Suspected Case in Iowa in Black Hawk County

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Posted at 10:40 a.m. on 4/29

http://www.qctimes.com/news/state-a...cle_925c6180-34d4-11de-ab24-001cc4c002e0.html



WATERLOO, Iowa - The first suspected case of swine influenza has appeared in Black Hawk County.

An adult showed up in a local hospital late Tuesday with flu symptoms and a fever above 100 degrees after traveling to a U.S. state with a confirmed case of swine flu. A sample of the virus was sent to University of Iowa Hygienic Labs for confirmation.

To help prevent the spread of the virus, health officials urge frequent hand washing and ask people to cover coughs and sneezes with a sleeve or tissue.

Public health officials expected the disease to soon appear in Iowa once health professionals started looking for cases on Monday. Previous infections may have slipped through the cracks because U.S. cases are relatively mild and easily mistaken for more common strains of influenza.

"I imagine we're just one of many cases submitted (for testing) in Iowa," said Bruce Meisinger, disease surveillance manager for Black Hawk County Health Department. "I'm confident in saying we're probably not the first in the state."

However, federal health officials said more severe illnesses are beginning to appear. The first swine flu death in the U.S. occurred Tuesday when a 23-month-old Mexican boy traveled to Texas for treatment.

Serious cases have appeared in Mexico for several days, where more than 150 people are suspected to have died from the virus. Like in previous swine flu outbreaks, the disease has hit healthy adults particularly hard.

In the U.S., 91 confirmed cases in 10 states have resulted in several hospitalizations.

 

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Re: Suspected Case in Iowa in Black Hawk County

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http://www.kcci.com/news/19322846/detail.html

 

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2 probable cases of swine flu in Iowa

2 probable cases of swine flu in Iowa

http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20090429/NEWS/90429030/-1/ENT05

wo probable cases of swine flu have cropped up in southeast Iowa, and more are expected, state leaders said today.

?We anticipate it will spread across Iowa,? said Tom Newton, director of the state Department of Public Health.
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Gov. Chet Culver said more exact tests should be done on the two cases by today. If either case is confirmed, he said, he would declare a ?public health disaster.?

That would allow for more aggressive action to slow the spread of the disease. Such measures could include mandatory quarantines for infected patients, though state leaders said they hope that won?t be necessary. It also could include cancelation of group events, and the closing of schools where the disease appears.

The probable cases were reported in Des Moines County and Clinton County, both in southeast Iowa. One involved a California resident who visited Iowa late last week, Newton said. The person traveled through Scott and Clinton counties. The second case involved a southeast Iowa woman who returned from a Mexican vacation last week and became ill.

Dr. Patricia Quinlisk, state epidemiologist, said neither person required hospitalization.

Newton said federal authorities have been rushing in supplies, including hundreds of thousands of doses of antiviral medications, which help reduce the severity of the disease. The medications will be distributed through local public health agencies, doctors? offices and hospitals.

In general, they are only to be given to people who have symptoms consistent with swine flu. In a few cases, such as frail relatives of infected people, the medications will be given to prevent illness, Quinlisk said.

Quinlisk said no one is sure why most of the illnesses in the United States have been relatively mild. While the new disease has killed more than 100 people in Mexico, only one person has died in the United States.