South Dakota reports case of swine flu

[Shiloh]

Source: http://www.kxmc.com/News/319891.asp

South Dakota reports case of swine flu

Jan 14 2009 5:44PM
Associated Press
Eds: APNewsNow.

PIERRE, S.D. (AP) The state Health Department says South Dakota has reported a human case of swine flu.

A 19-year-old South Dakota State University student was ill with the disease five weeks ago.

The state Public Health Laboratory identified a portion of the virus. This week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention influenza lab identified the swine components of the virus.

State Epidemiologist Dr. Lon Kightlinger says swine flu in humans is rare but does occur.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention receives about one report of the swine flu virus in a human each year. The South Dakota case is believed to be the state's first case.

On the Net: http://www.cdc.gov/flu/swine/pdf/facts.pdf

 

[HenryN]

Re: South Dakota reports case of swine flu

Novel Influenza A Viruses:

One case of human infection with a novel influenza A virus was reported by the Texas Department of State Health Services during week 46. The person was infected with a swine influenza A (H1N1) virus, and reported several swine exposures including close contact with an ill pig. Although human infection with swine influenza is uncommon, sporadic cases have occurred in many years, usually among people in direct contact with ill pigs or who have been in places where pigs may have been present (e.g. agricultural fairs, farms, or petting zoos). The sporadic cases of human infections with swine influenza viruses identified in recent years have not resulted in sustained human-to-human transmission or community outbreaks. Nonetheless, when cases are identified, CDC recommends thorough investigations to evaluate the extent of the outbreak and possible human to human transmission, as transmission patterns may change with changes in swine influenza viruses.

http://www.cdc.gov/flu/weekly/weeklyarchives2008-2009/weekly46.htm

 

[AlaskaDenise]

Re: South Dakota reports case of swine flu

(CIDRAP) South Dakota reports swine flu caseLisa Schnirring Staff Writer


Jan 15, 2009 (CIDRAP News) ? Public health officials from South Dakota yesterday reported a swine influenza infection in a 19-year-old male college student, the second case in the United States in the past 2 months.

The South Dakota Department of Health (SDDH) said in a press release that the patient got sick 5 weeks ago and that the state's public health laboratory had identified the influenza A/H1 portion of the virus and that the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) identified the swine components of the virus.

The CDC typically receives about one report of a human swine flu case a year, the SDDH statement said. In late November the CDC, in one of its seasonal influenza activity updates, reported on a patient from Texas who was infected with swine influenza after exposure to pigs, including a sick one.

Human infections with novel influenza A subtypes now are nationally notifiable diseases in the United States

Lon Kightlinger, PhD, epidemiologist for the SDDH, said in the statement that swine influenza in humans is rare. "Most often the cases occur in people with direct exposure to pigs, such as swine farm workers," he said. "Human-to-human transmission is very rare."

Kightlinger told CIDRAP News that an investigation into the source of the man's illness did not reveal direct contact with pigs; however, officials are exploring whether he had indirect contact.

Human infections with novel influenza A subtypes now are nationally notifiable diseases in the United States.

In a recent report in the September issue of Emerging Infectious Diseases on a 2005 Wisconsin case, the authors wrote that triple reassortant H1N1 subtypes are the predominant genotype in North American pigs and that human swine flu illnesses often mimic seasonal flu infections. They recommended that clinicians ask patients with unexplained influenza-like illnesses about exposure to animals, including pigs, and visits to petting zoos and county fairs.

The CDC had noted that swine flu outbreaks in pigs typically occur in late fall and winter and that seasonal influenza vaccines are likely to partially protect against swine H3N2 viruses, but not the H1N1 subtype.

See also:

Jan 14 SDDH press release

Nov 24, 2008, CIDRAP News story

http://www.cidrap.umn.edu/cidrap/content/influenza/general/news/jan1509swine-ms.html