Flu bug hits CU Boulder

[Shiloh]

Source: http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_13223853

Flu bug hits CU Boulder
By Kieran Nicholson
The Denver Post
Posted: 08/28/2009 01:27:43 PM MDT
Updated: 08/28/2009 01:35:50 PM MDT

More than 100 college students in Boulder have been tested for the flu, with 49 confirmed cases, and one student has been hospitalized.

University of Colorado officials have identified 49 "probable" cases of the H1N1 flu, the university said in a media release.

As of today, 135 students have been tested for Influenza A. Ill students, and students tested for Influenza A, live both on and off campus, the school said.

Boulder County Public Health is working with the university to keep track of suspected and confirmed cases of Influenza A.

Only state health officials can test for the swine flu, according to the release, and only after someone has been hospitalized.

The school "is taking precautions based on the possibility that the Influenza A cases may be H1N1," the release said.

Based on guidelines from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the university "is not canceling any special events or classes" as it continues to monitor the situation.

The CU-Boulder H1N1 Flu Web site has posted information on how to prevent and manage influenza-like illness at www.colorado.edu/safety/h1n1.

The school's Wardenburg Health Center has recommendations on protecting against and treating influenza on its Web site at www.colorado.edu/healthcenter/infectiousdisease.html.

Kieran Nicholson: 303-954-1822 or knicholson@denverpost.com.

 

[Pathfinder]

Re: Flu bug hits CU Boulder

CU-Boulder identifies seven more probable cases of swine flu

By Melanie Asmar
Posted: 09/11/2009 01:22:26 PM MDT


The University of Colorado this week identified seven more probable cases of swine flu, bringing the total number since the start of school to 92, officials said Friday.

But the actual number of students with swine flu, known as H1N1 virus, is probably higher, officials said. One reason is that CU this week stopped testing all sick students for Influenza A, which is a broad category of flu that includes H1N1. Instead, it focused on testing students with severe symptoms or students considered ?high-risk,? such as pregnant women or those with chronic illnesses.

Another reason for the lag is that CU has no method of tracking all sick students, officials said. It can only track students who come to the on-campus Wardenberg Health Center, which has consistently seen between 100 and 150 students with flu-like symptoms each week since school started Aug. 19, they said.

This past week was no different, said Dr. Pam Talley, the lead clinics physician at Wardenberg. CU has been emphasizing that not every student who feels sick needs to be seen by a doctor, she said, and has encouraged students to first call a nurse at Wardenberg for advice about what to do.

So far, health officials have confirmed four cases of H1N1 at CU. The cases were a random sample taken by state officials to determine whether the flu outbreak at CU was likely H1N1.

Two students have been hospitalized with flu symptoms since the start of school, said CU spokesman Bronson Hilliard. Both have been released from the hospital and are recovering.

CU recommends that sick students isolate themselves in their dorm rooms or apartments and don't attend classes until 24 hours after any fever subsides. It has not canceled any classes or events.

Swine flu appears to have hit colleges in the Southeast and the Northwest harder than in other parts of the country, according to statistics gathered by the American College Health Association. Georgia, North Carolina and Washington saw the most new cases in the past week, the statistics say, with more than 600 cases each. Colorado, by comparison, saw 213 new cases last week.

http://www.dailycamera.com/cu-news/ci_13316478