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Health officials announced today there is a probable case of swine flu in Norfolk.
The patient is a child who was exposed to an ill family member during a trip to the southwestern United States, according to a state department of health press release. It is "very probable" that the child has the H1N1 virus, said department of health spokesman Larry Hill.
The child did not require hospitalization and is recovering well at home, in voluntary isolation, the release said. The city?s department of public health has recommended a weeklong closure of the pre-school, East Beach Montessori School, that the child attended, but is not aware of any other cases of the virus at the school or in the area.
?Because of the age of the children, I have recommended closure of the school for a week,?said David Trump, acting director of the Norfolk Department of Public Health, in the release. ?We will continue to monitor this situation on a daily basis and will adjust our recommendation as necessary.?
Parents at the pre-school are being notified of the closure this evening. The health department will work with parents and clinicians tomorrow to answer questions, the release said.
There have been three confirmed cases of swine flu in Virginia.
The virus was confirmed in a Washington and Lee University student yesterday. The other cases were a man from the Three Rivers Health District, which covers the Northern Neck and Middle Peninsula regions, and a woman from the Chesterfield Health District, which includes the counties of Chesterfield and Powhatan. Health officials also said there was a second Washington and Lee student who probably had swine flu but it had not been confirmed.
The Washington and Lee students had traveled in states other than Virginia. The man and woman had both traveled to Mexico. All three are said to be recovering well.
Swine flu is a respiratory illness found among pigs. The current H1N1 outbreak is caused by a virus that has not previously been detected in humans or animals.
Symptoms are similar to those of seasonal flu, and include fever, cough, sore throat, headache, chills and fatigue.