-animal flu virus has caused small outbreaks in human race, but has not resulted in human-to-human transmission that is sufficient to sustain community-level outbreaks. An example in this phase is when a child within the hog race backyard got infected together with his father, his mother and his siblings.

Radically in Phase 4, there is a cause of community-level outbreaks of human-to-human transmission of an animal or human-animal flu virus. This phase will focus to contain the spreading of the virus. The United Nations will then inform different countries asking to advice their people such as traveling to containment areas. All countries with infected with the swine flu must also consider in deploying a pandemic vaccine. An example of this when the infected family member went out from their backyard decided to talk to his friends and unaware that he’s spreading the virus.

In the 5th phase, if there are at least two countries in one region and spread the virus by means of human-to-human transmission. The signal of the pandemic is imminently strong. The infected countries are required to advise people with respiratory illnesses to stay home. There should be an advisory of suspension of classes. An example of this is when a man-infected virus either a family member or any of his friends travel to another neighboring country.

The sixth and final phase also called the pandemic phase. A pandemic phase is just like a spread of virus in phase 5 but extended at least one other country outside their geographic region. There must be an implementation of contingency plans of health systems in all levels. An example of this is when a man-infected virus travel to another continent.

Whatever phases of Swine Flu outbreak, we are experiencing in our country or geographic region we must prepare and prevent it to spread to lessen the death toll.

Everyone's all abuzz with panic nowadays it seems. That's mostly because after SARS and bird flu, another new strain of virus has managed to rear its head. The H1N1 influenza virus, more popularly known as the swine flu, exploded on to the global scene last April via a large-scale infection in Mexico City.

I think everyone's seen the images on CNN a thousand time. Surgical-masked Mexicans crowding the hospitals with worrisome shots of full hospital beds.The Center for Disease Control and the World Health Organization raised their alert levels in hopes of catching and cutting off the infection at the bud, but it seems that cases have been reported all over the world. It seems that the current fatalities from disease are from Mexico but everyone is just expecting for the other shoe to drop.

To understand all of this panic, ypou need to have a little background. Influenza, or more popularly known as the flu, is probably one of the most infectious diseases out there. Airborne and highly contagious, it could spread like wildfire all across the world. Now you're asking what's the matter with a few people getting a bit of sniffles? That's because this isn't your ordinary flu.

A lot of the flu viruses we are exposed to have been in the human system for hundreds of years. We've managed to build an immunity to these strains. The big problem that's got everyone running scared is the idea that a flu strain has crossed species. This is what happened with the bird flu and now, with the swine flu. The pigs and birds have also built up resistances to these diseases, however, since humans are not used to them, these strains of flu have a very large potential of being fatal.

The last time a large-scale flu epidemic raged around the world, electricity was just coming into vogue and cars were all Model Ts. The Spanish Flu Epidemic of 1918 literally set the bar for every modern disease in terms of casualties. Fifty to a hundred million people worldwide died over a period of two years from 1918 to 1920 as the disease spread worldwide. Following on the heels of the Great War, it was a one-two punch that killed an entire generation of young men and women. What everyone's afraid of is this: the 1918 epidemic was a subtype of the H1N1 flu virus, the same virus that seems to have crossed over and become a real threat to humans.

This is why the CDC is keeping a close watch on Mexico and hoping all of the subsidiary cases worldwide aren't indications of the beginning of some worldwide epidemic. The good news about this is that the disease is treatable. Medicine and vaccine production alerts have been sent out by the CDC and most pharmaceutical companies have started churning out oseltamivir and zanamivir.

The problem with that is the demand may outstrip the supply depending on the swine flu's virulence. More common antiviral drugs are also available but they're not exactly definitive cures. They serve to weaken the symptoms and give you a fighting chance and prevent some of the worse flu symptoms like diarrhea and vomiting.

So as the world waits and watches the situation in Mexico, it would be a good idea to take a few precautions. Regular hand washes and vitamins can help make sure you avoid the initial infection of the swine flu. Avoiding pork's not needed though. Swine flu can't be transmitted through food. Remember to just a take a few preventive measures and you can come through clean and healthy.

With the new strain of influenza running around, I think everyone should know a few things. The thing is with any disease, even the swine flu, is it's not the disease that really kills you. It's ignorance that does it. You have to know enough to take care of yourself.

One of the things you have to remember is that influenza is spread via germs, and germs are spread via contact with contaminated items then contact with either your eyes, nose, or mouth. Germs can't get through the pores of your skin and need a convenient opening to get into. Don't give them that opening. There's a simple and easy way to do it: just wash your hands regularly, especially before eating anything or touching anything that you want to eat - like that tasty sandwich you're about to have for a snack

It may seem rather simplistic but the regular act of rinsing and disinfecting your hands can help make sure that you never get infected with the swine flu. Another way to avoid infection is to avoid close contact with sick people. Remember germs can also be transmitted by air though microscopic droplets that are released when a person coughs or sneezes. Standing around sick people increases the chance of infection so try to avoid doing that, mostly because you can't avoid touching stuff that they've sneezed on and those germs can go directly into your nose and mouth when you inhale.

So what if you suddenly get the sniffles? Is it time to hie off to the doctor for a consult? The smart thing to do is to just stay at home first and monitor your condition. The problem with identifying the swine flu is that it shares many of the same symptoms as the normal run-of-the-mill human flu: coughs, colds, fevers and the whole nine yards. Take the usual medicine at first and see if you settle down after that.

The over-the-counter antiviral drugs aren't as effective on swine flu as human flu but they can make you feel a whole lot better and rev up you immune system to deal with your infection. You should also try your best to limit the infection to yourself. Cover your mouth when sneezing or coughing so as to prevent the spread of germs in your environment.

If your symptoms are taking too long to cure, you might be infected. Note that swine flu is like the normal flu in that it manages to weaken your immune system for other respiratory diseases like pneumonia and bronchitis to spread. It can also worsen any conditions that you might currently have, like asthma. If you start vomiting or start suffering from diarrhea, it's time to have the doctor drop by immediately.

Although it has caused a few deaths, the swine flu is nothing to worry about. As long as it has been caught early, there is treatment available in the form of antiviral inhibitors that help stop the virus from reproducing, which should help make you feel a whole lot better.

The current situation may all seem a bit frightening, but the swine flu is just a disease. All you need to protect yourself from it is to act smart and be prepared. Hopefully, this information can help a bit and act as theat ounce of prevention so you won't have to use that pound of cure.

A pandemic second quarter of 2009 outbreak of influenza A (H1N1) virus is a new strain of influenza virus identified commonly referred to as Swine Flu confirmed cases topped almost 6,000 individuals, as Belgium became the latest European nation to be hit by the influenza A(H1N1) virus. World Health Organization (WHO) officials said the number of cases of influenza A(H1N1) stood at around 6,000 and nearly 7,000 in more than 30 countries, with more than 60 people having died from the disease.

Cases were first discovered in the U.S. and officials soon suspected a link between those incidents and an earlier outbreak of late-season flu cases in Mexico. In less than a week hundreds of suspected cases, some of them serious, were discovered in Mexico. Soon thereafter, the WHO along with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) expressed concern that the A(H1N1) could become a worldwide flu pandemic, and WHO then raised its pandemic disease alert level to "Phase 5" out of the six maximum, as a "signal that a pandemic is at about to happen level".

More than three thousand cases of infections including three deaths was the recorded highest number of A(H1N1) by the United States compared to Mexico where only more than two thousand reported cases of infection including 60 deaths were confirmed. The WHO said 389 people were also confirmed with the virus – and one person had died – in Canada who happens to be with the 19-year-old Chinese career that brings in to China a spread out. Two other cases have been confirmed in Hong Kong. Authorities there said they had quarantined six people who traveled with the second case, a 24-year-old man, by plane from San Francisco. A further 45 people who sat near him on his journey had already left Hong Kong, they said.

