Starts out like flu; ends up in organ failure and death

[Th1onein]

Mystery flu-like Illness In Houston Area Kills 50% Of Patients (VIDEO)
December 18, 2013 by Egberto Willies ------------------------

Eight people in the Houston area have contracted a mysterious disease. The patients exhibit flu-like and pneumonia-like symptoms. Four of them have died so far. KHOU11 is reporting that

The investigation into a mysterious illness in Montgomery County is expanding as other hospitals and doctors report similar cases.

The new case files are being reviewed for similarity to the eight at Conroe Regional Medical Center that prompted a Montgomery County Health Department investigation.

http://egbertowillies.com/2013/12/18/flu-like-mystery-illness-houston-area/

This was in April:

New Flu that causes hemorrhagic Fever and organ failure now in Germany –

Undiagnosed illness – respiratory, fatal; Biohazard level: 4/4 Hazardous!!!
April 14th, 2013

A 49 year old policeman is dead, 5 other persons are ill and doctors are puzzled by this mysterious disease just outside of Hamburg. Andreas Breitner, Minister of the Interior, confirmed to the “Schleswig Holstein newspaper” the death of the 49-year-old policeman at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE) on Tuesday (9 Apr 2013), after multi-organ failure. Another policeman, aged 38 years is in critical condition. He is suffering from similar flu symptoms, including severe pneumonia. A teacher from the Schacht Audorf area near Rendsburg has also died of multi-organ failure in the UKE, and according to unconfirmed reports, 3 other persons from the same region are seriously ill. All are suffering from flu-like symptoms but the doctors do not know what disease is affecting them.

Read more at http://investmentwatchblog.com/new-flu-that-causes-hemorrhagic-fever-and-organ-failure-now-in-germany-undiagnosed-illness-respiratory-fatal-biohazard-level-44-hazardous/#aT4L6lAaOzE7U3s1.99

[The Straight Story]

1. Wonder if anyone in Arnette, TX has is it?

[Egalitarian Thug]

6. Captain Trips. My first thought as well. n/t

[Brigid]

12. My first thought too.

King says this is not his favorite among all his novels, but it is mine. Too bad it seems to be coming at least partially true!

[Moostache]

15. Two MAJOR coincidences for me here...

1) I just started re-reading The Stand about a week ago...

It is one of my all-time favorite King stories and I love the characters and the story. It is one of a handful of books that I have read more than once all the way through, but I have actually read this book in its entirety 5 separate times so far!

2) I just recovered from a 36-hour bout of stomach flu-like symptoms quite literally TODAY!

Had I read this yesterday, I might have been quite panicked!

As a general aside though, we cannot continue to rape the natural world, modify the climate in unpredictable ways and still think that human life will go on unaffected. In addition to the physical effects of climate change like melting ice, disappearing glaciers, rising sea levels and droughts that bake the land in huge swaths; we must also face the very real possibility of emergent diseases that may make the Spanish Flu or even the Plague seem like the common cold. When you consider the collapsing effectiveness of antibiotics and the emerging threats of communicable diseases in tandem, it truly is a frightening future we are heading into for sure...

[dballance]

20. We must all be cynics. I was thinking the same thing.

Bioweapon released.

[Aerows]

25. First thing I thought

We must think alike, or at least read the same books.

[The Straight Story]

26. Have the dvd, read the book, listened to it on tape, and have the comic book adaption

Which was quite fun.

[Aerows]

27. Have the hard back

extended edition book. I'm into books.

[ismnotwasm]

32. You just screwed up my night man

Yikes

[TwilightGardener]

2. You would think this would be huge news--CDC involved, quarantines.

[polichick]

5. The deadly powassan virus hit this year in NY and the DC area...

and it didn't make the news. Chuck Schumer put out a press release and made some appearances about it and that's how I heard.

[BlueToTheBone]

8. This is in Germany

so CDC wouldn't be involved, I don't think.

[Th1onein]

10. It's also in Montgomery County, Texas

See the new link, first article.

[BlueToTheBone]

17. Oh wow!

Thanks. I didn't read that. Where is the CDC?

[nadinbrzezinski]

19. Involved

http://afludiary.blogspot.com/2013/12/texas-mchd-on-deaths-from-unidentified.html

Samples have been sent

[grahamhgreen]

31. Atlanta

[BlueToTheBone]

38. Isn't that where the CDC offices?

That seems really weird that they don't notice what's happening in their own back yard.

