Same precautions for swine flu as regular flu, doctors say

Published 7:32 pm Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Although there have been no reports of swine flu in Georgia, local health officials are advising residents to take the same precautions they do during flu season.

That means a lot of hand washing, covering your nose and mouth when sneezing or coughing and avoiding touching your eyes, nose or mouth, said Dr. Bryan Cheever, with Paragon Medical Associates in Dalton. You should also eat healthy, get plenty of sleep and drink fluids, he said.

“That’s really the key,” Cheever said. “Do the same things you would do to keep from getting the flu.”

The swine flu has been blamed for more than 150 deaths in Mexico and is slowing spreading across the globe. There are 68 confirmed swine flu cases in five U.S. states. All of those cases are considered mild. Georgia “may eventually see cases” of swine flu, according to the North Georgia Health District.

Swine flu is a pig respiratory disease caused by type A influenza viruses. Symptoms of swine flu in people are similar to the symptoms of human flu and include fever, cough, sore throat, body aches, headache, chills and fatigue. Swine flu is not spread by food or by eating pork. Experts believe swine flu spreads the same way as seasonal flu.

Cheever said his office has fielded calls about swine flu and had several people walk in with cold symptoms worried they had been infected. None tested positive for any type of flu. And despite the images from Mexico of people wearing cloth masks to prevent transmitting the swine flu, Cheever said area residents shouldn’t panic.

“Concern, yes, but no more than you would just for the flu,” Cheever said. “People shouldn’t panic and go to health care providers and ERs (emergency rooms) at the first symptom of a cold because you will literally swamp the health care system. You really need to treat it just like any other flu. If you are getting real sick and the symptoms are lingering, you need to get seen.”

Some health organizations are fearful the swine flu will become a pandemic. Local health officials have trained for an outbreak. Hamilton Medical Center hosted a Georgia Hospital Region A Pandemic Influenza full-scale exercise in March 2008. Several public health agencies participated in the four-hour drill, which assessed how well the groups would handle a pandemic.

“County pandemic flu planning committees throughout the district have met over the past three years to write a pandemic flu response plan,” Jennifer Moorer, public information officer for the North Georgia Health District, wrote in a press release. “Those plans have been thoroughly discussed and each county committee is being kept updated on the recent swine flu outbreaks.”

Moorer said the best way to prepare for a pandemic is to update emergency supply kits, practice good hand hygiene and stay aware of the situation.

For information about preparing for pandemic influenza, visit the North Georgia Health District Web site at www.nghd.org and click on “Emergency Preparedness,” then on the “Pandemic Flu Prep Pamphlet.” For information about the swine flu, visit www.cdc.gov/swineflu or www.pandemicflu.gov/faq/swineflu/.



The Georgia Division of Public Health offers the following tips to help prevent being infected with swine flu:

• Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Throw the tissue in the trash after you use it. If you do not have a tissue, cough or sneeze into your sleeve.

• Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze.

• Use alcohol-based hands cleaners if soap and water are not available.

• Try to avoid close contact with sick people.

• If you get sick, stay home from work or school and limit contact with others to keep from infecting them.

• Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs spread that way.