<p>Mezzo’sMama, if you were able to prescribe medication wouldn’t you do the exact same thing Jamiecakes did?</p>
<p>Mezzo’sMama, You just posted about your daughter who injured her ankle and the student health service was closed for the weekend and she could not be seen for three days. A student with chronic respiratory problems who contracts H1N1 might be dead if a delay of three days were encountered at the student health service. I think the Mom did a prudent thing sending that student off with Tamiflu in hand. There is nothing immoral or illegal here.</p>
<p>Oh wow hearing all these cases gets me concern. I will be starting my senior year September 8th, reviewing these reports of the swine flu, make me question if the swine flu (h1n1) affects younger population more, passes easier through contact, than wouldn’t a school building be a highly place for the flu to thrive? From my understanding there is no vaccine going around yet, so I’am very catious about attending school Sept. 8th, I’ll try to keep up with latest news on the flu and see whats going on.</p>
<p>Recent article found:<a href=“Doctors Question WHO's Severe Swine Flu Warning - ABC News”>http://abcnews.go.com/Health/SwineFluNews/story?id=8438883</a></p>
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<p>Colleges and dorms are always good places for the flu to spread, since you have a large population of people living and working (going to class) in the same environment day after day.
But H1N1 has been way overhyped - and we’re still talking about the overwhelmingly young and healthy population of college students. Not exactly a high risk population for flu complications. Just treat it like any other flu (rest, fluids, treat symptoms with OTC meds, etc.)</p>
<p>^
Dorms are also high, but I don’t think the swine flu has been overhyped.</p>
<p>I am a severe asthmatic and my specialist, who agreed to see me at reduced price as my insurance coverage does not allow me to see him anymore, is retiring at the end of september. If I get sick I don’t know what I’ll do.</p>
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<p>Why not? Sure it’s a new strain which means more people are susceptible to it, and so it is very widespread and fast-moving, but otherwise it is pretty much like any other seasonal flu bug in terms of severity of symptoms, treatment, etc. Its not like if you get H1N1, you need to run and admit yourself to the hospital. In fact, you will probably never know if you get H1N1 or another flu virus - you don’t even need to go see a doctor unless complications develop or you have other risk factors, but thats the same for any flu.</p>
<p>My son’s college had a few cases of H1N1 last spring before classes let out. I’m sure there will be many more this fall and winter. (A friend of his had Tamiflu on hand last spring because the friend’s parent is a doctor.) The students who had the swine flu had mild cases. If a vaccine is available to students generally (not pregnant, not immune-compromised, not asthmatic) then he’ll probably get it… but neither he nor I are terribly concerned about this particular flu. I just hope if he gets it, that it’s early in the semester when he’s not under the gun to write end-of-term papers, take final exams, etc.</p>
<p>My D’s friends had H1N1 this summer & she was exposed to them so HOPEFULLY she acquired some immunity. My S was prescribed Tamiflu by his MD because he is an asthmatic who also has chronic health issues and was going to China & many other very long plane trips this summer, including an internship many thousands of miles from home in VA, with limited transportation and abililty to get healthcare. It was uncertain about his access to medical care and he will take it only as prescribed by his doc if he appears to have H1N1, since he is at very high risk of complications. D is also asthmatic with chronic health conditions but was not prescribed Tamiflu, since they didn’t have all of these increased complications to deal with this summer.</p>
<p>Right, psych_…it helps create a superstrain. Only take Tamiflu if instructed to by the physician/PA/NP…good hygiene is the best defense…if only everyone would do it. I hate it when I am out in the public and someone sneezes all over!!! I could just slap them but then again I wouldn’t want to touch them…but its infuriating.</p>
<p>Mezzo</p>
<p>While I appreciate your concerns, I don’t appreciate the hostility. I won’t apologize for protecting my son here on this forum, or ever. </p>
<p>I understand why people might resent something like this. In fact, sometimes I resent things that OTHER people get because of their parents/status/money. </p>
<p>If I was your child’s provider and s/he was going off to college, I might give that child Tamiflu with strict instructions NOT to take it without direct instruction from me. It depends on the kid/the family and the circumstances. If this was my non-asthmatic kid, I wouldn’t send it with him. And I don’t have it in my house today. I have been exposed many times and have not taken it myself.</p>
<p>But my son is different. He is far away. He is living in a group situation. He can’t afford to miss a week of school and he has asthma which puts him at a higher risk. </p>
<p>If you don’t start Tamiflu within 24 hours of symptoms the efficacy goes down. The idea that my son could get an appointment, test results AND a prescription within 24 hours is taking a risk. And I don’t take risks with my children (or with my patients). If my son was in town and not far away, he wouldn’t have a box of Tamiflu. He didn’t have it last spring or this summer. </p>
<p>But his life is my life. And I will protect it.</p>
<p>^^^ completely understandable! </p>
<p>Univ of Ill / Urbana reports dozen or more cases of flu. </p>
<p>Here is good link, sign up for regular updates.
