Swine flu in our area and daughter has it. Swine anywhere else?

[BusynMember]

What fun . The school has so many kids missing with Swine that when I called about homework, they told me they couldn't keep up with all the kids who were sick...after the kids are out for TWO days the teachers would get the homework together. But not the first day. Of course, some teachers are out too . Why didn't they hurry with the vaccines?

My daughter is really bummed out. She worked so hard on the 8th grade volleyball team, and missed their party. Saturday is her first cage basketball game and she won't be be able to play that soon (we won't let her). Not to mention, what kid likes to miss tons of school and have to make up all that homework????? Some kids have been out for a week...

So...is Swine anywhere else? Is it bad? It's quite bad here.

 

[smallworld]

It's rampant here. My girls have appointments to get the swine flu vaccine next Tuesday . . . if they don't get sick before then.

Hope your daughter feels better soon.

 

[susiestar]

It is active here too. So far so good as for us. Knock on wood.

I don't understand why, with so many absent, they don't just have them all skip the homework. I can guarantee you that while the homework isn't fun for the kids it is even LESS fun for the teacher who has to gather that stuff and then grade all the late assignments.

Such scary times we live in. All this technology and we still cannot stop the flu or a cold.

Prayers for everyone that they not get it or get better very very quickly.

 

[gcvmom]

There are pigs flyin' everywhere in my town! It's rampant in our schools, too. I'm hoping to get difficult child 1 in for the vaccine at the end of next week, along with his regular flu shot. Hopefully he doesn't catch it between now and then.

 

[everywoman]

I had it last week---Ugh. Then Jana caught it from me. It is rampant here. The hospital is no longer allowing anyone under 19 to visit patient's rooms.

 

[ThreeShadows]

Our pediatrician's office claims that no vaccines will be available for those over age 3 until next month. A 13y.o. girl has just died of it in Baltimore.

We know of a woman who just gave birth in Alexandria, VA. The only family allowed in hospital. was the father. husband was doctor for many years, never saw this type of caution...

 

[KTMom91]

It's bad around here as well. A 5 year old boy from the South Valley died yesterday from swine flu. My niece and nephew, also living in the South Valley, have it, as does my Sis-in-law. So far my brother has escaped it.

I have it, too, but apparently I'm no longer contagious. Since I'm working tomorrow, that's a good thing.

 

[babybear]

my niece had it. So did my boss. I think I'm good (knocks wood)

I heard on the radio that over 400 kids were absent from school yesterday in our district.

 

[Hound dog]

Evidently it's flaring up here quite well tool.

easy child just told me they admitted their first official swine flu case to the hospital where she works.......to her unit, which tells me they're in pretty bad shape.

easy child had a show down with the admitting doctor. She was placing the patient in a private negative air flow room (isolation) per her nurse manager's orders and head nurse's orders as per hospital policy. doctor was having a snit fit. easy child finally told him fine.......if patient stayed in a non isolation reg room.....good luck finding a single nurse to care for them. easy child won. sheesh Yes, it's their jobs, but they have families and other patients to protect. What an idiot!

 

[KTMom91]

Just heard on our local news that someone's pet ferret caught swine flu from its owner. Now I can worry about Bud and the toy panthers, as well as Hubby and Miss KT.

 

[GoingNorth]

They've also found H1N1 in actual swine, but the animals are not getting sick from it and there is still no evidence of contagion between animals and humans.

A good comparison would be the Bordetella Pertussis bacteria. One 'flavor' causes kennel cough in dogs. The other causes whooping cough in humans. There has never been any evidence of cross-infection between the two species nor does the human vaccine work for dogs or vice versa.

My concern with all of this is that swine act as mixing vats for virii from other species, are able to combine them with human strains, which then produce new mutations that infect humans.

H1N1 is a mixture of human, avian, and porcine virii. It is actually surprising that H1N1 hasn't mutated yet.

 

[BusynMember]

Why are they waiting so long for Swine Flu vaccines? Anyone know?

