Pandemic Flu in Boarding Schools

Prep School Admissions Prep School Parents
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<p>Here is one of the better articles I’ve come across that realistically addresses the risks and related fallacies regarding the H1N1 vaccine: [FactCheck:</a> Swine Flu Vaccine Fears Greatly Exaggerated | Newsweek Health | Newsweek.com](<a href=“http://www.newsweek.com/id/218513]FactCheck:”>FactCheck: Swine Flu Vaccine Fears Greatly Exaggerated - Newsweek).</p>

<p>And you can find a list of what’s in it through this link: [Influenza</a> A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccines Descriptions and Ingredients](<a href=“http://www.fda.gov/BiologicsBloodVaccines/Vaccines/QuestionsaboutVaccines/ucm186102.htm]Influenza”>Influenza A (H1N1) 2009 Monovalent Vaccines Descriptions and Ingredients | FDA)</p>

<p>It isn’t without risk and neither is the seasonal flu shot. The frustrating thing is that a lot of misinformation is out there. It is much more difficult to make an informed decision without accurate information. </p>

<p>Keylime, I hope your son has no negative side effects/reactions to it. The likelihood is small, but I know things can happen in rare cases. Hopefully he won’t be one of those rare cases!</p>

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<p>I was on the fence too but swine flu is spreading like wildfire in our city right now. 800 new cases just this weekend. My younger son’s school had 1/3 of the students off sick today. With a couple deaths close by of otherwise healthy teenagers this weekend, the vaccine is looking good but where I am, healthy individuals over 5 years old are not eligible for the vaccine for at least another 3 weeks!
Keylyme, I totally sympathize. It was VERY difficult to sign off on my boarder getting his vaccine. I too still have reservations despite agreeing to it.</p>

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<p>^^Thanks, and he will probably be fine. We are a family who never gets the seasonal flu vaccine, but H1N1 is worrisome. Either way (vaccine or not) is stressful.</p>

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<p>It amazes me the CDC is just getting around to this test.</p>

<p>Kids Shed H1N1 Virus 6 Days After Fever</p>

<p>Study Raises Questions About How Long Kids With Swine Flu Are Contagious
By Charlene Laino</p>

<p>WebMD Health NewsReviewed by Louise Chang, MDOct. 29, 2009 (Philadelphia) – Some elementary school kids with the swine flu are still shedding H1N1 virus six days after their fever strikes, a new study suggests.</p>

<p>Researchers stopped short of saying these youngsters could still transmit the virus to their friends and family.</p>

<p>But the findings raise a red flag, reinforcing the importance of getting school-aged kids vaccinated, doctors say.</p>

<p>Achuyt Bhattarai, MD, of the CDC, and colleagues looked at shedding patterns of the H1N1 virus during an outbreak at an elementary school in Pennsylvania in May and June.</p>

<p>The researchers swabbed the noses and throats of 13 elementary school kids, ages 5 to 9, who had a fever of 100 degrees or higher and a cough and/or sore throat. Samples were also obtained from 13 of their flu-stricken family members.</p>

<p>“Overall, we found the median duration of shedding to be six days, with a minimum of one day and a maximum of 13 days,” Bhattarai says.</p>

<p>The elementary school kids also shed H1N1 virus for a median of six days after their fever struck, he tells WebMD.</p>

<p>The findings were presented at the annual meeting of the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA).</p>

<p>These and future findings will help health officials decide when children should go back to school, says the University of Utah’s Andrew Pavia, MD, head of the IDSA’s pandemic influenza task force.</p>

<p>The CDC recommends that children with flu-like symptoms stay home and not return to school until at least 24 hours after they are free of a fever of 100 degrees or more without using fever-reducing medicines.</p>

<p>“While someone who has been without fever for 24 hours without use of fever-reducing medicine can in fact shed virus, we don’t believe they shed enough virus to make others sick,” says Thomas Skinner, a CDC spokesman. “It’s possible but not likely.”</p>

<p>Pavia notes that the swine flu appears to act quite differently than the seasonal flu. Young people with swine flu tend to get sicker than older adults, the opposite of what happens with seasonal flu.</p>

<p>The bottom line: make sure your children get the H1N1 vaccination, which is very safe, says Bruce Gellin, MD, MPH, director of the HHS National Vaccine Program Office.</p>

<p>“This is clearly a novel virus, but it’s not a new vaccine. The swine flu vaccine is made exactly the same way as the seasonal flu vaccine” and there are no differences in terms of safety, he tells WebMD.
[Kids</a> Shed H1N1 Swine Flu Virus 6 Days After Fever](<a href=“H1N1 Flu Virus (Swine Flu): Symptoms, Causes, Tests, and Treatments”>H1N1 Flu Virus (Swine Flu): Symptoms, Causes, Tests, and Treatments)</p>

