# 2608
Tabloid style headlines are very popular around the world, and certainly that is true in the United Kingdom. Headlines sell papers, but they aren't always an accurate barometer of the contents of a news article.
They do, however, usually contain at least a hint of the truth. Some of the headlines I've seen in the past couple of days include.
'Killer' Australian flu strain set to spread across UK, experts warn Daily Mail, UK - Dec 29, 2008
KILLER FLU HITS BRITAIN UK Express
Flu expected to worsen as deadly Australian strain hits Europe Telegraph.co.uk
So what's the truth? Is there really a `killer flu' sweeping through Europe?
With provisions, the answer is sorta, yes.
There is no doubt that Europe in general, and the UK in particular, are seeing a bad flu season. It has reached near-epidemic levels at least a month earlier than usual, and these levels are likely not to peak until late January or February.
As many as 11 other European nations are reporting increasing numbers of influenza cases, and most of those appear to be due to H3N2 - the so-called Brisbane strain of the virus.
This strain first showed up in the summer of 2007 in Australia, and was responsible for a half-dozen child deaths. Since it was a new strain of the existing H3N2 virus, the vaccine in use last Winter did not cover it.
This year's vaccine does.
So, is this a `killer strain'?
All flu strains are killers of course, but this one does seem to be causing more severe illness than most recent seasonal strains. So, while the headlines are `hyped', it isn't without some basis.
The last really bad flu year in the UK was 1999, when 22,000 people reportedly died due to complication of influenza. That is 4 or 5 times higher than most years.
There are concerns that this year could approach those numbers.
I received an email this morning from a dear friend who happens to be a GP in the UK. He writes that his consultation rate has tripled in the past few weeks, and that he's seeing a lot of secondary bacterial infections on top of viral influenza-like infections - so-called "purulent bronchitis".
I've no doubt that this year is going to be a bad flu year, with more than the usual number of deaths associated with it in the UK.
So I guess calling it a `killer flu' isn't that far off.
Still, I find myself a little uncomfortable by the use of that sort of hyperbole. It seems, somehow, excessive.
Call it an editorial decision. A matter of style.
I think that certain words and phrases lose their impact when they are used too cavalierly. I prefer to save `high impact' words for when I really want people to pay attention.
Like profanity, I feel that they are generally most effective when used sparingly.
Just a side note for my American readers. So far, the H3N2 Brisbane virus doesn't appear to be making much of an impact here in the states, as most of the flu cases identified so far are of the H1N1 variety.
That could change as the season progresses, however.