[BlueToTheBone]

40. Okay.

It was in Texas and CDC is in Atlanta. lol I need to reread all the posts before answering. At first I thought that you meant Atlanta in Montgomery County . Thanks for the laugh.

[darkangel218]

52. lol!!!

[derby378]

3. Yikes!

I survived swine flu back in 2009; we don't need to deal with this shit as well.

[nadinbrzezinski]

30. On the bright side you should be 100% inoculated

Swine flu, same strain you got.

http://www.khou.com/news/local/Health-officials-Conroe-patient-with-mystery-illness-diagnosed-with-H1N1--236459811.html

[derby378]

58. I hope you're right...

I thought many types of immunity came with a limited shelf life, hence the annual flu vaccinations.

[nadinbrzezinski]

59. Not sure, but I think that since you got the actual critter, not the shot

you maintain some immunity for the rest of your life.

[marmar]

4. Scary stuff.

[WillyT]

7. K & R !!!

[Demo_Chris]

11. A 50% mortality rate is incredible. nt

[ProdigalJunkMail]

14. well, maybe it will kill you next

then we won't have to read posts about how good the death of millions or billions would be for the planet...

sP

[boomer55]

16. It might I'm just another animal on the planet.

[WinkyDink]

28. Ha--And a young one too, I'd wager.

[WinkyDink]

24. Is that you, Prince Phillip?

"In the event that I am reincarnated, I would like to return as a deadly virus, to contribute something to solving overpopulation." (1988)

[lumberjack_jeff]

51. Or if it selectively targets misanthropes. n/t

[darkangel218]

53. Wtf???

Why would you say that?? Please delete!!

[nadinbrzezinski]

18. Emerging diseases are always fun, not!!!!

Stories of this (not Houston, Germany) were on Mexican news channels.

[CoffeeCat]

21. Interesting that the caregivers...

...have not come down with this illness. The parents of the daughter who died, seem healthy. There was no additional reporting, other than those parents, about the disease spreading to those close to the victims.

Several unknowns right now--like how contagious is it? What is the r-nought?

Seems like most of the cases are spread out, for now.

A 50 percent death rate is extraordinary. Hundreds of thousands died in the 1918 Influenza Pandemic, and the death rate (for those who contracted the illness) was much lower than 50 percent.

This current illness sounds very dangerous.

[grahamhgreen]

33. 1918 Influenza Pandemic killed an estimated 20 million to 50 million worldwide....

[CoffeeCat]

35. I know! And those numbers are high...

...and what is shocking--is that the 1918 Pandemic killed 50 million--and the death rate was much lower for that flu. It didn't kill 50 percent of those who got it. I'm not sure of the 1918 death-rate number, but it was lower than 50 percent.

This illness in Texas kills 50 percent--a death rate much higher than a previous, historical pandemic.

Scary.

[tblue37]

34. My daughter is a doctor in Houston. Her "day job'" is as the flight surgeon for

Virgin Galactic, but she also moonlights a few times per month in hospital emergency departments, so I hope that it continues to hold true that caregivers don't catch it and die!

[CoffeeCat]

36. Your daughter is a flight surgeon...

for Virgin Galactic? Holy buckets. That is amazing and very intriguing. You must be proud beyond repair. Not only is she a *doctor* but she has a cool job like that! Your daughter is a space surgeon! Awesome!

And I hope she stays well and safe! I find it curious that this illness is so deadly, but apparently not that contagious.

[Marrah_G]

45. You must be VERY proud of her!

What an accomplishment

[CFLDem]

55. Wow

Very impressive!

[Marrah_G]

44. Most viruses are not easily transmitted, it takes some doing

Doctors and nurses are much more vigilant these days about universal procedures and most of the time, this will avoid catching it.

50 percent is huge.

BUT.... you then have to figure in the time it takes for symptoms to show (the longer it takes the more chances to spread) and how easily it is transfered among people.

Also, they don't even know if it's human to human contagious. It could be crossovers from rodents or bats.

[WinkyDink]

22. Ebola variant?

[CoffeeCat]

37. I'm not a doctor...

...but I imagine that anything Ebola-related would have a higher death rate. Isn't the death rate from Ebola around 95 percent?

I have no idea--just thinking out loud on the inter tubes!

The thought of Ebola combining with a flu strain is intriguing though. Woah, that would be something.

I read "The Hot Zone" and Ebola is one illness that I would like to avoid. It's like the Godzilla of the pathogen world.

[Th1onein]

48. If I'm not mistaken, it's 50%

[Marrah_G]

54. It depends on the strain

Reston has 0% where as Zaire is up around 90%. Sudan is somewhere in the middle.