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<p>During the summer, I think I remember summer camps asking families not to send children to camp if they had had a fever within two weeks of the start of camp. That’s a good policy for camp, but is it practical for a school? Waves of children absent for 2 weeks?</p>

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<p>Let’s hope death this isn’t the beginning of the second wave:(</p>

<p>Rancocas Valley High Teen Dies Of H1N1</p>

<p>[Teen</a> From Rancocas Valley Regional High School Dies Of H1N1 - cbs3.com](<a href=“http://cbs3.com/local/Swine.Flu.Burlington.2.1274742.html]Teen”>http://cbs3.com/local/Swine.Flu.Burlington.2.1274742.html)</p>

<p>State health officials say tests have confirmed that a 17-year-old Burlington County boy has died due to complications from swine flu.</p>

<p>The teen attended Rancocas Valley Regional High School in Mount Holly.</p>

<p>Principal Michael Moskalski said Monday that the boy was in school on Friday and showed no apparent signs of the flu. He died on Saturday. His name was not released.</p>

<p>In a letter sent home to parents, school officials said they are working closely with the health department to ensure safety of all children. The letter read in part: “We continue to be in close contact with public health officials regarding the influenza pandemic. We are taking all recommended steps to limit the spread of influenza in our school. It is the goal of the health department and the school to keep the school open and functioning as normal as possible.”</p>

<p>The school has scheduled a vaccination clinic that will be held Monday, November 2, during the school day.</p>

<p>According to the state health department, New Jersey has ordered 1.3 million doses of the H1N1 vaccine and has received 400,000 so far.</p>

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<p>It appears no worse than regular influenza</p>

<p>Deaths information for Flu: An estimated 100,000 hospitalizations and about 20,000 deaths occur each year from the flu or its complications. (Source: excerpt from Focus On The Flu: NIAID) … average of 20,000 to 40,000 deaths per year. (Source: excerpt from Microbes in Sickness and in Health - Publications, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases: NIAID) … in the United States more than 100,000 people are hospitalized and more than 20,000 people die from the flu and its complications every year. (Source: excerpt from The Flu, NIAID Fact Sheet: NIAID) … In an average year, flu leads to about 20,000 deaths nationwide and many more hospitalizations. (Source: excerpt from What to Do About the Flu - Age Page - Health Information: NIA)</p>

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<p>Princess’Dad – while H1N1 may not be more virulent overall that seasonal flu, the difference is in who it is making severely ill and killing. The vast majority of those who die of seasonal flu are the elderly–including those in nursing homes, where it can spread rampantly. They get the flu, often develop a secondary pneumonia, and die. Although that is very sad, many consider it more tragic when young people die of a preventable infectious disease. This flu has a predilection for the young – including young children, teens, and young adults. Although most do well, a small proportion of them become severely ill or even die. Although traditional flu season is just beginning, we have already had more child deaths than in any previous recent full flu season (which lasts until Spring). About a third have no underlying medical conditions. This flu also has more of a predilection than the seasonal flu to cause lower respiratory illness, including pneumonia. There are now children and adults on ECMO – a drastic measure to support those whose lungs have essentially shut down to the point that even a ventilator won’t work. Go to the parent cafe and look up Missypie’s posts- her friend, a healthy, middle aged lawyer died despite ECMO, leaving behind his wife and kids and grieving friends. Even of those who do have “underlying conditions” – it is often conditions that are very prevalent in society such as our society, such as asthma, diabetes, and obesity. It really bugs me when people say “more people die in car crashes.” Yes – and I also agree with doing everything we can to prevent these, such as airbags, seatbelts, and driver training. I’d be devastated no matter what my loved one died from. I’m speaking as a parent (although I’m a physician as well) and I can tell you I got my youngest son vaccinated for H1N1 as soon as it was available (about 3 weeks ago) and I can’t wait until it’s available at my older kids’ colleges.</p>

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<p>^^Not even all physicians agree on this, though…(getting the vaccination).</p>

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<p>[Number</a> of Influenza-Associated Pediatric](<a href=“http://www.cdc.gov/flu/weekly/weeklyarchives2009-2010/IPD42.htm]Number”>http://www.cdc.gov/flu/weekly/weeklyarchives2009-2010/IPD42.htm)</p>

<p>According to this chart, in the previous 3 flu seasons, the bulk of the pediatric deaths occurred after January. We already have almost as many reported pediatric deaths (as of last week) as were reported in the entire '06-'07 flu season. Maybe doctors and local health agencies are more likely to report deaths, given all the publicity around H1N1. It looks very worrying, though. </p>

<p>Notwithstanding that, in an absolute sense, very few children will die. Any individual child has a very small chance of being among those unlucky few. For the majority of children and adults, H1N1 is a very mild flu. </p>

<p>During a true pandemic, people die from other treatable conditions, because there aren’t the resources to treat them. Emergency rooms are likely to be overwhelmed by the added burden of flu victims. It’s a good time to make sure you’re taking good preventive care of chronic conditions, such as asthma and diabetes. Wear a helmet when riding a bike, etc. Don’t allow more than one child at a time on a trampoline. Avoid that trip to the ER.</p>

