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Virology Down Under

Facts, data, info, expert opinion and a reasonable, occasionally grumpy, voice on viruses: what they are, how they tick and the illnesses they may cause.

Category: Influenza

Elevate the Flu baseline

Posted onMarch 5, 2019June 11, 2019

Summer has technically ended in Australia (sure – go look at a temperature prediction!) and Flu spent all of it being abnormally active. The 2018 Flu season peaked in September Read More …

CategoriesInfluenzaTagsbaseline, H1N1, H3N2, lab testing, laboratory confirmed

Scared of the Dark risks

Posted onMarch 2, 2019March 3, 20192 Comments

Gain-of-function research of concern (GOFROC) virus research has returned to the news.[1] With it come fears of dark risks; we will either die from influenza without this research or die Read More …

CategoriesInfluenzaTagsGain of function, GOF

Flu vaccines can Save The Day

Posted onFebruary 26, 2019March 1, 2019

There is a strong relationship between heart failure and respiratory illness due to infection.[1] It makes good sense that if a safe way to prevent infection from developing into illness Read More …

CategoriesInfluenza, Vaccines & vaccinationTagscardiac failure, Heart failure

Starting a riot

Posted onFebruary 17, 2019March 1, 20191 Comment

Among last year’s many stories about influenza (Flu) deaths during the 1918 pandemic, we often heard about the secondary impact of bacteria; they complicate Flu virus infections, causing pneumonia and Read More …

CategoriesInfluenza

SunFluwer…

Posted onJanuary 21, 2019January 22, 2019

Just for fun, I thought I’d check in on Australia’s influenza tally again. I posted my last tally 3 days ago (Jan 18) and upon looking today (Jan 21), it’s Read More …

CategoriesInfluenzaTagsAustralia, influenza, seasonal influenza, summer

Flu keeps Australia under the weather

Posted onJanuary 11, 2019January 11, 2019

Influenza has been unseasonably hyperactive during Australia’s hotter and wetter months at the end of 2018 and the start of 2019. In what’s shaping up to be our biggest summer Read More …

CategoriesInfluenzaTagsAustralia, influenza virus, Queensland, seasonal influenza, summer

Influenza seasons are unpredictable: deal with it

Posted onOctober 11, 2018October 12, 2018

Mainstream Australian media are reporting that influenza cases in Australia have dropped by 83 per cent. Doctors have also said this is the result of science, guesswork and “a bit Read More …

CategoriesInfluenza, Vaccines & vaccinationTagsAustralia, influenza, seasonal influenza, vaccine, vaccine effectiveness

Only effective vaccines can protect us from respiratory viruses because we’re us

Posted onAugust 24, 2018August 25, 2018

As winter wraps up in Australia, it’s become quite clear that – barring a very unusual late burst of activity – the 2018 influenza (flu) season has passed Australia by with Read More …

CategoriesInfluenza, RhinovirusTagscommon cold, epidemic, Flu, household, influenza, outbreak, pandemic, respiratory viruses, vaccine

Flu is giving Australia a breather….

Posted onAugust 21, 2018August 25, 2018

August is the traditional Australian peak influenza (flu) month. The peak can move around a bit but it usually flu virus party time, followed in size by September. We’re two-thirds of Read More …

CategoriesInfluenzaTagsepidemiology, influenza, lab testing, molecular epidemiology

Influenza vaccines do have an effect and we need to do more to understand it

Posted onAugust 1, 2018October 15, 20183 Comments

Sometimes it’s hard to convey complex issues in a short-form article written for a general public audience. Other times, stories start off with an overly-simplified title they never recover from. Occasionally they lack any Read More …

CategoriesInfluenzaTagscommunication, effectiveness, influenza, science communication, vaccination

Queensland influenza keeping it cool….

Posted onJuly 20, 2018July 20, 2018

This week’s influenza (flu) data from Queensland’s Department of Health suggest that the virus is toying with Queenslanders – and much of Australia – this season. The total number of Read More …

CategoriesInfluenzaTagsAustralia, Flu, flu season, influenza, Queensland, Queensland Health

Influenza virus haemagglutination: a sticky technique that does a lot of lifting

Posted onJuly 15, 2018July 15, 20186 Comments

Haemagglutination (hemagglutination if you’re from the US) is the sticking (-agglutination) together of red blood cells (RBCs). Haem is the iron-containing, oxygen-transporting portion of haemoglobin, a molecule found in RBCs. This laboratory Read More …

CategoriesInfluenza

Reporting flu – tell the story don’t create fear…

Posted onJune 23, 2018April 11, 20195 Comments

“Flu cases jump by 256% in just five years” screams a newspaper headline from the Daily Mercury, a paywalled News Corp publication. It sure seems like scary stuff doesn’t it? Read More …

CategoriesInfluenzaTagsalarmist, Australia, headlines, influenza, media, seasonal influe

Flu vaccination and effective communication…

Posted onJune 7, 20181 Comment

A brief article about influenza (flu) vaccination appeared in the Conversation on Tuesday night. The piece, entitled “The flu vaccine is being oversold – it’s not that effective“, states that we Read More …

CategoriesInfluenza

The forgotten benefits of the flu vaccine…

Posted onJune 6, 2018June 7, 20182 Comments

A…surprising…article about influenza (flu) vaccination appeared in the Conversation today. The piece, entitled “The flu vaccine is being oversold – it’s not that effective“, tells us that we are being given Read More …

CategoriesInfluenza

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