Officials of Sanofi-Pasteur Inc., a pharmaceutical company based in the Philippines said in an interview with GMA 7 reported that there stock of flu vaccines had been running out. More people a getting flu vaccines believing that it can prevent them from getting the Influenza A(H1N1) virus.
Rio Buquid, a key account specialist of the pharmaceutical firm, told that in comparison of the previous years, the demand for flu vaccinces have increased dramatically. The increase in demand has been attributed to virus scare of Influenza A(H1N1).
Buquid said Sanofi-Pasteur is trying to get affiliates from other sources in providing supplemental stocks of the vaccine to the Philippines. Presently the has the highest number of A(H1N1) cases in Southeast Asia.
Dr. Yolanda Oliveros, director of the Department of Health's National Center for Disease Prevention and Control, said she has also received reports of flu vaccine stocks running out.
She said there was nothing wrong with more people wanting to get flu shots, but she cautioned the public against having a "false sense of protection against A(H1N1) because these vaccines do not give that."
Dr. Oliveros told that the vaccines presently available in the market just protect people from regular seasonal flu and not the A(H1N1) virus. However, she said the increased demand for flu vaccines – which does not prevent A(H1N1) infection in the first place – could still help prevent the flu scare from getting worse.
For one, more people getting flu shots would prevent “re-assortment," which happens when the A(H1N1) virus mutates. Buquid explained that when the A(H1N1) virus gets in contact with a person who is already sick with seasonal flu, it could produce yet another new strain.
“The A(H1N1) could still form new hybrids," she further added.
Buquid said the A(H1N1) virus is itself a hybrid that was formed when a regular swine flu virus got mixed with the seasonal flu virus of humans. She quoted experts as saying that the A(H1N1) virus could have originated from a person who was already suffering from the regular human flu.
“Kasi kung wala namang flu ang tao, hindi mare-recognize ng katawan niya ang flu virus na galing sa baboy [The virus could have only mutated in a person already suffering from flu]," Buquid said.
In a way, the increasing demand for flu vaccines has helped the government because the number of people stricken by flu has gone down, Oliveros said.
“The burden on our health system is reduced. Not so many people go to facilities because many are already protected," said Oliveros. With fewer flu patients, the government can maximize its health resources, she added.
As of Friday, the Philippine tally of A(H1N1) cases has remained locked at 344, with 262 patients fully recovered. Some schools have decided to go into a 10-day class suspension, while most have already gone back to their regular calendar.
source: GMANews.TV
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