My daughter did get the regular flu shot when it was offered at school and she's not as sick as some kids. I wonder if that helped at all. Meanwhile, I'm over 50 and can't get a Swine Flu shot because I'm (as far as I know right now) healthy.

Why didn't they pre-empt this by giving Swine Flu shots early? I guess that makes too much sense...

 

[smallworld]

MWM, swine flu is a new virus. It took a while to develop the vaccine , test it and then distribute it to states and doctor's offices. Some people were actually worried that it was rushed before it was adequately tested. Our pediatrician's office just got the vaccine in at the end of last week.

 

[BusynMember]

Thanks, smallmom. Well, as usual, we're behind schedule in our low population county...(sigh). I don't think we're getting it next month, but not sure.

 

[AnnieO]

Yup, got it here too. Friend E, his wife and 2-y/o all have/had it. He's on the mend, baby is in middle and wife is 2 days into it. UGLY.

So far I've avoided it as have Onyxx, Jett and husband.

But then... I haven't gotten the flu since I was in grade school... And I've never had a flu shot. Maybe I'm just weird?

 

[crazymama30]

Pretty sure I Had it about 3 weeks ago, and easy child just went back to school on Monday after being out for 6days. Would have have been 8, but they did not have school Thursday and Friday one week.

The hospital I work at is allowing no children under 12 in unless they are there for treatment, Only 2 visitors per patient and they must be immediate family members. All but the doors with staff right at them are locked and there are had sanitizer stations by all the doors.

 

[Mattsmom277]

Heard on CNN this morning that there are 30+ turkeys found somewhere (US?? not sure) that have tested positive for swine flu. Crazy times.

We're not getting much public info on case numbers round here. I do know there is a high level of absences in easy child's school.

A 13 year old boy a few hours north of us passed away last week from it.

We have no idea when our city will get vaccines. difficult child who worries about nothing, seems to be having these panic attacks about catching it. His bio dad had it and was hospitalized. I can talk all I want about the odds of him getting really ill front it, the normal number of regular flu deaths compared to swine flu ones etc but he doesn't stop worrying. Poor kid. I find it extra sad since he normally thinks he is invincible.

 

[Josie]

It was rampant in difficult child 1's school a few weeks ago. I think she actually had a mild case of it because she was sick when everyone else had it. She had it over the weekend and only missed one day of school. No one else in the family got it, but we made sure to stay away from her.

When we were at the Children's Hospital ER, they had tents set up outside to deal with the overflow of swine flu patients. They gave us masks to wear while we sat in the waiting room. They just recently took the tents down so I think the worst is over in our area.

 

[GoingNorth]

The reason the elderly seem to have some resistance to H1N1 is that they were born close enough to 1918 to still have some acquired antibodies to the 'Spanish Flu' that killed millions of people.

The flu of 1918 was similar to the human part of H1N1 in that it too killed by a sudden and rapid attack on lung tissues. We didn't yet have the technology to really deal with respiratory distress syndromes and hence couldn't support people.

Plus, the last big flu was spread in the days when people travelled by boat. It took a LOT longer to spread in those days than nowadays when people travel by plane.

Also, we were building up to enter WWI and many, many deaths took place at military barracks and training sites.

This still happens to this day. husband had meningitis while in basic training. It ran through the training station like wildfire.

I have my seasonal flu shot, but am down on the waiting list for the H1N1 vaccine because I am 49 and my only real additional risk factor is that I am a smoker.

 

[AnnieO]

To piggyback - usually the flu hits infants and the elderly - those who are most vulnerable.

This is hitting the people in the middle. Grade-school kids, teens, young adults, and thirty- to fifty-somethings more than you would expect.

I have a paramedic friend who has seen a lot of cases of where they had to transport someone with acute bronchial distress to the ER. Nine times out of ten they had the flu already. "regular" or "swine", doesn't matter.

I take zinc and my regular vitamins every day. Wash my hands a lot. Stay back from sick people. So far, so good.