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Earthling
05-01-2009, 09:55 AM
Swine flu is 'probable' in 5 Utahns

By Carrie A. Moore

Deseret News
Published: Thursday, April 30, 2009 11:54 p.m. MDT

Five Utahns were listed as "probable" with the swine flu virus on Thursday, the same day the LDS Church announced that new missionaries headed to Mexico will remain at Missionary Training Centers "until further notice."

Seeking to quell fears and assure the public of government readiness after word that four additional Utahns may have contracted the virus, Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. told reporters Thursday that officials want Utahns "to be alert but not alarmed." The first "probable" Utah case was announced Wednesday.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced in a short statement that new missionaries assigned to serve in Mexico will remain at the Missionary Training Centers in Utah and Mexico City "until further notice," and that it has "canceled all worship services in Mexico until further notice" upon recommendation of the Mexican government.

Mexico is home to more than 1 million Latter-day Saints and 20 LDS missions.

Thursday's midday press conference at the state Capitol was called after officials in Park City closed schools Thursday morning after lengthy discussion about the fact that three students there were among the "probable" cases and their samples had been sent to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for further testing.

"Please use common sense. We don't want hysteria to prevail," the governor said. "Everyone has lives to live, and we have a great economy in this state. We don't want a sense of overreaction."

Tom Hudachko, spokesman for the Utah Department of Health, said Utah has three "probable" cases of swine flu in Summit County, one in Salt Lake County and one in the Weber-Morgan area.

Test results are expected from the CDC, but there is no firm time estimate on when they will arrive.

Dr. David Sundwall, executive director of the Utah Department of Health, told reporters he believes school officials in Park City "erred on the side of being cautious, but I don't fault them for that decision." He said he would have preferred that the CDC not disclose the probable cases before they were confirmed, but because the federal health agency made the disclosure, Utah officials decided to announce it as well.

At this point, the virus doesn't seem to be any more serious for the vast majority of those who have it than a seasonal flu is, Sundwall said. The concern is that, because it is a new type of flu, there is no human immunity to it and no vaccine to prevent it from spreading.

The World Health Organization (WHO) raised its alert level to five out of a possible six on Wednesday, adding to worries about a virus that so far has killed only one person in the United States. The elevated WHO alert "sounds dramatic," Sundwall acknowledged, but added that designation simply means the agency has "documented person-to-person transmission within two or more countries."

While the total number of countries where the virus has been documented continues to rise, he said, "that doesn't mean the risk of serious illness is that much greater."

President Obama's declaration of a public health emergency earlier this week is simply a legal mechanism that opens the path to allocate additional money for equipment and supplies to deal with the outbreak, he said.

So far, America's more than 130 cases "have proven relatively mild," Sundwall said, adding the toddler who died in Houston had come across the border from Mexico and was already ill. "There have only been 13 hospitalizations."

Hudachko said Utahns need to understand that much of the information coming out of Mexico at this point simply is not reliable.

While some media accounts have listed the death toll there at more than 100, as of Thursday, the CDC was only reporting 26 confirmed cases and seven deaths directly attributable to the virus.

In Utah, "up to 60 samples" of flu virus from local patients have been sent to the state lab for typing, Sundwall said. It's unknown how many of those could eventually be identified as "probable" swine flu cases and sent on to the CDC for further testing.

Marceline Brown, a licensed counselor and crisis coordinator at Lakeview Hospital in Bountiful, said anxiety about the situation comes as "people talk to each other and raise the level of fear," out of proportion to the reality "because that seems more interesting to some than actually talking about what the realities are."

She hasn't seen any kind of mass fear at the hospital, or in Davis County. "I think we've only had one person come in and ask at all. ? He didn't even have a fever. This guy just wanted a week off work."

As news about the virus circulates worldwide, many Americans find themselves being more careful about hand-washing and wondering whether their plans will change or be modified by circumstance in the near future.

After the CDC issued an advisory asking Americans to delay or cancel "nonessential" travel to Mexico, two Brigham Young University students found themselves on TV because they decided to cancel their honeymoon to Puerto Vallarta.

Eliza Roisum and Bryce Kirkman told a Washington TV station they canceled the trip after WHO raised its alert level on Wednesday. "It'd be too risky to go," said Roisum, the 20-year-old bride-to-be from University Place, Wash.

Students at the University of Utah, who are taking finals this week, got an e-mail Tuesday from school officials, warning them of the outbreak and asking them to implement the same health precautions that health departments have publicized.

Spokeswoman Coralie Alder said as things progress, officials will provide additional information via e-mails, the U. home page and through the campus alert system to "make sure the U. is as ready as possible in the event we have confirmed cases in Utah."

