Rogelio Perez-Padilla talks with
ScienceWatch.com and answers a few questions about
this month's Fast Breaking Paper Paper in the field of Clinical
Medicine.
Article Title: Pneumonia and Respiratory Failure from
Swine-Origin Influenza A (H1N1) in Mexico
Authors: Perez-Padilla, R;de la Rosa-Zamboni,
D;de Leon, SP;Hernandez, M;Quinones-Falconi, F;Bautista,
E;Ramirez-Venegas, A;Rojas-Serrano, J;Ormsby, CE;Corrales,
A;Higuera, A;Mondragon, E;Cordova-Villalobos, JA;INER Working
Grp Influenza
Journal: N ENGL J MED, Volume: 361, Issue: 7, Page: 680-689,
Year: AUG 13 2009
* Inst Nacl Enfermedades Resp, Tlalpan 4502, Mexico City 14080,
DF, Mexico.
* Inst Nacl Enfermedades Resp, Mexico City 14080, DF,
Mexico. (addresses have been
truncated.)
Why do you think your paper is highly
cited?
The timing was very appropriate, as it was published in the middle of the
pandemic and was therefore a good source of information for many countries
where the outbreak was just starting. It provided important clinical
information regarding the influenza pandemic.
Does it describe a new discovery, methodology, or
synthesis of knowledge?
"We hope the pandemic ceases, but surely influenza
became a priority for clinical research and basic research
at our institution."
It was a timely synthesis of clinical features of the severe influenza,
including only routine clinical, radiological, pathological, and laboratory
features which were important to know because it was a new virus.
Would you summarize the significance of your paper
in layman's terms?
It alerted physicians, health personnel, and ministries of health of the
main clinical characteristics of severe flu, and, in many countries, it
helped prepare them for the influenza outbreak before it started. Indeed,
they knew the flu was coming, and the paper described the presentation of
the most severe cases.
How did you become involved in this research, and
were there any problems along the way?
Our institute was one of the first hospitals concentrating on patients with
severe influenza and therefore we had the experience that would soon be
needed elsewhere.
The problem was working on the paper while, at the same time, having an
increasing workload due to patients suffering from the influenza outbreak
in our hospital.
Where do you see your research leading in the
future?
We hope the pandemic ceases, but surely influenza became a priority for
clinical research and basic research at our institution. We've increased
the surveillance of respiratory viruses, the capability for identifying
variants, and are now in a better position for dealing with new outbreaks
of severe respiratory disease. We also participate in national and
international networks on influenza for research purposes.
Rogelio Perez-Padilla, M.D.
Director
Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Respiratorias
Mexico City, Mexico Web