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Monash University > News and Events > Monash Memo
Lessons learned from H1N1 virus pandemic
21 October 2009
A comprehensive study has revealed the impact of swine flu on the health of the general public in Australia and New Zealand.
The lessons learned in Intensive Care Units (ICUs) across the two countries are being shared with countries in the Northern Hemisphere to help them prepare for their upcoming flu season.
The three-month study, conducted at the height of the pandemic between June and August, revealed 722 patients were admitted to ICUs and that at the peak of the epidemic up to 20 per cent of ICU beds were occupied by patients with swine flu.
The study was co-coordinated by the Monash-based Australian and New Zealand Intensive Care Research Centre (ANZIC-RC).
Dr Ian Seppelt, a specialist in Intensive Care Medicine and based at Sydney's Nepean Hospital, said the impact of the virus on ICUs across Australia and New Zealand was dramatic.
"The most severely affected patients had pneumonia affecting both lungs that was caused by the virus," he said.
"The number of patients admitted to ICUs with this complication represented a 600 per cent increase compared to previous years."
Associate Professor Steve Webb from the Intensive Care Unit at Royal Perth Hospital said that unlike previous seasonal influenza strains, which impacted heavily on elderly people and people with pre-existing medical conditions, the H1N1 virus affected infants, middle-aged people, pregnant women, the overweight, and Indigenous patients.
"Overall, about one-third of patients admitted to an ICU because of swine flu had no underlying health problems," he said.
Director of Intensive Care Research at Austin Health Professor Rinaldo Bellomo said many countries in the Northern Hemisphere would benefit from the lessons learned in Australia and New Zealand.
"Fortunately a vaccine is now available to prevent the complications of swine flu," he said.
"It is important that the community, especially those with risk factors, consider being vaccinated."
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