China, in the meantime, stepped up the search for people who came into contact with the mainland's two confirmed Swine Flu patients. A 30-year-old man was confirmed to have the virus in the southwestern city of Chengdu. He had been in the United States before his homecoming to China. Plane (Air Canada flight to Beijing) and train (for Shandong Province with 20 people on board) travelers with a 5 meter contact with a 19-year-old student (his surname is Lu: second confirmed victim) are being haunted by Chinese Authorities in Beijing and Eastern Shandong province.

He’s not feeling well, a couple of days after his arrival in Beijing but still continue to travel by train with a fever, sore throat and a headache. They believed that virus highlighted in China and Hong Kong could be a mix of bird and human flu which came together in pigs.

She finished second over the weekend in “Britain’s Got Talent,” in case anyone interested missed it, or you just want to cut to the chase.

When I first heard about Susan Boyle, I wanted to stay away from her. Her story reminded me a little bit of Eva Cassidy. Cassidy was a singer-songwriter – best-known as a singer – who was “discovered” primarily after her death in 1996. Segments on NPR and “Nightline” made her a sensation five years after she died at age 33.

People would approach me and ask if I’d heard Cassidy so much that I felt compelled to find out the consensus of which was her best release and pick it up. And ultimately, I was let down. I heard a good singer, but I didn’t hear the vocals that sent others swooning.

It’s interesting how much mass media can convince and influence us.

Boyle became a world-wide sensation on the program “Britain’s Got Talent,” one of the endless series of reality talent competitions. What set Boyle apart at first was her dowdy appearance and a face that kind people would say had “character.”

But then she uncorks a voice that’s amazing. And she tops it off with a saucy personality that seems to even melt Simon Cowell, the king of curmudgeons.

Boyle’s voice, predictably enough, doesn’t do much for me. But I’m not especially fond of the pitch-perfect Broadway style Boyle uses, as much as I respect the technical talent. I’m more won over by her sense of humor and her thrill at performing.

Boyle’s style, though, works for millions, and it’s those millions who will make sure that the weekend’s runner-up finish won’t be the last we hear of her.

Here are Boyle’s first and final performances on the show. If you want to see what the competition was like, YouTube has set up a channel.

First performance:




Finals performance:




Source : herald-review.com

To discuss and make strong decisions to fight the widespread Swine Flu, the World Health Organization set a meeting with the vaccine manufacturers together with other health experts to stop the Swine Flu Outbreak. Different Pharmaceutical companies are ready to begin making a Swine Flu vaccine — but as the virus may alter, there are questions formed:

How much should they have to produce? How will the government distribute the vaccines to the infected areas? Who should get it, babies, youngsters, adults, men, women, pregnant?

Most flu vaccine companies mentioned that they can only make one vaccine at a time: either seasonal flu vaccine or pandemic vaccine. Production takes months and it is impossible to switch halfway through if health officials make a mistake. Vaccine makers can make limited amounts of both seasonal flu vaccine and pandemic vaccine — though not at the same time — but they cannot make massive quantities of both because that exceeds manufacturing capacity.

Even if we are in the modern era, still the health officials have a big problem to solve the spreading of deadly swine flu is, and whether they will need more seasonal flu vaccine or swine flu vaccine. Scientists are not sure the effectiveness of a vaccine, if the swine flu will transmute. Only two billion doses of swine flu vaccine could be produced annually based on the estimation of World Health Organization officials, though the first batches wouldn't be available for four to six months.

A "seed stock" to make the vaccine, which should be ready and it will be distributed to manufacturers worldwide so they can start producing the vaccine is now on the go as the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention works on. After the vaccine manufacturers get the seed stock, they won't know how many doses of vaccine they can make or how long that would take.

Including vaccine producer, GlaxoSmithKline PLC, the World Health Organization is under negotiation process to save some of their swine flu vaccine for poorer nations. A couple of years ago members of the rich nations like United States, Switzerland, France, Denmark, Canada and Britain signed deals with the vaccine makers to guarantee them pandemic vaccines as soon as they're available.

Cipla (The pharmaceuticals giant in India) instructed by the World Health Organization to make a generic version of Tamiflu antiviral drug. Tamiflu also known as oseltamivir, one of the two antiviral drugs to treat the Swine Flu. Then WHO said Cipla's generic version was more effective than the original made by Swiss firm Roche Holding AG and would hopefully make the drug more accessible to the third world countries. As we all know that Indian pharmaceuticals produce drugs in very affordable prices.

North America has been the hardest-hit continent for the Swine Flu virus that kills two Americans from Texas (including a pregnant woman) and one in Washington. If the vaccine productions are enough to all suspected Swine Flu carrier, it won’t happen again that a simple pregnant woman died fighting the virus.

Through this article, we will inform the public of an early planning and prevention against Swine Flu for their safety. Consult to the Health Officers about planning and prevention against the virus. According to an unidentified source that one out of three Americans can only take the Tamiflu.

Officials of the Federal government believe that the swine flu vaccine that would protect all Americans from future H1N1 outbreaks would be available by January or late November at the earliest.

HoTop of Form

wever, countries outside the United States and other nations that manufacture vaccines would take several years to generate sufficient vaccines to meet global demands.

Although manufacturing of the vaccine is faster than it was a few years back, it may still not be enough to prevent death and illness if the dreaded virus begins to spread and becomes virulent, experts predict.

In the United States, the main obstacle despite long years of effort remains to be the 50-year old technology they use in manufacturing flu vaccines. The Federal government had invested time and billions of dollars shifting to a quicker and more reliable method.

One such procedure involves cultivating the vaccine viruses in vats of cells instead of hen's eggs. There are several small companies that are developing new methods that would pave the way for the creation of large volumes of vaccines in a span of weeks.

Dr. Greg Poland, who is the head of the vaccine research program at the Mayo Clinic, admits that the cell-based cultivation technology is not yet available while the never technologies have not yet been proven to satisfy most experts.

In addition, government officials have also not yet decided on whether or not H1N1 is a potential risk that demands production of vaccine. However, they are implementing the initial steps. Andrin Oswald, Chief Executive of the Vaccine Division of Novartis, revealed that one possible problem would be the manufacture of vaccines for swine influenza could hamper the production of seasonal flu vaccines for the coming winter. The most likely thing to do is to compromise, according to Oswald.

However, Robin Robinson, who manages the Emergency Preparation Research Program of the Department of Health and Human Services, believes that majority of manufacturing efforts of vaccine makers would have been completed by June.

According to Dr. Robinson, if the manufacture of the H1N1 vaccine would commence after that, the first 50 million to 80 million would be ready by September.

Dr. Robinson continued by saying that the entire 600 million doses, which are sufficient to give the required two shots for every American would be available by January. Adding the immune stimulant adjuvant to the vaccine could greatly reduce the required dosage, paving the way for the availability of the doses by the latter part of November.

The vaccine industry in the country is now very much capable of responding to the outbreak than it was five years back, when there were only two vaccine manufacturers and encountered a severe shortage. At present, there are five manufacturers supplying vaccines to the domestic market. The vaccine industry, which is used to be the backwater of the pharmaceutical industry, is generating new investments, as a result of government subsidies and higher cost for vaccines.

Despite of this, a World Health Organization and International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations revealed that it would still require four more years of manufacturing to meet global demands for a vaccine that would provide protection against bird flu strain that has been the major concern of health officials over the last few years.

Finally, the Federal government is encouraging manufacturers to shift their production in the United States, since all except Sanofi Aventis is now importing swine flu vaccines.

