A French cat with "swine flu"

It's a slightly different take perhaps to begin with on the "swine flu" - or H1N1/influenza A as it's more commonly called here - epidemic in France.

The first case of a domestic pet coming down with the flu, confirmed last week by the director general of health, Didier Houssin.

The sick animal is a cat in the Bouches-du-Rhône département in the south of France and belonging to a family that had also been suffering from the flu.

The vet taking care of it had apparently found the cat to have bronchial pneumonia and diagnosed flu.

No need to panic though that the nation's pets will soon be victim to the same epidemic that has already seen the death of 150 people in this country (according to official statistics released by the health ministry on Wednesday) as it is for the moment just an isolated case.

"There have been several cases of this type abroad in pig and dogs in China recently," said Houssin.

"And then a cat in the United States," he continued before usefully adding that the best way to avoid pets falling victim to the flu was for "people who owned them to get themselves vaccinated."

Ah yes. The vaccination process which started off tentatively in October among health professionals and then a couple of weeks later was extended to certain sectors of the general public according to a priority list of those most susceptible to the possible effects of the flu such as those with nursing infants, children, expectant mothers and people with respiratory problems.

Where does the country stand at the moment?

Well the 3,000 special vaccination centres set up to "handle the hordes" were pretty underused during the first few weeks but then of course the French panicked somewhat and there were reported cases of some people waiting more than three hours before being able to get themselves (and/or their children) vaccinated.

From that slow start though, almost 3.8 million people have now been vaccinated, and the health minister, Roselyne Bachelot, expects the number to reach four million by the end of the week.

And she's obviously hoping that the numbers will increase significantly especially as the rest of the general public have started to receive their "official invitations" required before they can make their way to a vaccination centre.

While the figures for those consulting their doctors with suspected symptoms of the H1N1 had, according to official figures, stabilised over the past week, Bachelot warned against any general complacency.

"You should know that in general, outbreaks of flu evolve in waves and it is very possible that more waves will follow," she said.

"What the experts say is the second wave is often more virulent than the first."

The French do-it-yourself online swine flu test

So you've got a cough or maybe are running a temperature and you think you might be coming down with "swine flu" (H1N1 or influenza A as it's more commonly called in France).

Well now (for those living here) there's a simple online test to determine whether the symptoms you have are cause for concern.

Quizz-grippe.fr has been developed by a team of four medical and web experts, who insist that the site is completely independent of financial, political and commercial interests and allows users to determine for themselves whether the symptoms (if any) they, or other members of their family, have are in any way those that might indicate H1N1.


The test is a simple one in which "every symptom is given a weighting" says Christophe Gareyte, one of those behind the site.

"And that's based on how often it occurs among those who've already had influenza A."

In other words it's still possible that someone has the flu even if they don't have a fever of 38 degrees celsius which occurs in around 75 per cent of influenza A cases, especially if they have enough of the other symptoms.

Before filling in the quick questionnaire users are warned that the "results" cannot be taken as a substitute for a proper examination by a doctor.

And then it's time to take the test.

Based initially on a number of criteria such as age, sex, where you live (only available to French postal codes of course) the "quiz" then asks what initial symptoms there have been - from coughing and a sore throat to fever and fatigue, before moving on to a second list of symptoms such as sensitivity to light or sudden panic attacks.

Click on any (or none) before passing on to the next step to determine what sort of cough you have and a final set of questions asking when symptoms first started occurring and whether you've had a vaccination for seasonal flu and/or against H1N1 itself.

A last click gives users the result with a reminder to consult a doctor if symptoms persist (in the case of influenza not being detected) or to dial an emergency number when "according to the information you provided you show signs that suggest you have the flu".

An innovative use of the Internet and a useful tool to reassure users without of course replacing the need when appropriate for a visit to the doctor?

Or an example of the general public being encouraged to self-diagnose symptoms and perhaps working themselves into an unnecessary frenzy?

You be the judge.

France steps up H1N1 vaccination campaign

A large proportion of a still sceptical French public will decide for itself this week whether to be inoculated against "swine flu" (H1N1 or influenza A as it's more commonly called here) as the government's vaccination campaign steps up a notch.

On Monday the health minister, Roselyne Bachelot, announced that over one thousand special centres would be open from November 12 and around six million French would be receiving letters this week encouraging them to go along and get vaccinated.

Among those given priority in the next stage of vaccinating the population at large are parents and childminders of infants under six months of age, health workers who haven't yet had the jab and the "more vulnerable" among the French especially those with respiratory problems.

From the second half of November until the end of the month letters will be sent out to other sectors of the population according to their perceived level of risk.

Pregnant women, who are also considered a priority, will have to wait until the vaccine that doesn't contain the chemical additive adjuvant is given the government's green light, while vaccination of the country's 12 million school children is scheduled to begin from November 25, with the education minister, Luc Chatel, stressing last weekend that it would be entirely voluntary with the decision being left to parents.

Adults over the age of 18 and in good health will be the last to receive a letter inviting them to be vaccinated.

So all well and good with the government finally delivering on its promise to be in a position to vaccinate the entire population.

It has in total ordered 94 million doses of the vaccine.

But in spite of the government's campaign and an increase in the both the number of confirmed cases in recent weeks and deaths reported linked to the H1N1 virus, the French seem to remain largely unimpressed with the most recent poll indicating that only 21 per cent of them intended to get themselves vaccinated.

