Gert van der Hoek
In Memoriam - Editor, Senior Moderator
Hundreds catch swine-flu virus in school outbreaks
By Eilish O'Regan Health Correspondent
Monday September 21 2009
ALMOST 400 children have contracted swine flu in schools and Irish language colleges.
A new report has also revealed that one of the schoolchildren was hospitalised after contracting the virus.
The report discloses for the first time a detailed breakdown of swine flu outbreaks, including where they erupted and how many have been affected since the pandemic virus emerged in the late spring.
It records the outbreaks officially investigated by health authorities over recent months, although it is accepted that the real incidence is inevitably higher. It revealed that 11 outbreaks have been reported in educational establishments.
There were 396 schoolchildren reported to be be ill with the virus arising out of these outbreaks.
Vulnerable
However, most outbreaks so far have occurred among families and households, although the numbers affected are lower than in schools.
There have been 18 outbreaks in households and among families, affecting 59 people, according to data collected by the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) of Ireland.
Six people who contracted the virus at home had to be hospitalised, it emerged. Creches are third in the league table for outbreaks and there has also been outbreaks in a hotel, a nursing home, and a workplace, the report said. When the virus was first detected here, it was only found in people who had been abroad to Mexico and the USA, but the spread is now localised meaning the majority of cases are picked up here.
Since children returned for the new academic year, schools are emerging as the prime areas for swine-flu spread. For the majority, it remains a mild illness, although for vulnerable people who already have medical conditions it can lead to hospitalisation and even a stay in intensive care. Among those hospitalised, the worst affected are 15- to 19-year-olds, followed by people in their 20s and early 30s, although the overall numbers of people who need that level of care is still quite small.
The rate of swine flu per 100,000 population has been highest in counties in the north-west followed by the north-east and the south. The Midlands counties have got off lightly so far, as have areas in the south-east and west.
http://www.independent.ie/national-...ineflu-virus-in-school-outbreaks-1891970.html
By Eilish O'Regan Health Correspondent
Monday September 21 2009
ALMOST 400 children have contracted swine flu in schools and Irish language colleges.
A new report has also revealed that one of the schoolchildren was hospitalised after contracting the virus.
The report discloses for the first time a detailed breakdown of swine flu outbreaks, including where they erupted and how many have been affected since the pandemic virus emerged in the late spring.
It records the outbreaks officially investigated by health authorities over recent months, although it is accepted that the real incidence is inevitably higher. It revealed that 11 outbreaks have been reported in educational establishments.
There were 396 schoolchildren reported to be be ill with the virus arising out of these outbreaks.
Vulnerable
However, most outbreaks so far have occurred among families and households, although the numbers affected are lower than in schools.
There have been 18 outbreaks in households and among families, affecting 59 people, according to data collected by the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) of Ireland.
Six people who contracted the virus at home had to be hospitalised, it emerged. Creches are third in the league table for outbreaks and there has also been outbreaks in a hotel, a nursing home, and a workplace, the report said. When the virus was first detected here, it was only found in people who had been abroad to Mexico and the USA, but the spread is now localised meaning the majority of cases are picked up here.
Since children returned for the new academic year, schools are emerging as the prime areas for swine-flu spread. For the majority, it remains a mild illness, although for vulnerable people who already have medical conditions it can lead to hospitalisation and even a stay in intensive care. Among those hospitalised, the worst affected are 15- to 19-year-olds, followed by people in their 20s and early 30s, although the overall numbers of people who need that level of care is still quite small.
The rate of swine flu per 100,000 population has been highest in counties in the north-west followed by the north-east and the south. The Midlands counties have got off lightly so far, as have areas in the south-east and west.
http://www.independent.ie/national-...ineflu-virus-in-school-outbreaks-1891970.html