Of this Swine Flu’s 5th phase spread out, if there are at least two countries in one region and spread the virus by any means of human-to-human transmission. The signal of the pandemic is strong. The infected countries are required to advise people with respiratory illnesses to stay at home. There should be an advisory of suspension of classes. Some key states in the United States already announced suspension of classes. An example of this is when a man-infected virus either a family member or any of his friends travel to another neighboring country.

If an infected man goes out from his community booked a flight to another country such as China, that country will get infected too. People whom he talked while in plane even if he’s experiencing a fever, sore throat and headaches can be possible Swine Flu career after few more days before he/she can discover the virus. Similar case from a 19-year old Chinese student from Canada (he closely contact with dying man by Swine Flu virus and later traveled home to Beijing and boarded the train.)

In the Philippines, no outbreak of swine flu yet but the government is now planning and preparing for the possible spread out. President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo instructed Health Secretary Francisco Duque III to closely monitor the possible spread out to the Filipino. Some Filipinos are aware of the pandemic but they still go to the countries with flu spread out cases believing themselves that they have strong immune system.
In Mexico, some of the schools are already closed to protect their children from bigger numbers of flu cases.

This massive spread out was all started from scratch—the phase one. This article will try to reenact the source of Swine Flu with a short fiction story. In the first phase, there is an animal-flu governed the hog farm in a poor community. Suddenly by the next phase, this cute little pig started delivering sneezed out from the slimy and shiny nose to his owner. The owner suffers with a sneeze, cough, sore throat, fever and headaches by the next few hours.

Unintentionally, as a Swine Flu carrier, will be sharing his cough to his child on the next phase. And on the fourth phase the child greets her friend who is now leaving for another country for a vacation. And that friend while in the plane experiencing a fever and sore throat with headache until her father discovered in that country that she had a Swine Flu virus.

Some countries are also doing their planning and preparation for the prevention of the Swine Flu virus spread out. Advance preventive measures will lessen the spread out. Check your health officers about the information available against Swine Flu.

A pandemic second quarter of 2009 outbreak of influenza A (H1N1) virus is a new strain of influenza virus identified commonly referred to as Swine Flu confirmed cases topped almost 6,000 individuals, as Belgium became the latest European nation to be hit by the influenza A(H1N1) virus. World Health Organization (WHO) officials said the number of cases of influenza A(H1N1) stood at around 6,000 and nearly 7,000 in more than 30 countries, with more than 60 people having died from the disease.

Cases were first discovered in the U.S. and officials soon suspected a link between those incidents and an earlier outbreak of late-season flu cases in Mexico. In less than a week hundreds of suspected cases, some of them serious, were discovered in Mexico. Soon thereafter, the WHO along with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) expressed concern that the A(H1N1) could become a worldwide flu pandemic, and WHO then raised its pandemic disease alert level to "Phase 5" out of the six maximum, as a "signal that a pandemic is at about to happen level".

More than three thousand cases of infections including three deaths was the recorded highest number of A(H1N1) by the United States compared to Mexico where only more than two thousand reported cases of infection including 60 deaths were confirmed. The WHO said 389 people were also confirmed with the virus – and one person had died – in Canada who happens to be with the 19-year-old Chinese career that brings in to China a spread out. Two other cases have been confirmed in Hong Kong. Authorities there said they had quarantined six people who traveled with the second case, a 24-year-old man, by plane from San Francisco. A further 45 people who sat near him on his journey had already left Hong Kong, they said.

China, in the meantime, stepped up the search for people who came into contact with the mainland's two confirmed Swine Flu patients. A 30-year-old man was confirmed to have the virus in the southwestern city of Chengdu. He had been in the United States before his homecoming to China. Plane (Air Canada flight to Beijing) and train (for Shandong Province with 20 people on board) travelers with a 5 meter contact with a 19-year-old student (his surname is Lu: second confirmed victim) are being haunted by Chinese Authorities in Beijing and Eastern Shandong province.

He’s not feeling well, a couple of days after his arrival in Beijing but still continue to travel by train with a fever, sore throat and a headache. They believed that virus highlighted in China and Hong Kong could be a mix of bird and human flu which came together in pigs.

Belgium confirmed its first case of Swine Flu in a 28-year-old man who also had been in the United States. Jose Angel Cordova (Health Minister of Mexico) moved to reassure tourists, saying that the country's beaches and resorts – an important source of foreign income -- were safe for visitors. "There's no risk to tourists," he said, noting that most of the flu cases detected in holiday hotspots like Cancun and Acapulco dated back nearly two weeks.

The Swine Flu outbreak was expected to cost Mexico's economy of more than 2 billion dollars – or about 0.3 percent of gross domestic product.

Have you been watching the news and/or read your daily broadsheets at all recently? If so, you’ve probably heard the term “Swine Flu” bouncing around a lot. While you are in the pigs fair or your hog race backyard and you were ever unlucky enough to be sneezed on by a sick pig, would you catch its flu? Not necessarily — it takes more than simply breathing in a pig's germs (just like kissing his messy and slimy nose) for you to get sick.

While most people come down with the normal human flu at some point, it’s not really a danger to anyone but the very young (from 0 month to 7 years old) and the very old (from 60 to 90 years old). Fortunately, the human immune system is there to recognize and neutralize the effects of the virus. Each year, the virus mutates just slightly and most of the population is once again susceptible to the disease. This is why a new vaccine must be created regularly to reflect the most recent influenza mutants out in the environment.

When the human flu virus mutates its external proteins, the body’s defenses still recognize them and eventually mount a response (the period of sickness occurs while the body is developing that response). If this failed to happen, you would eventually succumb to the virus and you will die.

If a people’s immune system might not immediately stop a new human influenza infection, it does recognize that new mutant and begin building a response. Avian and swine peplomers, on the other hand, are not easily recognized by the human system because our race did not include pressure from those particular viruses. The animal influenza has been able to mutate enough to cross the species bridge and infect humans as well as humans we have come into a close contact with the animals (e.g. as a hog racer, we care for them and eventually sold out to the market for more extra income) that carry these viruses.

In the past this would not have been a worldwide epidemic. An infected village might just die out in isolation (the nearest hospital was more than 10 miles away from the village). Now it’s different: if a traveler can become infected from a hog race backyard in one region and fly thousands of miles to another, long before they experience symptoms of possible flu.

So what’s the fall away message from all of this? Can we do anything? Well as individuals it’s wise to go through the same sanitary practices as we might during flu season. We must be aware if our pigs catch flu during the season so that we put them instantly in a quarantine area that no other individual will take care of your pigs without protective suits. And traveling to places which have reported Swine Flu cases probably isn’t a great idea.

There are people as you observe in different agencies and they have spent their whole lives preparing for just these kinds of epidemics and they are currently working very hard to provide the public with the best information and advice about the Swine Flu.

They are only there waiting for your attention and willingness to diagnose if you suspected yourself a possible Swine Flu virus. They are there to help you live longer.

Most of the human race is now aware of the news outbreak about Swine Flu — but are we aware of the signs and symptoms of swine flu? We already know how to prevent but the signs and symptoms is still a puzzle in our mind. Well, through this article, I will give you insights if you are now a victim of Swine Flu virus.

But before, we proceed let me introduce to you first about Swine Flu. The 3-10% of the global population estimated to affect the yearly influenza epidemics that can be a result in severe illness in 3–4 million patients and causing 200,000–400,000 deaths worldwide. Severe illness and deaths occur mainly in the high-risk populations of infants, the elderly, pregnant women and chronically ill patients in industrialized nations.