And although Bachelot remains upbeat about the 10 per cent of health professionals who have so far voluntarily turned up for the jab since the vaccination became available to them as a priority last month, even she has had to admit that the figure is "insufficient".

France gets the jab as flu vaccination starts

The campaign to vaccinate France's population against "swine flu" (H1N1 or influenza A as it's more commonly called here) began on Tuesday.

And first in line to be injected are the one million or so health professionals working in hospitals.

They've been given priority in the government's campaign, but from the evidence of the reports carried on both the country's major television prime time news broadcasts in the evening, they (the medical professionals) were hardly queuing around the block in anticipation.

In fact as the health minister, Roselyne Bachelot, pitched up at the Necker hospital in Paris to launch the campaign, just 20 doctors and nurses were waiting to be vaccinated - sorely outnumbered by the camera crews and photographers on hand to record and report the event.

The problem it appears is that many of them are sceptical of the vaccine's efficacy and wary of the potential side effects.

Bachelot though was on hand to put an upbeat spin on things, emphasising the importance of getting vaccinated and rejecting contradictory reports from some experts who've questioned the benefits of the vaccine, the speed with which it has been produced and its possible side effects.


Moreover she was adamant that hospital workers had an obligation to both themselves and patients to be vaccinated.

"Medical professionals are indispensable for looking after the sick and therefore it's necessary to protect them to be able to preserve our health service which could be put under pressure if the epidemic intensifies," she said.

"Doctors and nurses are in close contact with those among us who are most susceptible to infection so getting vaccinated is an act of responsibility to oneself and to others," she added.

The message is having a hard time getting across not just to those working in hospitals but also to the public at large it seems.

The French remain largely reticent with recent polls showing that between 60 and 65 per cent of them have no intention of getting themselves inoculated when the vaccine becomes available to the general public at the beginning of November.

And they're hardly helped by family doctors either, just over half of whom have said they won't be heeding the call to turn up at one of the 3,000 centres specially set up to administer the vaccine.

Although only anecdotal a couple of weeks ago this particular resident was presented with the dilemma most of us are likely to face at the beginning of November.

It happened while he was getting his annual jab against seasonal flu from his GP and inevitably the conversation turned towards H1N1.

"So will you be going along to one of the centres to get vaccinated?" he asked his doctor.

"No," came the simple reply. "And nor will any of my colleagues."

If those who are supposed to know about the benefits of the vaccine can't agree among themselves, how are the rest of us supposed to make an informed decision?

Divisions in France of over dangers of H1N1 virus

There are two quite different perspectives that have appeared in France over the past couple of days on the same story: perhaps reflecting the attitude held by many people here and elsewhere over the real dangers associated with "swine flu" - or "grippe A" (influenza A) as it's called in France.

In Sunday's edition of le Journal du Dimanche there was an interview with one of this country's most well-known doctors and a member of parliament for the centre-right Union pour un Mouvement Populaire (Union for a Popular Movement, UMP) professor Bernard Debré.

He played down the dangers of the (H1N1) virus and accused the government of over-reacting and responding to media pressure.

The following day there was a reply from fellow UMP member and minister of health, Roselyne Bachelot, who insisted in an interview with the national daily, le Figaro, that the government's response was measured and appropriate.

The crux of the matter as far as Debré is concerned is that the current strain is no more dangerous than seasonal flu and in fact could be less threatening.

Part of the problem, he insists, is the reaction there has been to the latest outbreak in light of the so-called bird flu which he describes as "Being very dangerous to human beings with a mortality rate of 60 to 65 per cent but at the same time less contagious because it's difficult to cross from species to species."

"This (H1N1) flu isn't dangerous. We've even realised that it could be less threatening than seasonal flu," he said.

"At the moment there have been around 800 deaths worldwide and the southern hemisphere has undoubtedly reached its peak of contamination," he added.

"Of course the virus could become more virulent, but that's not the opinion that has been expressed by a majority of virologists."

Debré says that the reaction from the French government has to an extent only served to increase fear among the general public. But at the same time he admits that governments around the world have had their hands forced somewhat.

"From the moment the World Health Organisation started issuing daily reports and holding press conferences, governments really didn't have an option but to follow that lead," he told le Journal du Dimanche.

"It's my contention that the French government has come under pressure because of the political over-dramatisation within the media of the risks the virus presents."

The flip side of the argument of course comes from Bachelot, who told le Figaro that as far as she was concerned the government's reaction to the threat had been the right one.

"I treat this pandemic very seriously and I don't base my approach on the opinion of politicians or try to make a media splash," she said.

"From the beginning I've consulted the most renowned and respected experts - French and European - and if we look at what they have had to say in the media about the government's response to this health crisis, they point to it having been in proportion and correct."

In answering Debré's assertion that the virus isn't dangerous and is no more harmful than the possible effects of seasonal flu, Bachelot perhaps not surprisingly, is more cautious.

She admits that the virus might not be particularly harmful at the moment, but its ability to spread quickly requires that governments have a system in place that can cope with a wider outbreak.

And for Bachelot, the threat lies in the potential rate of infection based on statistics for those who catch seasonal flu.

"On average seasonal flu kills around 2,500 people in France - among 2,5 million people who catch it," she says.

"Some experts say that this virus could lead to around 20 million people becoming ill and that presents a potentially serious problem to public health even if the virus remains relatively harmless in many cases."

The number of cases of "grippe A" reported here in France so far has been 483, of which none has been deadly.