Five diagnosed cases of the Swine Flu have popped up in the Oxford school district, but there’s no reason to panic because they’re all ‘very mild cases,? according to Assistant Superintendent Jim Schwarz.
Those infected with the H1N1 virus, commonly known as Swine Flu, include a sixth-grader and eighth-grader at the middle school, a kindergartner at Clear Lake Elementary, another kindergartner at Daniel Axford Elementary and a first-grader at Lakeville Elementary.
All students were quarantined at home, in order to prevent further spread of the virus, and were reported to be doing well, according to school officials. Each is expected to make a full recovery.
Swine Flu is a viral infection of the respiratory tract, much like regular human influenza, according to the Oakland County Health Division website. It’s a variant of Influenza A.
The OMS eighth-grader was the first confirmed case of Swine Flu and it was reported to the district on Friday, June 5.
Since then, four more cases were reported this week between Wednesday, June 10 and Thursday, June 11, which was the last day of the 2008-09 school year. The Lakeville first-grader and OMS sixth-grader are siblings.
In all instances, the schools sent home a letter to parents informing them of the situation even though the county does not require it.
‘The main reason we’re doing this now is so parents can keep an eye on their children (to look for symptoms),? said Superintendent Dr. William Skilling.
In her letter to parents, Daniel Axford Prinicipal Lydia Engel noted that according to the pediatrician of her infected kindergartner, “all flu-like symptoms are being diagnosed as the H1N1 virus” as a precaution because there’s such a backlog of blood samples waiting to be tested.
In addition to these Swine Flu cases, a second-grader at Daniel Axford was diagnosed with Influenza A, which may or may not be Swine Flu.
An Oxford High School teacher’s child, who attends the middle school here, was being tested for the H1N1 virus.
Schwarz said the district has not yet been informed of the results, so nothing’s been confirmed, however, parents were notified in a June 9 letter from the school. The OHS teacher remained home from work this week as a precaution.
Both Schwarz and Skilling indicated the district’s maintenance staff has been diligently and thoroughly disinfecting the buildings attended by infected students.
‘As soon as we (learn) of a case of either the (Influenza) A or the Swine Flu, we mobilize our maintenance crew and they’re sanitizing, as we speak, those classrooms, high-traffic areas, door knobs, drinking fountains, all those types of things that are highly touched by students,? Schwarz said.
‘They disinfected any areas the public’s likely to touch like hand rails, door knobs, bathroom fixtures, faucets and things like that,? Skilling said.
Maintenance staff have also been disinfecting the school buses, which are ridden by elementary through high school students from all seven of the district’s schools.
Despite the outbreak, the district didn’t close any of the affected schools in according with the latest recommendation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Michigan Department of Community Health, the Oakland County Health Division.
‘The county is really dissuading districts from doing that,? Schwarz said. ‘At the onset of the Swine Flu scare, that was everybody’s first reaction ? to close schools, even with suspected cases. The county health department has advised against that now.?
According to the county Health Division’s website, there’s no reason to close schools because ‘children will still have interactions with each other as well as other people in the community who may be shedding flu viruses even if they don’t have symptoms.?
On Thursday, June 11, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the H1N1 virus, which originated in Mexico earlier this year, reached the pandemic stage, not because the severity of the virus has worsened, but because it’s reached a particular threshold of geographical presence.
Seventy-four countries, as of June 11, have reported 28,774 cases of Swine Flu, which included 144 deaths. The WHO stressed most of the cases are mild and require no treatment, but the fear is an outbreak of new infections could overwhelm hospitals, especially in poor nations.
This is the first pandemic the world has seen in 41 years. The last was the Hong Kong Flu of 1968, which killed 1 million people.
Normally, flu viruses disappear with the start of warm weather, but the Swine Flu apparently isn’t being affected.
Symptoms consistent with the Swine Flu include ? fast breathing or difficulty breathing; bluish or gray skin color; severe or persistent vomiting; irritability; and flu-like symptoms that improve but return with a fever and worse cough.
Additional symptoms include not wanting to drink enough fluids, being difficult to wake and not interacting normally with others.
Both the CDC and Michigan Department of Community Health recommend taking the following precautions to prevent the outbreak of the virus:
? Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Throw the tissue in the trash after you use it.
? Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze.
? Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs spread this way.
? Try to avoid contact with sick people.
? Stay home if you are sick for seven days after your symptoms begin or until you have been symptom-free for 24 hours, whichever is longer.