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Officials ready for swine flu
Health officials want to hear from Mahoning County residents who’ve been in Mexico within the past 30 days.
YOUNGSTOWN — The swine flu has not moved into Mahoning County, but public health officials and medical first responders met Monday to make sure they are prepared if it does.
As of Monday, no deaths from swine flu had been reported in the United States, and only about 48 cases had been confirmed. However, one of the confirmed cases is that of a 9-year-old boy from Lorain County in Ohio. The outbreak, spread over five states, led federal health officials to declare a public-health emergency and to warn that the virus could spread.
According to the Ohio Department of Health, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is urging all health-care providers who see patients with flulike symptoms and learn that the patient traveled to Mexico and affected counties in Southern California or Texas during the seven days preceding his illness onset, should have nasal swab samples from the patient tested for the swine flu virus.
Youngstown City Health Commissioner Neil Altman has gone a step further.
He asked anyone from Mahoning County who has traveled to Mexico within the past 30 days to call (330) 743-3333, ext. 290. The purpose of Altman’s request is to gather information for a database in case the swine flu enters Mahoning County, he said.
“We are being proactive for this event should it hit this area,” Altman said.
He asked that people who call be prepared to provide their name, address and telephone number, which will be shared with other public health jurisdictions outside Youngstown.
One of the safeguards taken during Monday’s meeting was to extend the area’s flu surveillance system through May, a month longer than usual. The regular seasonal flu season is about done, said Matthew Stefanak, Mahoning County District Board of Health Commissioner.
The flu surveillance system monitors, via electronic disease and telephone reporting from hospital emergency departments, schools, day cares, long-term care facilities and large employers, the number of flu cases.
Stefanak said local health departments are in daily contact with the state department of health and the centers for disease control.
“We have plans and are prepared to implement them, including the distribution of anti-viral medications and hospital masks if necessary,” he said.
He said there are materials already in Ohio for 25 percent of the state’s population. And, by using other interventions, such as school closures, voluntary isolation and social distancing, officials would hope to slow the spread of the disease.
Schools are where diseases such as the flu spread, and that is why there is a contingency plan to close schools for up to 12 weeks if a true pandemic occurs, Stefanak said.
He said this year’s flu vaccine does not contain the virus for swine flu, but may reduce symptoms somewhat.
Beyond closing schools, Stefanak said public health organizations would depend on people’s voluntarily isolating themselves, and using common-sense practices such as washing their hands frequently and coughing or sneezing into their elbow, referred to as sneezing and coughing etiquette.
Surprisingly, very few calls about the swine flu have come into the county health department, Stefanak said.
The swine flu doesn’t appear to be any more dangerous that any other flu virus. However, its unusual characteristic, at least according to early reports, is that it seems to infect young, healthy school-age children, as well as preschool children and the elderly, the populations most hit by other flu viruses.
"If you do get sick with flulike symptoms, go to your doctor, who will take samples to determine if you have an unusual strain such as swine flu,” Stefanak said.
alcorn@vindy.com
SEE ALSO: Swine Flu: Fast facts.