<p>Last May, two of D’s classmates had swine flu. The HS did not close, but chose to cancel finals, hoping to keep sick kids from attending school.
So many kids were sick that the school told parents, not to let kids get together after school.
At my S’s middle school, so many kids were absent that there was a make up date for most of the finals.
It was a nightmare that I hope does not repeat itself in the fall.
Thankfully, there was no flu outbreak at my two kids’ colleges.</p>
<p>Would someone please explain to me why there is so much concern over “swine” flu? What if the announcement had been as follows. “There is a new strain of flu circulating. Like all cases of flu, it spreads rapidly especially from aerosols. Fortunately, this flu is very mild and most patients have mild symptoms and feel much better within a few days.”</p>
<p>edad, originally they thought it would be very bad in terms of the death rate, as in 1918. However, having almost (!) recovered from one of the worst colds I ever had (maybe flu?), I must say that it was quite a bad experience. I needed antibiotics to clear out the secondary infection in my lungs, and still have a residual cough (ack -ack). I kept thinking that without antibiotics (like in the old days or under developed world). That might have been it - lights out. I hope they do get some kind of vaccine together, and get it out there to reduce the infection rate.</p>
<p>Update on the vaccine:</p>
<p>[WHO:</a> No licensed swine flu vaccine til end of year - Yahoo! News](<a href=“http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090713/ap_on_he_me/eu_med_swine_flu_vaccine]WHO:”>http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090713/ap_on_he_me/eu_med_swine_flu_vaccine)</p>
<p>Our son is in Rio and sent an email yesterday that four of his classmates and the teacher have swine flu. Apparently it is hitting the area hard and the hospitals are full. It doesn’t sound all that mild from what he is seeing.</p>
<p>A teenager fr. our church who is working as a counselor at a children’s residential church camp this summer got swine flu while there and was hospitalized for several days.</p>
<p>In Hawaii, otherwise healthy “young” adults in their early 30s are being hospitalized for H1N1 flu and having to be flown to our island hospitals & receive significant care in the Intensive Care Unit to recover. It is NOT “mild” for them and the hospitals are smashed with “regular” and H1N1 flu cases now, in the summer which is NOT flu season. I am concerned because we are flying to one of the islands where many of the serious flu cases are flying in to our island from and am hoping we won’t contract a nasty case of flu when we’re there this weekend, doing a public health event.</p>
<p>What I wonder is how this flu will behave during regular flu season, considering that there are so many cases of it now, when you don’t normally have much flu.</p>
<p>D’s friend came back from Argentina a month ago and started feeling sick. Went to the Dr. Confirmed swine flu. He took the meds and is fine.</p>
<p>The infectious disease expert I had dinner with the other night & all those she’s spoken with are VERY SCARED about the flu & how badly it will hit during flu season this fall. We are advising our kids to stay as healthy as possible and will try to do the same.</p>
<p>The one “advantage” us older folks have is that we probably have been exposed to some strains of what is in H1N1 so may have SOME level of immunity. It is definitely going to be a tough year for flus.</p>
<p>Taking Tamiflu within 48 hours of 1st symptoms is KEY to having it be effective. After that, it really doesn’t work effectively. I have used Tamiflu for two prior bouts of “flu” and it made a huge improvement.</p>
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<p>…or three times. The swine flu vaccination may be a two shot process, with some time between the shots.</p>
<p>Our son in Bazil sent an email today saying school has been suspended until August 17th due to swine flu. The fall semester classes were scheduled to start on Aug. 3. Summer classes had already been disrupted by sick teachers and students, but I don’t think they had been outright cancelled.</p>