Contributing: Wendy Leonard

E-MAIL: [email protected]

Key developments

Five "probable" cases reported in Utah.

Utah becomes one of 16 states with closed schools.

Confirmed cases in New York, Texas, California, South Carolina, Kansas, Massachusetts, Indiana, Ohio, Arizona, Michigan, Nevada, New Jersey, Delaware, Colorado, Virginia, Georgia and Minnesota.

The World Health Organization says it will use the term "H1N1" instead of "swine flu" to avoid confusion.

Hispanic outreach

Local health officials say they're moving quickly to educate Utah's Hispanic communities on how to prevent, identify and treat the H1N1 virus.

Flu information is available in both Spanish and English by calling 211. And through Spanish newspapers, radio and television, health officials believe the Hispanic community will be ready to deal with the virus.

"I think people are aware and we're preparing for it," said Owen Quinonez, director of the Center for Multicultural Health in Salt Lake City.

arbilad
05-01-2009, 10:30 AM
So far this "epidemic" is a big yawner. I saw a story today that the worst case estimate is that 1700 people in the US will get sick with this. That's probably fewer than the number who will get sick with food poisoning in that time. In other words, it's more likely that you'll start puking from a bad Arctic Circle burger than from the swine flu.

Aldon
05-01-2009, 10:52 AM
So far this "epidemic" it's more likely that you'll start puking from a bad Arctic Circle burger .

This is the most absolute reference point you could have chosen.

I find Arctic Circle to be aweful!

Cowboy
05-01-2009, 11:06 AM
I think GLO should take full advantage of this national emergency to sell swine flu kits. We could include a N95 mask. A couple of Advil, and a can of chicken soup. Cost $100. I better do this before AVOW beats me to it.

DieHard
05-01-2009, 11:08 AM
:cornut: I agree.

mrs_thermocouple
05-01-2009, 11:09 AM
Cowboy...you're bad. :d0 (42):

Aldon
05-01-2009, 12:00 PM
I think GLO should take full advantage of this national emergency to sell swine flu kits. We could include a N95 mask. A couple of Advil, and a can of chicken soup. Cost $100. I better do this before AVOW beats me to it.

ROFLOL:lol::iagree:

mirkwood
05-01-2009, 12:28 PM
I dreamed there were canvas kit bags with the GLO kit contained inside.

ghostcat
05-01-2009, 01:23 PM
I think GLO should take full advantage of this national emergency to sell swine flu kits. We could include a N95 mask. A couple of Advil, and a can of chicken soup. Cost $100. I better do this before AVOW beats me to it.Don't forget the Emergency tube tent!!!! It's gotta have a tent!!!!

Earthling
05-02-2009, 08:21 AM
Utah reports 4 more cases of likely N1H1

By James Thalman and Clayton Norlen

Deseret News
Published: Friday, May 1, 2009 11:22 p.m. MDT

Utah has four more probable cases of swine flu since Thursday, according to the state Department of Health, which continues to wait on verifying test results from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The tally stands at nine probable cases and none confirmed to have the N1H1 virus, a new strain of so-called swine flu that surfaced in Mexico and is linked to one death in the United States.

Things could be worse, and might become so, in Utah, but public health officials remain wary but not excessively worried. They advised the public to do the same. Test results of the first suspected Utah case aren't expected until sometime this weekend, health department executive director Dr. David Sundwall said Friday afternoon.

Other than the number of probable cases and counties they're from ? six people in Summit County, two in Salt Lake County and one in the Weber-Morgan public health district- ? the health department is providing no patient-related details such as age, severity of symptoms or specific location of those who might be infected.

"When I see an increase in possible cases, I have no great anxiety," Sundwall said. "But if it continues day after day, then we'll move to other strategies for mitigation. Stopping public events, that's a long way down the road."

Park City has gone there already. Schools are closed, extracurricular activities have been canceled, as have church meetings this weekend. Judge Memorial High School in Salt Lake City started a five-day weekend Friday.

In Park City, where the first Utah cases were suspected, a variety of responses were being manifest, ranging from total unconcern to caution.

Madi Bruschki, a Park City High School junior, said that "Some people are worried about getting sick. Lots of kids seem to have weird stuff like colds. It's kind of sketchy." Like her classmates, she was aware that the school's junior prom, set for Saturday, has been delayed to May 30. All school events, including athletic competitions, are on hold. Bruschki noted that some parents are more concerned than others. Her own mother, she said, is not overly distraught. Likewise, students have mixed feelings about all the hoopla, she said.

The town was waiting on a possible press conference Friday to announce the findings of a Centers for Disease Control analysis of specimens from the first individual thought to have contracted the disease in Park City. The conference may not materialize until Saturday, health officials said.