In addition to these yearly epidemics, the influenza A virus has caused three major global pandemics during the 20th century: there was the Spanish flu in 1918, the Asian flu in 1957 and in 1968–69 was the Hong Kong flu. These pandemics were caused by an Influenza A virus that had undergone major genetic changes, due to which the population did not possess significant immunity.

In pigs influenza infection produces lethargy, sneezing, fever, coughing, difficulty breathing and decreased appetite. In some cases especially the pregnant women, the infection can cause abortion. Although mortality is usually low (around 1-3%), the virus can produce weight loss and poor growth, causing economic loss to farmers. Infected pigs can lose up to 10 pounds of body weight over a 2 to 3 week period.

Main symptoms of swine flu in humans can be a direct transmission of a swine flu virus from pigs to humans is occasionally possible (called zoonotic swine flu). Under phase one, an animal outbreak of flu symptoms in your hog race backyard.

In phase two considered when the owner within the hog race backyard got infected with a flu from their animal symptoms.

Phase 3 reviewed when a child within the hog race backyard got infected together with his father, his mother and his siblings. The fourth phase, there is a cause of community-level outbreaks of human-to-human transmission of an animal or human-animal flu virus. This phase will focus to contain the spreading of the virus.

Countries will be informed asking to advice their people such as traveling to containment areas. All countries with infected with the swine flu must also consider in deploying a pandemic vaccine. (e.g. when the infected family member went out from their backyard decided to talk to his friends and unaware that he’s spreading the virus.)

Second to the last phase, when a man-infected virus either a family member or any of his friends travel to another neighboring country. You will know if there your country is in a phase 5 dominant when there is an announcement suspension of classes because of flu spread out.

This final and a pandemic phase is just like when an unaware man-infected virus travel to another continent unaware that he spread out the Swine Flu virus to another races. Now with the above mentioned signs and symptoms, you are now ready to plan and prepare immediately of the possible attacks of the Swine Flu virus. Consult to different agencies that concerns with the Swine Flu pandemics.

In the history of the United States, this is not the first time that the country is experiencing a swine flu outbreak. The first recorded incident of H1N1 infection in the US was recorded on January 27, 1976, when there was a small outbreak of mild respiratory illnesses took place at Fort Dix Army Base in New Jersey.

According to throat cultures obtained from sick soldiers, each of the patients were infected by "swine-like flu virus" which have been unknown to humans since 1930. It was believed that the same virus was also responsible for the worst flu pandemic in the United States in 1918-1919 which led to the death of half a million Americans.

To many people, the discovery of the 1976 was more of a debacle than a victory because after only 10 weeks of implementation, vaccination efforts came to a premature close as the program led to complications which were associated to the shots.

After the death of Private David Lewis after participating in a forced five-mile march the night before his demise, Dr. David Sencer and his colleagues attributed the death to strains of swine-like flu virus. Upon the advice of specialists across the United States, Dr. Sencer called on then President Gerald Ford to launch a nationwide mass inoculation.

President Ford and the US Congress heeded the call and in October implemented the $137-million National Inoculation Program. However, after only several days of implementation, there were reports that the vaccine being used for the program made the patients prone to Guillain-Barre Syndrome, a rare neurological disorder which results to temporary paralysis but could be risky.

Prior to its premature end in December 1976, the vaccine was administered to over 40 million Americans comprising almost 25% of the population. From the over 500 people who experienced Guillain-Barre Syndrome after vaccine administration, 25 people died. As a result, the Federal Government paid millions worth of damages to the families of the victims.

Meanwhile, the epidemic which some experts predicted would affect 50 to 60 million Americans during that time never happened. According to the Center for Disease Control, there were only 200 confirmed cases and one death.

It is understandable why the current H1N1 outbreak has been a source of anxiety for the public who recalls the 1976 event. It serves as a lesson for the government and health officials who needs to make a decision on the current swine flu in the days and weeks to come.

Dr. David Sencer, who is now retired and resides in Atlanta, believes that the 1976 debacle brought good things as well as bad. The belief that the 1918-19 flu epidemic resulted from swine-like virus partly contributed to the 1976 setback.

Although current studies have shown that the cause of the epidemic was bird flu, it did not ease the current anxiety prevailing in the public. The 1918-19 epidemic led to the death of 500,000 people in the United States and more than 50 million worldwide.

In Mexico, where the 2009 swine flu outbreak, originated, 22 people have died from the most recent outbreak. Government officials have been under fire for the way they have handled the situation. However, with such a mystery surrounding the threat, Dr. Peter Katona, who is an authority on infectious disease from UCLA, believes that people have failed to understand the challenges posed by such problem.

Some complications among pregnant women as the Swine Flu continue to spread across the country, and soon to the world, and that this high-risk group needs to take antivirals as soon as infection is suspected. Just like what happen to a pregnant woman in Texas who suffers and died of Swine Flu infection. Medical officials believe that pregnant women are at higher risk of complications of influenza, whether it's the seasonal influenza or pandemics of the past.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) investigates twenty cases of pregnant women with the swine flu, most of them experienced complications. Complications can include pneumonia, dehydration and premature birth. It is very important that doctors who are caring for pregnant women they suspect may have influenza, that they issue prompt treatment with antiviral medicines – the Tamiflu and the Relenza. Doctors can be hesitant to take care of pregnant women with antiviral drugs and pregnant women may be disinclined to take them out of fear that they may pose a risk during pregnancy.

The benefits of using the antiviral drugs to treat influenza in a pregnant woman outweigh the theoretical concerns about the drugs strongly say by the medical experts who have looked into this situation. Of the three swine-flu related deaths in the United States, one involved a 33-year-old pregnant woman from Texas who had other health problems before she was infected with the virus.

From the undetermined source that only one out of three Americans would get Swine Flu vaccine. So, it means the vaccine manufacturers have no enough capability to do more drugs against the outbreak.
There are many people who become ill don't seek medical attention and are never tested for this strain of flu especially if they only knew that they only have simple kind of flu.

In other news that we’ve read about the number of Swine Flu cases from hospital records doesn’t match with the real numbers suspected because they declined to seek medical attention.

The report also suggested that the true number of – largely unreported – swine flu infections in Mexico, the outbreak's epicenter, possibly had already reached 32,000 cases and approximately 1% of them are pregnant women too. The World Health Organization's official tally for Mexico stood at 2,059 confirmed human infections, including 56 deaths.

The United States has now surpassed Mexico – believed to be the source of the outbreak – as the country most affected by the epidemic, according to WHO statistics. The agency reported that there are 6,497 confirmed cases of swine flu in 33 countries, with Canada, Spain and the United Kingdom having the most cases outside of the United States and Mexico.

In the meantime, back in Mexico, federal health officials said that the worst seemed to be over despite more deaths, toll rose to 58 deaths and 2,282 confirmed cases of swine flu – a rise of two deaths and 223 more cases.

World Health Organization expert expressed support for the more selective use of antiviral medicines such as Tamiflu and Relenza against Swine Flu even though the pregnant women and the doctors of the pregnant women are declining the use of antiviral drugs. According to health officials that there are some European countries aggressively take antiviral drugs throughout their population to save themselves.

While countries like the United States and Mexico, they are trying to save their patients with underlying conditions and also the other groups at risk, such as pregnant women and be treated. Swiss drug maker Roche Holding AG offered a charitable work to donate some of their Tamiflu supplies to the WHO enough for nearly 6 million people.

Brazil returned to their brilliant best in Tshwane/Pretoria, cruising to a 3-0 win over USA and inching closer to the semi-finals of the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup. For the second game running, the Americans had a player sent off and Kaka, Robinho and Co were in no mood to take their foot off the accelerator as they strolled to their second straight win of these finals with goals from Felipe Melo, Robinho and Maicon.