[WinkyDink]

56. Yes, "The Hot Zone" was a too-real thriller.

[Marrah_G]

43. Probably not

Ebola kills it's hosts to quickly to ever really spread. There are a ton of other things it could be and could even be something unknown, that just jumped species. I'm sure the WHO is all over it.

[nadinbrzezinski]

23. Swine flu, diagnosis just came through

http://www.khou.com/news/local/Health-officials-Conroe-patient-with-mystery-illness-diagnosed-with-H1N1--236459811.html

[winter is coming]

29. For one patient. Two of the other surviving patients tested negative for all flu viruses.

So they're chasing more than one thing. Or perhaps the tests had something wrong with them, but it sounds like they're going to repeat the tests.

[CoffeeCat]

41. Yes, the article mentions that the early-flu tests are unreliable...

....so they're re-testing.

However, for all of them to test negatively--is very odd. How could a flu test be *that* unreliable?

This is so early, and everything is happening so quickly. It's going to be an information cluster*uck for a long while. Unfortunately.

Either this is all a series of horrible coincidences (with the 50 percent death rate) or this is the beginning of a very dire situation. That's the big issue (in my mind anyway). Tens of thousands die from the flu every year. So four deaths is not cause for alarm. But an illness with a 50 percent death rate is.

I guess we just need time to figure out what we have here.

[winter is coming]

42. Two of them testing negative for all flu viruses make me wonder if the lab messed up the sample,

somehow. I'm hoping that this turns out to be H1N1 and there were other factors making it more dangerous that we're not aware of yet. (Perhaps there's been a lot of milder cases we haven't heard about.) If it's a dangerous H1N1 mutation, or some novel virus...

[Th1onein]

49. They've changed the test; using a more costly one now.

Probably more accurate, too.

[winter is coming]

57. I hope the new test is positive. I think. It's not good, no matter what, but if it's at least

something we've already got a produced vaccine for, that's got to be good news.

[REP]

60. There's a variant coronavirus that's been causing problems

I had it earlier this year; by sheer luck I was admitted into the hospital with cellulitis at the time (I had the virus when admitted; the cellulitis was from pasturella). Coronavirus symptoms are very similar to influenza.

[winter is coming]

61. Didn't know that. Thanks. Hope you're all better now. n/t

[CoffeeCat]

39. Wow, very curious...lots of unanswered questions.

All of them tested negative, initially for the flu. I find that odd. The article discussed the poor reliability of early flu tests, but a near 100 percent failure rate? Does this mean something? I'm wondering if this flu is so debilitating that it doesn't have to progress that much to be lethal. I wonder if these people went downhill quickly, or went from "flu-like symptoms" to death rapidly?

The article also mentions that "doctors are seeing hundreds of cases in Texas and nationwide." It would be helpful to know if there are MORE in Texas, than just the handful reported? Are there more? "Hundreds" of cases nationwide is not unusual. It's typical. However, if there is a larger cluster in Texas, that's big news. The article does say that "18" more cases came into the Conroe Medical Center in Houston. Wish the reporting was clearer on that.

I think it will be a while before we have clarity. So much is happening, and the reporting can be dodgy when events are unfolding quickly.

It's just bizarre that 4 have died. Is that just a fluke? These were healthy middle-aged people.

[nadinbrzezinski]

46. Early in the outbreak in a Mexico it looked like this.

But hey, we will see how our health officials respond.

[mainer]

47. This year's flu shot said to be protective

according to the Houston Chronicle, this year's flu shot will protect against this H1N1 virus. None of the dead patients had had a flu shot.

[mainer]

50. Yet another death, but in North Texas

A 30-year-old man. Might also be swine flu.

http://www.khou.com/news/texas-news/North-Texas-man-dies-of-swine-flu-could-be-mystery-illness-from-Houston-236558201.html

[mainer]

62. IMPORTANT UPDATE: 6 people dead, 14 critical

More deaths, now identified as H1N1.

http://www.kens5.com/news/H1N1-kills-6-people-leaves-14-critically-ill-in-Texas-236706281.html

[Eleanors38]

63. Some considerations: Montgomery Co. includes the

160,000-acre Sam Houston Nat'l Forrest. It is the largest and nearest public hunting land for Houston-are folks. Many deer and feral hogs in the tri-county area of the forrest.

On the other hand, developers are trying to establish "resort" presence in the Lake Conroe area which will appeal to international travelers.