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E-Info Flash - April 27th, 2009

At a news conference today, Westchester County Health Commissioner Dr. Joshua Lipsman said swine flu is starting slow and is affecting people with a mild illness similar to the seasonal flu. "It isn't hitting hard and it isn't hitting fast and that's good news," Dr. Lipsman said. "If you don't become sick, there are no special precautions you should take and no medical consultation you should seek. You should practice good hygiene measures, such as washing your hands frequently and covering your nose and mouth when you cough" Dr. Lipsman continued, "Although there are no cases so far in Westchester, I can't stress enough how important hand washing is in preventing the spread of illness. Frequent hand washing with soap and warm water is the single, best thing that we can all do to keep germs from spreading. If you do get severely ill, seek medical care, because there is treatment available but it works best if begun within two days."

Influenza is a virus that is always circulating between birds and pigs and people. Each strain has different genes that make it more or less infectious. Public health professionals are closely monitoring this swine flu because it's a new virus that people have no natural immunity to. While there is concern that this flu has the potential to become a pandemic, swine flu viruses have caused human infections in the past without turning into a pandemic. To date, there have been 40 confirmed cases of swine flu in the United States, with 28 of these in New York City. Although the strain matches the one circulating in Mexico, all cases in the United States so far have been mild.

The symptoms of swine flu in people are similar to the symptoms of regular human flu and include fever, cough, sore throat, body aches, headache, chills and fatigue. Some people infected with swine flu have also reported diarrhea and vomiting. Like seasonal flu, swine flu can vary in severity from mild to severe, and may cause a worsening of underlying chronic medical conditions. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has determined that this swine flu virus is spreading from person to person and is thought to occur in the same way as seasonal flu - mainly through coughing or sneezing of infected people. To help prevent the spread of germs that cause respiratory illnesses like flu:

• Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze
• Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze
• Try to avoid close contact with sick people
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth. Germs spread this way.
• If you get sick with influenza, stay home from work or school.