Brazil came out flying and, with USA looking overwhelmed in the centre of the pitch, Michael Bradley was forced into a pair of early fouls in dangerous territory. The second proved costly, as Maicon's swerving free kick picked out Felipe Melo. The Fiorentina man slipped his marker and nodded home at the back post with only seven minutes gone.

It was an ominous start for the US, who never quite came to grips with their South American opponents, despite some positive work from Landon Donovan. Robinho was only just denied Brazil's second in the 12th minute thanks to a last-ditch lunge by Oguchi Onyewu. However, the big centre-half could do nothing in the 20th minute when a rare moment in attack for the US - their first corner kick of the game - turned into a nightmare.

Donovan's short corner rolled under DaMarcus Beasley's boot and straight to a yellow shirt. The counter-attack that followed was simply unstoppable, with Kaka picking out new man Ramires, who laid the ball across for Robinho. The Manchester City ace made no mistake from close range, poking wide of Tim Howard and into the net. With Brazil up 2-0 and in sparkling form, there seemed no way back for the Stars and Stripes, who were fortunate not to be down four or five as they returned to the changing rooms at half-time.

The second period saw USA coach Bob Bradley bring in towering forward Conor Casey to partner Jozy Altidore in attack. It hardly changed the established pattern of the match, Robinho testing Howard again in the 53d minute with a curving shot from a tight angle. Just seconds later, Kaka - in outstanding form - forced the Everton keeper into another sprawling stop from the edge of the box.

Things got even worse for USA in the 55th minute when midfielder Sacha Kljestan was sent off by Swiss referee Massimo Busacca for a lunge on Ramires. It was the second red card in as many games here in South Africa for the North Americans, and Maicon took full advantage. The Inter Milan wing-back roared through for Brazil's third goal seven minutes after the expulsion, slamming into the roof of the net after a sharp give-and-go with the incomparable Kaka to complete the rout.

The USA, who managed to rattle the crossbar late in the game, will need to wait on the result of the other Group B match, Egypt-Italy in Johannesburg later in the day, to know their fate. A win for the Azzurri would send them out, while an Egyptian win would keep dwindling hopes alive. Brazil, for their part, are in pole position to advance to the semis, but will also need to wait for the result of the night's match to be sure.

Source Fifa news

The Azzurri shot stopper believes that his side need to be more proactive in their next match.
Jun 18, 2009 5:33:49 PM
Gianluigi Buffon, Italy (Foto Grazia Neri)
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Gianluigi Buffon, Italy (Foto Grazia Neri)
African champions Egypt stunned Italy in Johannesburg 1-0, in their meeting at this year’s Confederations Cup.

The World Champions conceded the only goal of the game on 40 minutes, and it was only from this point that they showed a sense of urgency and gave themselves a good chance of getting themselves on to the score sheet.

They failed to do so in the end, however their goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon, believes that this is their major problem at present, and that it has to be rectified heading into their next match.

“We have put a lot of time and effort into this Confederations Cup, however it is a very tough tournament,” Buffon stated in an interview with Sky.

“We are the world champions, and in this particular game, I think a point for us would have been fair.

“I think our problem at the moment is our approach to matches, in that we often react only after moments of significance, like conceding a goal.

“Tonight we managed to recover, although we failed to score, so it’s not always going to work in our favour.”

The Italians will most likely have to defeat Brazil in their final group game, to give themselves any hope of progressing to the final four of the competition.

He added, “We have to play without making any calculations, in regards to what is happening elsewhere. We have to play to win.

“We must show that we can compete with one of the favourites for next year’s World Cup.”

Source Adrian Del Monte, Goal.com

The right-back believes that his side still have a big chance of progressing in the competition.
Jun 18, 2009 5:50:53 PM
Fabio Cannavaro and Gianluca Zambrotta - Italy
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Fabio Cannavaro and Gianluca Zambrotta - Italy
Italy’s hopes of advancing to the final four of this year’s Confederations Cup took a heavy blow, as they suffered their first ever defeat against an African nation, after going down 1-0 to Egypt in Johannesburg.

They are now level on points with the Pharaohs with just one group game remaining, however Gianluca Zambrotta still believes that the Azzurri are the favourites to join Brazil in the final four.

“This result does not mean anything yet, as we still have a great chance of qualifying,” Zambrotta affirmed in an interview with Corriere dello Sport.

“As was the case against the United States, we had the wrong approach in the opening 30 minutes, however we bounced back well, especially in the second half.

“We could have easily scored three of four times tonight, if only we had a little more luck on our side.”

The World Champions must now face an in-form Brazilian outfit, and ensure they achieve at least a result, in order to give themselves any hope of making it to the semi-finals.

“This game will obviously be our last chance, so we will have to sit tight and go for it.

“We lost against them in February, 2-0 in London, but we are keen to avenge that defeat and to move forward.”

The Italians will need to achieve a better result than the Egyptians do against the US, otherwise it could be all over until 2010 for them.

Source Adrian Del Monte, Goal.com

Italy Striker Giuseppe Rossi: Egypt Won The Match With One Chance
The Villarreal man has shrugged his shoulders following the defeat to the African champions.
Jun 18, 2009 5:44:53 PM
Giuseppe Rossi - Italy (Grazia Neri)
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Giuseppe Rossi - Italy (Grazia Neri)
Italy surprisingly fell 1-0 to Egypt in the Confederations Cup and striker Giuseppe Rossi was resigned to the loss, even though he felt the Azzurri had their chances.

"This is the way football is," he sighed to Sky, following the narrow loss.

"It was difficult for us. There was some more space in the second-half, perhaps because they started to tire, but we failed to equalise. We had at least three or four occasions to score, they had one shot and one goal.

"We did not underestimate Egypt, we were aware they were a good team and were not already thinking about Brazil [before this match]."

Now the Italians will most likely require a win against the South Americans to advance. Brazil were impressive earlier in the day, dispatching the Untied States 3-0.

Rossi started against Egypt in a central attacking role, but did not have the same impact he did against the United States in a more withdrawn position.

"I will give my best playing wherever the coach wants," he concluded.

source Adam Scime, Goal.com

Egypt shocked Italy 1-0 in their second game of the 2009 Confederations Cup in Group B. Goal.com rates the players on show.
Jun 18, 2009 5:00:19 PM
Egypt VS ITALY (Picture by: Luigi Bennett/Sports Inc/Press Association Images)
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Egypt VS ITALY (Picture by: Luigi Bennett/Sports Inc/Press Association Images)
EGYPT

El Hadari - 10: This is one of the few 10's ever awarded on Goal.com. El Hadari single-handedly won the game for Egypt with countless world class saves. Of those that stood out, he denied Iaquinta three times, Montolivo and Rossi once - all of them stunning stops.

Ahmed Fathi - 7.5: Did as good a job on the marauding Grosso as any international right back has over the past few years. Really gritty performance at right back.

Hany Said - 7.5: The best of the Egypt backline. An absolute rock in the first half, Hany Said was crucial as Egypt hung on at the end.

Ahmed Said - 7: A reassuring presence at the back alongside his namesake. The two Said's held firm amid the Italian onslaught.

Wael Gomaa - 7: The bald-headed stopper was excellent in the first half, and while he had a few troubles after the break, he also comes out of this game with great credit.

Sayed Moawad - 6.5: Solid down the left hand side until he was replaced on 68 minutes. Italy made more headway down his flank when Pepe came on.

Mohamed Shawky - 6.5: Put in a hard-working shift in midfield and could have scored in the first half were it not for a superb Zambrotta challenge.

Homos- 7: Thumped home a header just before half time to earn Egypt an historic victory over Italy.

Abou Treika - 6.5: Egypt's ultra-defensive tactics made it difficult for Abou Treika to express himself, although he did conjure up one fine pass for Shawky just before half time. His corner assisted Homos' goal.

