SUMMARY: The rapid increase in swine flu cases in the United Kingdom has forced it to abandon containment efforts and move into a “treatment phase.” People reporting symptoms will now be prescribed anti-viral drugs without screening or being seen by a doctor. English health secretary Andy Burnham said the number of new cases could reach 100,000 a day by the end of August.

STORY LINK: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/8130097.stm

ANALYSIS: The unfortunate reality is that influenza is virtually impossible to contain.  Absent significant, unprecedented restrictions of movement and an enforced and lengthy period of social distancing, the flu will spread as it has throughout history.  Even with the current aggressive efforts at measuring the flu’s spread, the numbers reported are likely to be vastly lower than the actual rate; influenza is infectious before symptoms emerge and laboratory confirmation of H1N1 takes days at best.

The pressing question remains not whether the H1N1 flu will spread, but in what form and virulence and with what other seasonal influenza.  The need for planning, preparation and precautions endures.