Swine flu causing ‘undue’ alarm

FISHERSVILLE – More flu infections are likely as the result of the new strain known as swine flu, but the effects are expected to vary little from the seasonal variety, local health officials said Wednesday.

Concerns about the H1N1 virus have swirled as students have returned to classrooms, which health experts describe as a breeding ground for swine flu. Those worries escalated here when two R.E. Lee High School students came down with the virus – they’ve since returned to class.

Their quick recovery underscored a point local health and school officials sought to make during a news conference at Augusta Health: The virus is prominent but not dramatically different than the seasonal flu.

“It has caused a lot of alarm and undue concern among citizens,” said Doug Larsen, director of the Central Shenandoah Health District.

Still, national health experts warn that a spike in the number of infections increases the potential for flu deaths. That prospect has spawned plans for mass vaccinations that could rival the polio push some 40 years ago.

The H1N1 vaccine is expected to be available in mid to late October, Larsen said.

In the meantime, vigilance and good hygiene are effective safeguards, area health officials said.

“It is something that we need to be concerned about, but it isn’t something that we need to be panicked about,” said Dr. Randy Robinson, chairman of infection control at Augusta Health.

Symptoms of the H1N1 virus include body aches, sore throat and a fever of at least 101 degrees, said Dr. Fred Costello, senior vice president for medical affairs and the chief medical officer at Augusta Health.

For more severe symptoms, such as a flu lasting more than three or four days, a lingering cough, diarrhea and cramps, Costello recommends a trip to the doctor. He said the hospital has treated seven presumed cases of the H1N1 virus, with one pediatric patient and three still hospitalized.

“Most patients who get this probably don’t need to come to the doctor,” Costello said.

The vast majority of people, he said, can stay home, take Tylenol, drink lots of fluids and wash their hands and be back to work or school within a few days. The strain has show some resistance to Tamiflu, Larsen said.

Those at higher risk are young people six months to 24 years old, Larsen said. A recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report noted that one in 13 U.S. H1N1 virus deaths have been among children, most of them schoolage.

Through Sept. 4, the CDC has reported 593 deaths associated with the H1N1 virus. There have been more prevalent outbreaks on college campuses across the U.S. as students have returned to school.

Hand sanitizers have been placed in local classrooms and custodians are using disinfecting agents to keep buildings clean, superintendents at Waynesboro, Staunton and Augusta County schools said. In addition, staffers are tracking absentee students to find out why they’re not in school, as well as logging cases of students going to the nurse. That work is essential to following and containing the strain’s spread, national health experts have said.

Larsen said everyone should get the seasonal flu vaccine, which is available now. He also advises that people sneeze into the crook of their elbow and avoid making contact with the mouth or eyes. Anyone with flu-like symptoms is advised to stay home.

So far, the H1N1 virus appears to be mild and has not mutated, Larsen said. If the latter happens, the virus could become more severe, he said.

Health care workers, emergency personnel, pregnant women, people 6 months to 24 years old and those with chronic disease are encouraged to get the new vaccine, Larsen said.

Swine flu has killed almost 3,000 people worldwide, according to health officials. Experts say 250,000 to 500,000 people – including 36,000 Americans – are killed annually by the seasonal flu.