Hosni Abd Rabou - 6: Was on the outskirts of the game, and was forced to track back constantly.

Mohamed Zidan - 6: The star man from Egypt's thriller against Brazil, unfortunately Zidan picked up a hamstring problem after half-an-hour tonight. He struggled on, but was eventually subbed early in the second half.

Substitutes

Ahmed Eid - 6: Showed good pace the rare times Egypt broke on the counter.

Farag - 6: Put in a shift as Egypt edged towards victory.

Ahmed Hassan - N/V: A late introduction.

ITALY

Buffon- 6: Aside from picking the ball out of the net on Homos' winner, Buffon had nothing to do all night.

Zambrotta- 6.5: Produced one goal-saving tackle on Shawky in the first half, but aside from this had little to worry about defensively.

Cannavaro- 7: A couple of classy interventions, Cannavaro led the Italy backline well.

Chiellini- 6 : The odd clumsy moment when Cannavaro had to come to his rescue. Chiellini needs to cut out these rash episodes.

Grosso- 6.5: Up and down the left flank as always, although unlike against the USA he found Egypt's right back, Fathi, a tough nut to crack.

Gattuso- 5.5: Again looked well short of fitness, and when Gattuso is not fit, his value to the team all but disappears as he is all about grit, determination and physical pressure.

Pirlo- 7.5: An absolute class act in the middle-of-the-park, Pirlo has definitely re-discovered his form. Hit a free kick just wide, and put a chance on a plate for Iaquinta. Creative genius.

De Rossi- 6: At fault for the Egypt goal, as he should have been marking Homos. If it wasn't for this he would have received a good mark, as he won everything in midfield.

Rossi- 6.5: Easily Italy's most dangerous attacker in the first half, twice going close with that hammer left foot of his. Substituted just after half time for Toni.

Iaquinta- 6: Just not Iaquinta's night tonight. He hit the crossbar, missed three gilt-edged chances, as the ball just would not go in. Must be held responsible for Italy not getting at least a point, as nearly all the chances fell to him.

Quagliarella- 5: Aside from a fantastic pass to put Iaquinta through on goal, Quagliarella just never got into the game. He deformed Italy's shape in attack by moving around aimlessly.

Substitutes

Montolivo- 6.5: Did well after coming on, but missed an easy opportunity on 73 minutes.

Toni- 5.5: The clumsy giant made little impact, except for flicking on a few long balls.

Pepe- 6.5: His directness caused a few problems, and he made one great nutmeg pass to Iaquinta, whose shot was brilliantly saved.

Source Carlo Garganese, Goal.com

A solo headed goal from Homos was enough to gift the Pharaohs a historic first ever victory over the World Champions
Jun 18, 2009 4:29:51 PM
2009 FIFA Confederations Cup : Essam El Hadary, Egypt - Italy (PA)
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2009 FIFA Confederations Cup : Essam El Hadary, Egypt - Italy (PA)
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Italy 0-1 Egypt


Following a gutsy display of textbook catenaccio Egypt managed to hold out for a 1-0 victory over Italy. After taking the lead with a first half headed corner, the Pharaohs held on to leave Italy with their Confederations hopes firmly in the balance.

First Half

The game started slowly as Egypt came out extremely tight utilising a five man defence. Italy looked to open a way through but with some slow approach play, Lippi had to immediately step up from the bench and order the Azzurri side forward.

On eleven minutes Italy had a chance to open the deadlock as a loose ball found its way to Rossi on the edge of the box. The Villarreal man did extremely well to control and turn first time, but he rushed the shot which finished inches over the bar.

The marking from Egypt was ruthless, and Italy found it impossible to use flanks and cross from deep. The Pharaohs were clearly playing man-for-man as Rossi found himself with an Egyptian shadow in the form of Said.

On 25 minutes Rossi took matters into his own hands as he opted to cut in from the right and shoot from distance. The effort was full of venom as it flew goal-bound. El Hadary managed to do just enough however as he tipped the ball over at full stretch.

Just after the half hour mark the Pharaohs were dealt a blow when Zidan pulled up with a hamstring problem following a quick sprint against Cannavaro. The Egyptian top scorer showed grit to come back on after some minor treatment on the touchline.

On 39 minutes the deadlock was finally broken when Homos scored a towering headed corner to put Egypt ahead. Italy looked stunned as they found themselves behind just before the break, just like against the USA three days earlier.

As the sides went in at the break Lippi’s men looked downbeat after having failed to break down their solid opponents. Egypt had given the Azzurri a 45 minute catenaccio master class as they struck from their first real chance at goal.

Second Half


On 53 minutes the Azzurri had a golden chance to level when Iaquinta controlled an inch perfect ball over the top from Quagliarella. Unfortunately as he looked to shoot just metres from goal El Hadrey had already made drastic action to make a decisive shot.

Shortly after Lippi looked to have his say on the game as he made a double switch throwing on Toni and Montolivo for Rossi and Gattuso. It was Egypt however who continued to threaten and the Azzurri were looking increasingly short of ideas as they struggled to string any worthy attacking moves.

On 67 minutes Italy should have levelled when Pepe whipped an inviting cross into the six yard box. Toni threw himself at the ball, but couldn’t make contact; as he watched it fly just inches past him.

On 74 minutes Montolivo wasted a clear cut scoring opportunity as he prodded a delightful Iaquinta cutback straight at the keeper. The Viola man looked on in despair following El Hadary’s save and his face said it all in what should have been the Azzurri leveller.

In the closing stages the Azzurri began to look increasingly desperate as they opted to launch balls forward to Toni to little effect. The Egyptians continued to hit on the break and opened up numerous chances to put the result beyond doubt.

With five minutes left on the clock Iaquinta went extremely close as he rattled the upright following a miss placed cross. As the ball zipped out off the crossbar, the Pharaohs breathed a sigh of relief at what would have been an undeserved equaliser

As the teams battled it out in the dying seconds the Azzurri had Egypt camped into their own box. The final push was to no avail however as the Pharaohs held on for their first ever win against Italy.

With a precious three points the Egyptians kept their Confederations hopes alive. Italy now have one foot back on the plane as they prepare for a must win game against Brazil on Sunday.


Goals:
39’ Homos

Teams

Italy (4-3-3): Buffon; Zambrotta, Cannavaro, Chiellini, Grosso; Gattuso (57’ Montolivo), De Rossi, Pirlo; Rossi (57’ Toni), Iaquinta, Quagliarella (64’ Pepe)

Egypt (5-3-2): El Hadary; Fathi (79’ Hassan), A.Said, Gomaa, H.Said, Moawad (68’ Farag); Shawky, Abd Rabou, Homos; Zidan (57’ Eid), Aboutrika.

Referee: Hansson (Sweden)

source : Stefano Federici, Goal.com

Iran's Supreme Leader has issued a stern warning that protests against the country's disputed presidential election results must end.

In his first public remarks after days of demonstrations, Ayatollah Khamenei said the outcome must be decided at the ballot box, not on the street.

He said political leaders would be blamed for any violence.

Demonstrators calling for a new election earlier vowed to stage fresh protests on Saturday.

Addressing thousands of people at Tehran University, the ayatollah voiced support for President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, saying his views on foreign affairs and social issues were close to his.

Responding to allegations of electoral fraud, the ayatollah insisted the Islamic Republic would not cheat.

He appealed to candidates who had doubts about the election result to pursue legal avenues.

BBC Tehran correspondent Jon Leyne says that Ayatollah Khamenei appears to have staked everything on this election result and Mr Ahmadinejad.

It all points to heavy crackdowns if the protest continue, our correspondent says.