<p>So, when our pediatrician has supplies of the vaccine, we will get vaccinated. I’ve given permission for our BS kid to be vaccinated. On the other hand, I don’t think it’s productive to worry about not being vaccinated. It isn’t that great a risk. The daily trips to and from school and activities are likely to be more risky. Flu’s an avoidable risk, though, so as I said, we will eventually get vaccinated.</p>

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<p>We just got the email yesterday that kids at goaliegirl’s school are now starting to come down with the flu. And they are ordering all infected day students home and parents who live in the region to pick up their boarding students. Those who live a distance away are encouraged to pull their kids out if they can. </p>

<p>It was just a matter of time, I figure. Having just finished fall break, I’m sure plenty of boarders who were away from infected families had the perfect opportunity to bring back something to share with the rest of their classmates. Joy. So sending the ones infected at school home to share it with their uninfected families is the correct solution? Hardly. If goaliegirl gets infected, she will stay in their quaranteen room (the nurses office). I’m not driving/flying up there to bring this mess home. If she needs hospitalization, I’ll be there on the next plane, but other than that, I’m in favor of not risking spreading this virus outside of its bounds.</p>

<p>The only thing I am thankful for right now is that they didn’t have the outbreak before the break, as so far (knock on wood) neither goaliegirl nor I have become infected (she spent her fall break with me on college tours). And I’m especially thankful that they hadn’t had their outbreak the week before that, as my DW and MIL (both on immuno supressive pharmaceuticals) would have been dead meat, as they picked her up and dropped her off at school for an overnight at a prospective college.</p>

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<p>I was surprised to see a friend of ours son home this week…I asked why and apparently his prep school sent everyone home for a 5 day break because of swine flu. They are trying to break the cycle of infection.</p>

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<p>

I find this logic amusing. The schools must be working on the assumption that the home environment of the healthy kids is actually more healthy than the school itself. Not necessarily true. And sending healthy children home to sick environments will only reintroduce the problem when everyone returns.</p>

<p>Can someone pass me a leech?</p>

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<p>Perhaps there is more to this. The school must have enough healthy adults around to supervise both healthy and sick students. If faculty start falling ill, they are unavailable to teach AND serve in their supervisory capacities. I would rather my child be home in a case like that.</p>

<p>I don’t get the rest thing. It’s a virus that makes you sick, not fatigue. Rest certainly helps you recover once your body starts defending, but it’s certainly not going to prevent anything.</p>

<p>But you’re right goaliedad. What if you’re whole family is sick at home. Will they let you stay?</p>

<p>My daughter is currently ill with headaches, low fever yesterday and Sunday, cough, bodyache and occasional dizziness. She hasn’t been to school this week, even though she felt much better this afternoon - then got worse in this evening, complaining of the dizziness and “really bad” headache (when she moves her head). To all the physician parents out there…should I be concerned about the dizziness and headache? At what point does one know when this flu takes a more serious turn?</p>

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<p>From the news articles I am reading, the symptoms to be most concerned with are fever, breathing, and headache issues. I, of course, am not an MD, so please don’t treat this as medical advice. The scary thing about this flu is that it can progress quickly at any point in time to become life-threatening. </p>

<p>I’m sorry to hear she isn’t doing well and hope everyone else at home is doing OK.</p>

<p>I was surprised at schools shutting down, sending healthy kids home. Goaliegirl’s school is less than 5% infective per today’s email and they are only sending sick, local children away at this point. </p>

<p>And the illness at her school, from what I am hearing, started shortly after fall break (no reported incidents beforehand), where students were suddenly sent home to be exposed to other populations for a short period of time before sharing any infection with schoolmates upon return.</p>

<p>Hopefully the 9 days of Thanksgiving break will be enough for both exposure to the home population and time to battle and fight off any new infections they are exposed to in that time.</p>

<p>Most of all, keep a close eye on your daughter and take immediate action if her overall condition suddenly takes a change for the worse.</p>

<p>Sorry about the choppy nature of this post.</p>

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<p>I believe that severe respiratory problems along with a fever that goes away (without an antipyretic) and then returns are they signs that the illness is increasing in severity and you should seek medical attention. My kids have had viral illnesses with headache and dizziness (strep actually comes to mind).</p>

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<p>Thank you for the replies. I will keep a very close eye on her tonight and tomorrow (keeping her home from school again).</p>

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<p>My daughter just called from college to say she is sick as well. Sore throat, cough, headache, not sure about fever. Her friend down the hall went home yesterday.</p>

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<p>Get them to their doc within 24 - 48 hours of symptoms and start tamaflu. Even if not H1N1, will shorten the length of illness.</p>

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<p>I thought Tamiflu would only be given those in high risk groups with confirmed type A influenza?</p>