Bird Flu: Science and Policy

[Biowatch]

WHO prepares way for pandemic declaration

Fergus Walsh | 21:25 UK time, Tuesday, 9 June 2009

>>When is a pandemic not a pandemic?

When the World Health Organization says so.

...It's true that the word "pandemic" sounds scary. But it simply means a global epidemic of an infectious disease.

It is not a signal that the virus is getting more virulent; it has nothing to do with severity; rather, it is a measure of geographical spread. And we must remember that the vast majority of people who get H1N1 swine flu have a mild illness... <<

http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/thereporters/ferguswalsh/