The Guardian Council - Iran's main electoral authority - has invited Mr Ahmadinejad's main election rival Mir Hossein Mousavi and two other defeated candidates to discuss their objections tomorrow.

Source BBC

A senior police officer has been killed in a car bomb attack in the Spanish city of Bilbao, in the Basque region.

Eduardo Puelles Garcia, an inspector, died inside the vehicle in a car park in the city's Della Pina district.

The Basque regional government has blamed the bombing on the militant separatist group Eta, which formally ended a ceasefire two years ago.

Eta's violent four-decade campaign for a sovereign Basque state has cost more than 800 lives.

"There was an attack, a big explosion, that burnt up the individual inside the car and damaged other vehicles nearby," Basque regional government's Interior Minister Rodolfo Ares was quoted as saying by the Reuters news agency.

If confirmed, it would be the group's first fatal attack in six months; and the first since the Spanish Socialist Party took control of the Basque regional government, following elections in March, says the BBC's Steve Kingstone in Madrid.

ETA declared that election undemocratic.

The police investigation is being followed closely by Spain's Prime Minister, Jose Luiz Rodriguez Zapatero, who is attending the summit of European Union leaders in Brussels.

The Spanish government had already declared the peace process "finished" after a bomb blast by Eta killed two Ecuadorean men at a Madrid airport car park in December 2006.

source BBC

TEHRAN, Iran (CNN) — Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has been declared the big winner in the country’s election, but his chief rival and supporters in the Tehran streets are crying foul.

The government said on Saturday that Ahmadinejad won Friday’s presidential election with 62.63 percent of the vote and Mir Hossein Moussavi received 33.75 percent of the vote.

Before the vote count ended, Moussavi issued a sharply worded letter urging the counting to stop because of “blatant violations” and lashed out at what he indicated was an unfair process.

Source CNN

TEHRAN, Iran (CNN) –As street protests and voter skepticism rose over Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s election victory, the incumbent leader hailed the vote, saying it was a “great ordeal” but one that pointed “the way to the future.”

The government said on Saturday that Ahmadinejad won Friday’s presidential election with 62.63 percent of the vote and Mir Hossein Moussavi received 33.75 percent of the vote.

But while he extolled the result and the huge turnout, Moussavi and supporters in the Tehran streets are crying foul as street clashes have erupted in the aftermath of the polls.

soruce CNN

WASHINGTON – Employers throttled back on layoffs in May and cut the fewest jobs in any month since the financial crisis erupted last fall — raising the brightest hope yet that an economic recovery will take hold later this year.

But with companies still reluctant to hire, the nation's jobless rate rose to a quarter-century high of 9.4 percent, and it likely will keep rising into 2010, possibly within striking distance of its post-World War II peak of 10.8 percent.

The economy shed 345,000 jobs in May, the Labor Department said Friday — half what it was losing in a month at the start of the year. But the report also underscored how hard it has been for America's 14.5 million unemployed to find new jobs.

"Less bad, yes," Ian Shepherdson, chief U.S. economist at High Frequency Economics, said, summarizing the economy. "Good, no."

Companies probably won't ramp up hiring until they feel sure a recovery is here to stay. Still, considering the damage the recession has wrought — 6 million jobs lost since December 2007 — it was encouraging that employers cut far fewer jobs in May.

The 345,000 jobs lost was down sharply from 504,000 in April, and an even bigger improvement over the average of nearly 700,000 jobs lost monthly during the first quarter of this year.

"The light at the end of the tunnel just got a lot brighter," said Nigel Gault, chief U.S. economist at IHS Global Insight.

But not so bright that economists expect more employers to start hiring again this year. Economists expect the pace of layoffs to keep tapering off, but they don't think the economy will begin to create jobs steadily until late next year at the earliest.

"Payrolls are learning to crawl but far from walking," said Michael Feroli, economist at JPMorgan Economics.

Stocks rallied on the better-than-expected news, but then surrendered most of the gains. The Dow Jones industrial average made a brief foray into positive territory for 2009, then pulled back to close up about 13 points at 8,763.13.

The job losses was the fewest since September and the fourth straight month in which the pace of layoffs slowed. In another heartening note, job losses for March and April turned out to be 82,000 less than the government had reported.

"This tide is turning," said Richard Yamarone, economist at Argus Research. "We expect this trend of slower job loss to continue throughout the year."

With no place for the out-of-work to land, the unemployment rate bolted to 9.4 percent from 8.9 percent in April. It was the highest rate since August 1983.

Hundreds of thousands of people, perhaps feeling more confident about their job prospects, streamed back into the labor force last month looking for work. That was a factor in the jobless rate's rise, economists said.

Labor Secretary Hilda Solis called the uptick in unemployment "unacceptable" and pledged to bring it down by helping the unemployed get new skills or training.

Including laid-off workers who have given up looking for new jobs or have settled for part-time work, the so-called underemployment rate would be 16.4 percent in May, the highest on record dating to 1994.

And the number of people out of work six months or more rose to nearly 4 million in May, a record and triple the total from when the recession began.

Dan Blatt, 37, who found a retail job in January after being laid off in October, is one of the lucky few. "I'd be frantic if I didn't have anything now," he said while attending a job fair in New York and looking for something even better.

To cut costs and perhaps avoid imposing further layoffs, employers trimmed workers' hours in May. The average work week fell to 33.1 hours, the lowest on record dating to 1964.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke repeated his prediction this week that the recession will end this year, but again warned that any recovery will be gradual.

Against that backdrop, many economists say the jobless rate will hit 10 percent by the end of this year and will keep rising into 2010. Some economists think it could near 11 percent. The highest since World War II was 10.8 percent at the end of 1982.

"Let me be very clear: A lower job-rate loss is not our goal," Vice President Joe Biden said. "`Less bad' is not how we're going to measure success."

Biden said he will join Obama on Monday in seeking to put more juice into the president's stimulus effort, including higher spending on public works projects. Biden did not provide details.

Solis and some economists credited the stimulus with helping to reduce layoffs in May. But other analysts said the benefits of the stimulus wouldn't really kick in until later this year or more likely next year.

The construction industry saw particular improvement in May, losing 59,000 jobs compared with 108,000 in April. Retailers eliminated 17,500, down from 36,500. Financial activities axed 30,000, down from 45,000.

But factories cut 156,000 jobs in May, slightly more than in April. The government, adding workers for the 2010 Census, reduced its employment by 7,000 after bulking up by 92,000 in April.

Education, health care, leisure and hospitality were among the industries adding jobs.

The Fed says unemployment will remain elevated into 2011, with a tepid economic recovery. The job market may not return to normal — meaning a roughly 5 percent unemployment rate — until 2013, economists say.

Still, evidence is mounting that the recession is letting up, with fresh signs emerging earlier this week. The number of people drawing continuing unemployment benefits dipped for the first time in 20 weeks, and first-time claims also fell. Builders are boosting spending on construction projects, and home sales are somewhat firmer.

But ripple effects from the twin bankruptcies of General Motors and Chrysler could muddy the job market this month.

___

AP Business Writer Tali Arbel in New York contributed to this report.

Source ://http://news.yahoo.com

The year 3000 will introduce YouTwitFace, says Conan O’Brien tonight. YouTwitFace will dominate the world in the year 3000. Conan told viewers tonight:


“In the year 3000 YouTube, Twitter & Facebook will merge into one super time wasting website called YouTwitFace.”

And yes, some … face … has already reserved YouTwitFace.com

And to no surprise, YouTwitFace is the biggest trending Tweet right now. Ironically, NBC clips for the Tonight Show are seen on Hulu.

No word what year YouHuluFace will be coming.

source http://news.lalate.com/2009/06/04/youtwitface-conan-on-you-twit-face/

CANBERRA (Reuters Life!) – The last remaining Australian to serve in World War One has died at the age of 110, Veterans' Affairs Minister Alan Griffin said on Wednesday.

