Swine Flu Reaches Queens

The swine flu has reached Queens, apparently, as eight cases at a particular school have been reported. The school is getting a thorough bleaching as we speak by masked janitors.

It is being said that the strange thing about this outbreak, seen most strikingly in the numbers of cases in Mexico, is that it is afflicting mostly the young and relatively healthy. 

I did some research. Influenza outbreaks tend to sicken the infants and elders among us. That's not news. What's known as the Spanish Flu Pandemic mostly killed the young and healthy, a fact that was odd in its time. Estimates on fatalities from that pandemic range from 20 million to as high as 100 million. 99% of those killed or infected were between the ages of 18 and 60, and the percentage is around 85 for those between 18 and 45 years old.

Researchers are thinking that in the Spanish Flu Pandemic, and possibly what's happening with this swine flu, is that the influenza virus strain is creating a cytokine storm in afflicted patients. A cytokine storm is when the immune system goes into overdrive and eventually damages the tissue it has been sent to defend. This seems to make sense looking at the ages of those who died, as those with vigorous immune systems will be at a higher risk.

You see all kinds of weird crap in the City...if it's not manhole covers that electrocute dogs, or fashion models trampling each other to death, it'll be an infectious disease...

Please don't worry about us in Brooklyn. We keep clean, have masks if necessary, and rarely venture into Queens.