The Red and Black

Issue date: 6/25/09 Section: News

DOYLE [Click to enlarge]

Fifty-one cases of the H1N1 strain of influenza, more commonly known as swine flu, have been reported in Georgia as of June 23, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Although zero cases have been reported so far in Athens, the virus could still affect the University.

Steven Dumpert, risk communicator for the Office of Emergency Preparedness' 10th district, said not only were there no reported cases in Athens-Clarke County, but there were none in the 10-county district surrounding Athens.

Dumpert cautioned that just because there are no cases, it does not mean H1N1 is not present in the area.

"It just means they're not on record or have not been tested," he said. "H1N1 is probably everywhere now."

The World Health Organization recently declared H1N1 a pandemic, which "is characterized by community level outbreaks in which the flu is spread person-to- person in at least two countries in different regions of the world," Michael Doyle, academic director for the Center for Food Safety-Georgia, told The Red & Black.

Doyle said more than 70 countries reported infections of H1N1 since the outbreak began. He said H1N1 is spread primarily by infected persons coughing and by person-to- person contact with nasal secretions.

"Fortunately, to the best of my knowledge, the virus is not hardy on hard surfaces such as kitchen or bathroom counters, so [it] would likely not remain infective after a few hours on a dry surface," he said.

Because H1N1 has become so widespread, Doyle advises students to stay away from people who are or might be infected. In addition, he said students should be "avoiding the age-old tradition of shaking hands."

Doyle also advised students to wash hands after contacting communally handled materials such as newspapers, magazines, towels and clothing.

Representatives from the CDC assure students the term "pandemic" does not indicate the severity of the disease.

Tom Skinner, a CDC spokesman, said H1N1 "doesn't compare to the 1918 Spanish influenza pandemic," and a lot of factors determine how severe the disease will be.

Skinner cited some of these factors as the novelty of the virus, how prepared a country is to handle it and how many citizens have adequate access to health care and health facilities.

Continued...

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