John "Jack" Ross, who was also Australia's oldest man having turned 110 in March, died in his sleep early Wednesday morning at a nursing home in Bendigo in the state of Victoria.

Ross was 18 when he enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force in January 1918 and trained at the wireless training school, but the war ended nine months later and before he could be posted overseas. He was discharged on Christmas Eve that year.

"Mr. Ross showed his willingness to serve Australia and her allies in what was an extremely tumultuous time in our history, and for that we are grateful," said Griffin in a statement.

"While he did not travel overseas, he completed his training, ready for deployment."

Griffin said Ross was the last of 417,000 Australians who served in World War One and one of only a handful of remaining veterans from that war.

Ross served Australia again in World War Two as a member of the Volunteer Defense Corps. As a civilian, he worked for the Victorian railways before retiring in 1964.

"It now falls to Australians everywhere to ensure that veterans memory is kept alive. We must ensure that their contribution to Australia's wartime history is passed on to future generations, so that their sacrifice is never forgotten," said Griffin.

(Reporting by Belinda Goldsmith, Editing by Miral Fahmy)

Source :http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090603/lf_nm_life/us_australia_soldier

A rather eerie coincidence: five days before Air France Flight 447 tragically crashed into the Atlantic Ocean after leaving Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, an Air France flight from Argentina to Paris was delayed due to a bomb threat.

On May 27, Argentina's Momento 24 reported that the airline had received a bomb threat over the phone. Police and firemen inspected the plane but found nothing.

"The routine procedure lasted approximately one hour and a half and, as sources [sic] of the airport reported all the passengers are ok and they were not evacuated," it was reported.

It remains unclear how and why Flight 447 went down -- "How could a modern airplane simply drop out of the sky?" the Washington Post asked on Tuesday -- but terrorism does not seem to be a consideration.

Instead of heavy cables, the plane's flying systems are connected by wires, miles of redundant wires linked to computers that are constantly cross-checking one another. But the advanced A330, carrying 228 people, appears to have been little match for fierce thunderstorms over the tropics.


Aviation safety analysts yesterday continued to play down lightning as the force that doomed the French airplane, explaining that aircraft routinely encounter such strikes. French aviation officials have yet to fully detail what went wrong in the A330. But a struggle with a "complex of thunderstorms" is at the heart of current theories about the case.

Source http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/06/02/air-france-bomb-threat-ca_n_210657.html

Source: The Post Chronicle

Officials have found metal debris off the coast of Brazil where Flight 447 is believed to have gone down - and they believe the debris may be part of the Airbus 330.

Authorities have not officially confirmed whether the debris belongs to the plane.
Read more http://www.postchronicle.com/news/original/article_212234615.shtml

As I have read in Huliq News, France has said the flight recorders from the plane, which went missing en route from Rio de Janeiro to Paris with 228 passengers and crew on board early on Monday, are unlikely to be found due to the extreme depth. The France plane was crash in a sea. It is then a tragedy where in people who lost their family is quite hurtful to accept. I just hope so that government should find and help the lost people. Of course it is impossible to get a video from this tragedy but I am sure it is really sad new.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- General Motors filed for bankruptcy protection early Monday, a move once viewed as unthinkable but became inevitable after years of losses and market share declines that were capped by a dramatic plunge in sales in recent months.

In the end, even $19.4 billion in federal help wasn't enough to keep the nation's largest automaker out of bankruptcy. The government will pour another $30 billion into GM to fund operations during its reorganization.

Taxpayers will end up with a 60% stake in GM, with the union, its creditors and federal and provincial governments in Canada owning the remainder of the company.

Owners of GM cars should see little change as a result of the bankruptcy since warranties will still be honored. But there will be plenty of pain caused by the bankruptcy and the company's efforts to stem losses.

Nearly a dozen plants will be identified for closure by 2010, resulting in 20,000 job losses. Three more plants are set to be idled and put on stand by status in hopes for a rebound in sales that may never come.

GM will also shed its Pontiac, Saturn, Hummer and Saab brands and cut loose more than 2,000 of its 6,000 U.S. dealerships by next year. That could result in more than 100,000 additional job losses if those dealerships are forced to close.

Source CNN.COM

PARIS, France (CNN) -- An Air France plane missing over the Atlantic with 228 people aboard reported electrical problems in stormy weather before it lost contact, the airline said Monday, describing the loss as a "catastrophe."

The Airbus A330-200 sent automatic messages signaling equipment failure as it hit turbulence early in its 11-hour flight from Rio de Janeiro to Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris, Air France CEO Pierre-Henri Gourgeon told a news conference.

The last known contact with the plane was at 1:33 a.m. GMT (8:33 p.m. Sunday night ET), according to the Brazilian Air Force.

Brazil says it has launched two air force squadrons to hunt near the archipelago of Fernando de Noronha in the Atlantic Ocean, 365 kilometers (226 miles) from its coast, although the plane vanished outside the country's radar coverage.

Flight AF 447, took off shortly after 7 p.m. Sunday local time (6 p.m. Sunday ET). It was carrying 126 men, 82 women, seven children and a baby, in addition to the crew, CNN affiliate BFM reported.

"I can say without doubt that this is a catastrophe," Gourgeon said, adding "the entire Air France company and its staff are very moved and affected by this."

A crisis center was being set up at Charles de Gaulle to deal with anxious relatives and friends waiting for news of passengers. Air France has also set up a hotline: 0800 800 812 in France, or +33 157021055 for international callers..

Airbus has opened a crisis room and their flight safety team is in place, a company spokesperson told CNN. Airbus is working closely with authorities and Air France, he said, declining to comment further.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy expressed his "very deep concern" and asked the government "to implement every effort to find the plane," according to a statement from his office.

Agence France-Presse quoted France's Environment Minister Jean Louis Borloo saying that it was extremely unlikely the plane had been hijacked.

Source CNN.Com

Qatar launches World Cup 2022 bid

NEW YORK — The swine flu virus that sickened a 9-year-old Ohio boy is the same strain as the one that has killed up to 86 people in Mexico, an emergency official said Sunday.
Laboratory tests by the Ohio Department of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed the case matches the deadly strain, said Lorain County Emergency Management Agency spokesman Clifton Barnes.

Health department spokesman Robert Jennings said the boy has a mild case of the disease and is recovering at his home in Elyria, in northern Ohio's Lorain County. The child's name was not released.
The third-grader visited several Mexican cities while on vacation with his family before ending the trip in Mexico City, Barnes said.
"He went to a fair, he went to a farm, he went to visit family around Mexico," Barnes said.
The boy, who returned from Mexico within the past two weeks, started feeling sick on Wednesday, Barnes said. He was treated for flu symptoms at a city health clinic, where an astute nurse practitioner began asking questions and realized he might have swine flu, Barnes said.

The child is a student at Ely Elementary School, according to a statement posted Sunday on the Elyria City Health District's Web site.
He attended school from Tuesday through Thursday last week and began receiving treatment on Friday, said Dr. Alvin Jackson, the director of the Ohio Department of Health.
Jackson and Gov. Ted Strickland spoke at a news conference Sunday, announcing that shipments of the antiviral drugs Relenza and Tamiflu would arrive from the federal government's Strategic National Stockpile as early as Tuesday. The drugs are being sent in case the outbreak spreads, Jackson said.
The child in Elyira displayed typical seasonal flu symptoms, including a sore throat and body aches, Jennings said. His family members are being tested for the disease, but they currently are in good health, Jennings said. He did not know if the child or his family had direct contact with pigs while they were in Mexico.

article source http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,518015,00.html