Children are most affected by swine flu
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The confirmed cases of swine flu in the US as of today have reached 20, covering the states of New York, California, Kansas, Texas, and Ohio. Although all cases only showed mild symptoms and only 1 led to hospitalization, the situation is serious enough to make the federal government declare a public health emergency. Canada has also currently reported 4 confirmed cases. Mexico is most badly hit, with over a 1,000 cases and 80 deaths.
What worries me as a mom is that the fact that most of the patients which tested positive for or are suspected to have swine flu are children and adolescents and the “clusters” of cases have been reported in schools. Here are of the reported cases:
- 8 students at St. Francis Prepatory School in Queens, NY.
- 4 students in Nova Scotia, Canada.
- 25 students and teachers in Auckland, New Zealand.
The Canadians and New Zealanders have just returned from a class trip to Mexico.
The truth is, when it comes to infectious diseases outbreaks, the most vulnerable are the young, the elderly and the sick, and the “hot spots” for outbreaks are daycare centers, kindergartens, schools, and dormitories. It’s not only true for swine flu. Outbreaks of chicken pox and measles happen a lot in schools, presumably because these are typical children’s diseases. However, it can apply to any infectious disease as well. Schools in Mexico are closed until further notice. So far, no school closure has been reported in the US but parents should keep up with the latest updates. And to avoid miscommunication and misinformation, always refer to reliable experts. Below is a list of useful sites that can give you accurate information and regular updates on the swine flu outbreak:
- The Centers fro Disease Prevention and Control (CDC) swine flu site.
- Swine flu podcast at the CDC
- US Department of Health and Human Services
- World Health Organization swine flu site
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Mrs D says...
31 People have now died from Swine Flu in The United Kingdom. A national emergency centre opened today in the UK in its first hour it had 9,000 ppl loggin onto the site. They are also recieveing a high volume of calls every hour in the thousands.
over 100,000 people were diagnoised with swine flu last week in the UK.
The vaccine will not b ready till august.
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