Alere i Isothermal Amplification.pdf

Alere i Isothermal Amplification Norman Moore, Ph.D. Director of Scientific Affairs norman.moore@ The old thinking. . . “it’s just the flu” A bit of history There are flu epidemics every 1 to 3 years for at least the last 400 years. Pandemics (worldwide) occur around every 10 to 20 years. History Hippocrates described flu back in the 5th century. Columbus brought a devastating flu on his second voyage to the new world. Spanish flu of 1918-1919 was the single greatest epidemic in history. ? 50 to 100 million people were killed (3-6% of the world’s population!) ? Another 500 million were infected (1/3rd of the world’s population) Influenza Disease Burden Estimated average global burden of seasonal influenza ? 600 million cases per year ? 3 million cases of severe illness ? 250,000 – 500,000 deaths Concern is highest in ? The very young, the elderly ? persons with underlying health conditions ? pregnant women WHO Report: Acute Respiratory Infections (Update September 2009) Burden on Healthcare Industry Flu causes 30-50% increase in primary care consultations 2-3 fold increase in hospital admissions during epidemics 10% of all sickness absences from work Impact in industrialised countries: ? US$10-60 million / million population Lost productivity: ? US$12 billion / annum in US alone Influenza A versus Influenza B Influenza A ? More severe disease than B ? Can cause disease in a wide variety of animals Influenza B ? Causes a milder flu, usually in the spring months Treating Respiratory Diseases in the Emergency Department Is the pathogen bacterial or viral? Influenza and pneumonia symptoms can overlap dramatically Who do you test? If it is flu season, do you test for other pathogens? What do you test them for? Different age groups are linked to different pathogens. Can treatment be impacted if the appropriate testing is done? Stop indiscriminate use broad spectrum antibiotics. Misus