A Nurse Practitioner's View

Hi All, It has been awhile since I've last had a thoughtful blog post (a hectic personal life has a way of re-prioritizing things!) Though there's been no shortage of topics to write about. The heath care reform bill has gained momentum, mammogram screening guidelines were revised , and H1N1 vaccine and cases continue to make headlines. This is certainly an interesting time to be in health care. I look forward to seeing what the future brings and plan to be part of these discussions (or at least have something to say about them here on my blog). Till then......

With all the talk about H1N1 influenza, I think it;s important for folks to understand where the H1 and N1 come from. The "H" comes from the substance hemagglutinin and the "N" comes from neuraminidase . There have been identified influenza strains of the H and N types and this is how some influenza viruses are classified. The particular "swine" flu that has garnered so much attention is of the H1N1 type. A few years ago, the fear was of the avian type, H5N1. This past Spring, the Wall Street Journal Health Blog did a good job explaining some of the background regarding the naming of this particular strain of influenza. This may help us all understand the nomenclature and rationale behind what has become household names.