[CDC</a> 2009 H1N1 Flu](<a href=“http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/#]CDC”>http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/#)</p>
<p>Two days ago the WHO reported a very virulent strain which effects lungs. Young people are at risk because their immune system goes into overdrive, causing them to become sicker. </p>
<p>And, I was in emergency room two days ago, and when the doctor tried to shake my hand, I resisted, mentioning swine flu. Why don’t they, the health care workers, dispense of this formality during this flu season?</p>
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It hasn’t been proven to be treated like a regular flu virus. Plus from recent reports WHO is not stating that prescriping the tamiflu could make the h1n1 virus more resistance,
producing a more server state. </p>
<p>[WHO</a> says irrational Tamiflu use may make H1N1 virus resistant- Politics/Nation-News-The Economic Times](<a href=“http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/Politics/Nation/WHO-says-irrational-Tamiflu-use-may-make-H1N1-virus-resistant/articleshow/4950517.cms]WHO”>WHO says irrational Tamiflu use may make H1N1 virus resistant - The Economic Times)</p>
<p>Disagree with Icarus I don’t think it has been overhyped at all. Remember many flus have started mild and then hit hard later on. Huge mistake to assume it will remain mild.</p>
<p>For example</p>
<p>There appears to be a population for whom this is a very severe flu</p>
<p>[WHO</a> warns of severe form of swine flu - Yahoo! News](<a href=“http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090828/hl_nm/us_flu_pandemic]WHO”>http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090828/hl_nm/us_flu_pandemic)</p>
<p>^
Agreed, especially because H1N1 is behaving pretty much <em>exactly</em> like the 1918 killer flu! <em>shudders</em></p>
<p>Just this week, the University of Virginia and George Mason University sent mass emails to all students, a rare communications step that emphasizes the seriousness with which the schools view the virus. James Madison University, Georgetown University and Christopher Newport University, among others, have prominently posted detailed H1N1/Swine flu information on their websites.</p>
<p>Wash your hands</p>
<p>College students are among those at highest risk for the disease as they simply don’t have the antibodies to fight it as do older people. While your college student will be bombarded with precautionary messages about the H1N1 virus, in this case it just can’t hurt for you to remind (read: nag, nag, nag) him or her to follow the simple steps identified by the Centers for Disease Control. In her mass email this week, Dr. Sandy Scherrens, George Mason University’s Vice President of University Life, wrote: </p>
<p>Another simple way to prevent contracting or spreading influenza is to exercise good personal hygiene and avoid contact with others if you become ill:</p>
<ol>
<li>Cover your mouth and nose when you cough or sneeze.</li>
<li>Wash your hands frequently with soap and water.</li>
<li>Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth.</li>
<li>Avoid close contact with people who are sick.</li>
<li>Stay home when you are sick and avoid public or social settings.</li>
<li>Practice good health habits; Get plenty of sleep, be physically active, manage your stress, drink plenty of fluids, and eat nutritious food.</li>
</ol>
<p>Let’s start a “Nag Campaign”–and, once every week, let’s copy the suggestions above and bombard them weekly reminder emails. We’ll call it “Friday- Flu Nag Day” …</p>
<p>Maybe my next care package will include Purell, kleenex, Dial soap, and a loving reminder to WASH, COVER, AVOID SICK PEOPLE and stay safe.</p>
<p>None of the patients I have treated have had serious complications. In fact, last spring, before the novel H1N1 was documented in the US–extensively–I saw MANY, MANY patients with cough, fever and sore throat…the suspicious triad. Now I wonder if they didn’t all have a mild case of the flu. Their symptom costellation was classic for the new flu but not regular flu, they were the right age, it was a mini-epidemic at our clinic…I hope that’s all it is for our kids.</p>
<p>SOOOO many kids will get this and not even realize they had it! I hope that for all your kids as well.</p>
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<p>Sorry, but this is incorrect. It’s called “Novel” H1N1 flu for a reason - essentially no one under the age of 60 (and only 1/3 of those over 60) have an existing resistance to the strain. College students are only at a “higher risk” because they tend to exist as homoegeneous groups of young people who eat/sleep/work/play in the same environment day after day, facilitating fast transmission of the virus.</p>
<p>Again, we’re not talking about a particularly deadly virus here. So far, the death toll in the US is only around 550 - compare that to the average of** 36,000 **that die each year in the US from flu complications.</p>
<p>Well, there is an unusual cytokine storm that sometimes happens with younger people raising their risk of serious or deadly complications. Ironically, in that case, the relatively stronger immune system of youth/young adults would put them at risk.</p>