Today, the Centers for Disease Control have added two new recommendations for prevention of swine flu spread:
- Follow public health advice regarding school closures, avoiding crowds and other social distancing measures.
- Develop a family emergency plan as a precaution. This should include storing a supply of food, medicines, facemasks, alcohol-based hand rubs and other essential supplies.
We agree with these recommendations and continue to advise our patients to avoid travel to Mexico for any reason. The CDC recommendation to avoid travel to Mexico is available at: http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/contentSwineFluMexico.aspx.
We also recommend avoidance of any commercial air travel unless absolutely necessary and to consider wearing a mask when on airplanes or in crowds.
And of course, kissing pigs is absolutely inappropriate.Meanwhile, there has been another confirmed human infection in Egypt with Avian influenza (H5N1). Investigations into the source of his infection indicate a history of close contact with dead and sick poultry prior to becoming ill. Of the 67 cases confirmed to date in Egypt, 23 have been fatal. There has not been evidence in Egypt of human to human transmission of H5N1.
The number of confirmed cases in the US is now 109 (with one death).
Several school districts in Texas are closed (including Fort Worth ISD).
A complete list of closures is available at:
http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/swineflu/schclosings.html
We will continue to update this blog as new information becomes
available.
Comments / Posted by Scott W. Yates, MD, MBA, MS, FACP
