Do you think swine flu will be a pandemic?

By current definition in terms of worldwide distribution, swine flu is already a pandemic. (That definition means sustained spread in at least two separate parts of the world -- currently North America, South America, Europe, and Australia.) However, because swine flu has turned out to be no deadlier than regular flu, the World Health Organization has not declared a pandemic and is considering changing the definition of a pandemic to indicate the severity of a disease as well as its spread. Right now, swine flu is not a serious threat, and a formal pandemic declaration is unlikely.

However, there is a chance that it could follow the pattern of the 1918 flu pandemic (a relatively mild off-season wave, followed by a flu season that killed as many as 40 million people worldwide), so swine flu will continue to be closely monitored. By current definition in terms of worldwide distribution, swine flu is already a pandemic. (That definition means sustained spread in at least two separate parts of the world -- currently North America, South America, Europe, and Australia.) However, because swine flu has turned out to be no deadlier than regular flu, the World Health Organization has not declared a pandemic and is considering changing the definition of a pandemic to indicate the severity of a disease as well as its spread.

Right now, swine flu is not a serious threat, and a formal pandemic declaration is unlikely. However, there is a chance that it could follow the pattern of the 1918 flu pandemic (a relatively mild off-season wave, followed by a flu season that killed as many as 40 million people worldwide), so swine flu will continue to be closely monitored. You can leave an optional "tip" with Mahalo's virtual currency, Mahalo Dollars.

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