H1N1 virus plagues Gen Y
Category: Health
December 1, 2009 | BY Aziza Musa
Although the H1N1 disease is gradually decreasing across the country, it’s far from gone, said Dr. Thomas Frieden, Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in a news briefing on Tuesday. The flu remains widespread in 32 states, so it’s important that people who are most susceptible to the disease, including those 24 years and under, take preventative measures.
The H1N1 influenza is a respiratory illness with symptoms that mirror those of the seasonal flu, including fever over 100 degrees, sore throat, cough, runny or stuffy nose, chills and fatigue, body aches, headaches, and occasionally vomiting and diarrhea. To prevent the disease, the CDC recommends coughing into a tissue, washing hands frequently, avoiding hand contact with eyes, nose and mouth, and avoiding contact with sick people or those believed to be sick.
Since higher-education institutions may act as a “point of spread,” the CDC has provided universities and colleges with an H1N1 tool-kit, which urges faculty, students and staff to stay in their homes, dormitories or residence halls for 24 hours after the fever subsides. It also asks faculty to increase student awareness of influenza.
The most effective measure a person can take is to get vaccinated, and soon that should be easier to do. Currently, there are nearly 70 million doses available throughout the country, Frieden said. Unfortunately, that’s not enough to vaccinate everyone at risk, which also includes children and those of any age with underlying health conditions such as diabetes and asthma.
The backorder is due to the lengthy time period that the bacteria needs to fully culture, Frieden said. In the coming weeks, though, there should be more vaccines available for at risk individuals.
But more vaccines won’t necessarily translate to vaccinations for 18- to 24-year-olds. So far, state health departments have primarily targeted pregnant women and children before opening the vaccinations up to healthy college students and other groups at risk, said Carrie Williams, spokeswoman for the Texas Department of State Health Services.
“At this point, we haven’t allocated any vaccines to any schools,” Williams said. “We’re focusing the limited amount to the providers focusing on high-priority groups. Once [the vaccine] opens up, we’re going to give out more.” A date hasn’t been set for when the vaccine will be available to all individuals.
It’s easy for healthy people to dismiss the CDC’s recommendations as an overreaction, but this disease should not be ignored. It has reached pandemic level, leading President Obama in October to declare the H1N1 virus a national emergency. And from August 30 to November 21, 29,348 people were hospitalized and 1,224 had died from the virus.
The flu season lasts until May, and at this point, researchers are unsure as to why people ages 24 and under are most affected by the disease.
“Flu viruses are very complicated organisms, and this particular strain has only been in circulation since April,” said Jeffrey Dimond, CDC spokesperson. “The initial efforts of scientists went toward creating a vaccine against it, which was done in record time. Now scientists can begin looking into the particulars of the virus-including why it seems to strike younger people more readily.”
About the Author
Aziza Musa: Aziza Musa is a student at The University of Texas at Austin, where she plans to major in journalism and psychology. She has a deep interest in international relations and social issues. Aziza believes the U.S. news media tends to ignore most countries, and will pursue changing that mindset after graduation in 2011. For now, Aziza will focus most of her writing on the Y Gen Out Loud site to giving underrepresented countries a voice. For the past two years, Aziza has been a member of both the National and UT-Chapters of the Society for Professional Journalists. Though she doesn’t affiliate with any particular party, Aziza tends to lean toward the political left.