At the Yarrow Inn, Amanda Kwiecien, who works at the front desk, was seeing some real effects from the flu scare. An expected party of some 300 people cancelled their planned activity for Friday, she said, and other smaller groups, along with some individual room reservers, were calling to cancel their planned stays.

"My mom lives in Tooele and she's afraid to leave home to go to the grocery store," Kwiecien said. She added that she has changed her own habits somewhat. "I'm more apt to grab a tissue to open a door. You're never too sure who's touched what. I hope not too many people cancel on us. I like my job."

On the other hand, at a local theater, people thronged the lobby. "We've definitely had some people today," an employee said. "We always wish, of course, that we were sold out. Movies are a tricky business. Attendance is so dependent on the product."

Grocery stores were sold out of hand disinfectnts. A theater worker who was sent to get some for the benefit of customers couldn't find any, he said.

Patti Harrington, state superintendent of public instruction, stated in a memo issued to school districts statewide that schools adjacent to campuses that have closed should also consider pre-emptively dismissing students from schools without laboratory-confirmed cases. Harrington advises that closure considerations should include geographic proximity and the extent of socializing of students across district boundaries.

Sundwall said the CDC has issued a new directive regarding schools, businesses and other group-oriented venues choosing to close that they should stay shut for two weeks, not one as the agency earlier cautioned.

Although public health officials continue to advise that the best possible approach are standard flu season precautions, the outbreak is being closely monitored because a new virus is inherently unpredictable. There is therefore little likely immunity built up in humans and there is no track record among humans, said Teresa Garrett, director of the state Division of Epidemiology and Laboratory Services.

"We just don't know enough yet to really say anything for certain," Garrett said, noting that extra close monitoring is the prudent approach as the new bug fully reveals itself over the coming weeks.

In the meantime, the state has stockpiled 142,000 doses of four drugs that seem to be knocking down the strain and reducing the severity of symptoms. That's 25 percent of Utah's share of the Strategic National Stockpile. State epidemiologists are determining possible distribution of the drugs, either as treatment or as a prevention.

The CDC recommended Friday the drugs be given to patients with confirmed and suspected cases of swine flu.

The immediate priority for state outbreak trackers is acquiring virus test kits so people with symptoms can be checked for the virus and confirmed within a few hours instead of at least four days required to get results from the CDC.

The virus is new and cases are occurring outside the usual late-fall and winter cold and flu season, Sundwall noted. The usual precautions used at that time of the year remain the best defense now- ? individuals washing their hands with soap and hot water ? long enough to sing Happy Birthday. Don't cover sneezes with hands or sleeves and keep hands away from the nose, eyes, mouth and ears, the entry portals for viruses.

Keep sick family members at home and isolated, he said. Symptoms don't occur for three to seven days after infection and an infected person is contagious for about that long.

If the situation is still normal, why all the fuss? The main reason is public health officials don't know yet how virulent the strain is, and won't know for sure for several weeks, Sundwall said.

If people are wondering if someone might have the flu, he said the family's primary care physician should be contacted first, although just showing up because someone might have been in Mexico or around anyone who has been there is basically the opposite of helping track the disease and individuals who are sick.

Lack of medical insurance should not factor into a person's decision to seek medical help. Call the doctor or clinic first. If someone is truly worried, emergency rooms are an option. The University of Utah has set a section aside from the usual waiting room area to examine people who exhibit serious flu-like symptoms.

Any parent or person or family member who is concerned can also call 211 for information or to be linked to clinic or other medical care provider. The 211 referral hotline is staying open this weekend, and will operate from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday to answer flu-related questions.

CDC epidemiologists, who have been very measured in their public statements, have also said that no matter how prepared or panicked people are, this new flu strain will take its own course. That is the nature of viruses, from the one that caused the Spanish flu in 1918 to this mutant descendant of the bug first discovered in swine in 1930.

They will invade and set up wherever the environment suits their survival. Within a few days, their unfortunate hosts become very aware of their presence as their bodies marshal its histamines to expel it with sneezing and coughing. The body will deal with the invader by putting itself into a fever and even invoke the natural expellers in the body ? diarrhea and vomiting.

Epidemiologists said during the recent avian flu scare that a pandemic is a historical, genetic, and mathematical certainty, with serious ones occurring every 91 years or so.

signseeker
05-02-2009, 02:19 PM
Does this mean we can stay at the Yarrow for cheap now? :w00t:

Earthling
05-02-2009, 06:31 PM
probably not . . . I prefer my own house anyway. Now eating out is a different story! I hear they have a good restaurant. :)