Though there have been no reported cases of canines catching the H1N1 virus, the extra precautions do decrease the airborne risks of catching any illnesses, and they also prevent the dogs from contact exposure with other dogs which can help keep them from catching the canine flu, or H3N8.

I know neither of my two dogs would stand for this, and would have the mask off within seconds and the jacket wiggled out of not long after!

What do you think? Would you get a set of vest and mask for your dog, or just try and avoid contact with other animals for a while first?

[image: newscom/wenn]

Post from: Blisstree

Flu Masks for Dogs

The 13-year-old indoor house cat, who has fully recovered from the illness, reportedly caught the virus from one of two human household members who were sick with H1N1. It isn’t believed that the cat has passed the virus on to anyone — or anything! — else. An IDPH Public Health veterinarian says it’s actually not that unexpected, and that other flu strains have been found in cats before.

Up until today the H1N1 virus had only been found in humans, pigs, birds and ferrets:

It is well known that some viruses can be transmitted from people to their pets so the case of the Iowa cat isn’t a surprise. But the case is prompting the association, along with the American Association of Feline Practitioners, to remind pet owners “they should monitor their pets’ health very closely, no matter what type of animal, and visit a veterinarian if there are any signs of illness.” ~ source

People can keep themselves and their pets healthy by washing hands, covering coughs and sneezes, and minimizing contact with their pets while ill with flu-like symptoms. If your pet exhibits signs of a respiratory illness, contact your vet.

[image: flickr]

Post from: Blisstree

Iowa Cat Tests Positive for H1N1

Among the adults:

• 26% had asthma
• 8% had another chronic lung disease
• 10% had diabetes
• 8% had weakened immune systems
• 6% were pregnant

Among children, 6% had sickle cell disease or a similar blood condition. More analysis needs to be completed in this population though.

These findings reinforce the idea that it is the younger,  healthy adults who are more often affected. However, Canadian records are showing that the deaths to H1N1 are occurring much more frequently among women, so this is another area to be looked at.

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Image: PhotoXpress.com

Post from: Blisstree

Almost Half Hospital H1N1 Patients Healthy

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My question is will your son or daughter get the swine flu shot? If you did not plan on getting the shot will you allow the school to administer the shot to your child? Why or why not?

Fox News Reports:

Some believe the vaccine was rushed and not adequately tested. Others just don’t trust flu shots in general and avoid them each winter like the plague.

But government officials say those concerns are irrational. H1N1 flu has hit children particularly hard — 36 youths in the U.S. had died from it through August — so they are advising parents very strongly to do what’s best for their kids and get them vaccinated.

“I think many of the concerns by parents are based on the perception that this vaccine has been rushed into production and may not be safe,” said Tom Skinner, spokesman for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“And we understand parents’ concerns — they want what is best for their children. We often tell people the best antidote for fear is information. And we ask them to really seek out sound and reliable information from sources they trust.”

Many worry about putting the virus inside their own body in the hopes of becoming immune to it. Health officials are stating that Americans should get it and that it is safe. Is it? Have they got it? I think that is one thing they always forget, by telling the American people it is fine doesn’t mean anything unless they can also state that they have done/got it. Officials are even going as far as stating, “what’s best for their kids.” OUCH! I know it is serious but how many children has this vaccine been tested on? How many adults?

They also went on to say the flu shot (flu not swine flu) does not give people the flu, even though some come down with the flu right after getting it. What’s your take on all this?

Post from: Blisstree

Swine Flu Vaccines: Will Your Child Get it?

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Keep in mind that schools actually get paid per student that is actually in school for that day.  It was already stated that schools were not to close due to the swine flu, however it is already looking like schools are doing what they must to keep the children safe.

If you take a peek at google news you may have noticed that there were over 5 schools that were closed just today and will be closed tomorrow. Some of those schools were in New York, Arizona, Texas and many others. One school decided that they would have no school after 100 students out of 500 were absent in one day. An Aubrey school is currently closed until next week after two people died from the swine flu, one of which was an 11-year-old boy.

My question to you, as a parent, if your child tells you a HIGH number of students have H1N1 or that they have it will you keep your child home?

Post from: Blisstree

Will Schools Lose Money over Swine Flu?

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Plenty of soup and vitamin C is definitely on the list of good things to add to your child’s daily schedule but what happens when that isn’t enough?

Every year parents have to deal with the common cold and flu symptoms and worry about the time off they’ll have to need to take care of their child. But with the swine flu outbreak earlier this year now taking a front burner parents are more worried than they’ve ever been before. The swine flu seems to be hitting all over the places and running rampant in the school systems. Every time it seems to go away parents breath a sigh of relief but with the new school year and the outbreak being back parents are starting to fret.

Just last week I found out my son’s school had over 6 kids (my son actually knows) that have been absent with “the flu” for over 3 weeks. At the bus stop a mother told me that she was actually scared because her son now had something and he was just getting worse. She explained how she wouldn’t normally take her child into the hospital but now she worried that if she didn’t he might have swine flu or something just as serious.

Just last week it was announced that schools were sending notices home to parents because students were in the hospital now with MRSA. Currently this is just in Avon, Ohio and the principal does seem to be on top of this as they are already disinfecting the school. Thankfully they had all weekend to scrub the school down. For those that aren’t aware MRSA is check out the info below:

CDC
Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a type of bacteria that is resistant to certain antibiotics. These antibiotics include methicillin and other more common antibiotics such as oxacillin, penicillin and amoxicillin. Staph infections, including MRSA, occur most frequently among persons in hospitals and healthcare facilities (such as nursing homes and dialysis centers) who have weakened immune systems.

Symptoms of MRSA are:
Staph skin infections, including MRSA, generally start as small red bumps that resemble pimples, boils or spider bites. These can quickly turn into deep, painful abscesses that require surgical draining. Sometimes the bacteria remain confined to the skin. But they can also penetrate into the body, causing potentially life-threatening infections in bones, joints, surgical wounds, the bloodstream, heart valves and lungs.   

The best advice I can give parents is keep an eye on your kids and if they show symptoms take them in right away just to be sure. I’d rather be safe than sorry. Keep healthy and keep those kleenex nearby.

Post from: Blisstree

MRSA Hits Schools

Different states have different strategies for who will be the first to be vaccinated, either by FluMist or the traditional injection. Some states, such as Illinois want to vaccinate their first responders, while others, such as Alaska, want to vaccinate the preschoolers first. Pennsylvania will be targeting it’s elementary school-age children first.

The FluMist isn’t for everyone. Because it contains a weakened live virus, it is not for people with health problems, but for healthy people who are in high risk groups. Those who are chronically ill must wait for the injection, which is the dead virus and has no chance of causing illness.

Are you going to get vaccinated against H1N1?

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Image: StockXchng.com

Post from: Blisstree

Nasal Flu Vaccine Soon in Parts of U.S.

Truman didn’t want to miss school for those three days he was sent home, and that was pretty much all that made him feel miserable. Once home, he bounced off the walls and ran wild through the yard. He was fine.

This morning, I walked my son into school (I had to deliver Fall Festival donations anyway) and he handed his teachers (he has two) the note from the doctor. He said, “I hope I can stay the whole day today.” I said, “Me too.” I was overwhelmed with guilt that I had sent my son to school with germs to spread to other students. The teachers shook their heads. Apparently the school nurse has been on double-duty these days, being extra precautionary with most of the kids and sending them home for most any ailment in light of the swine flu epidemic. I recalled the two other kids in the nurse’s office when I was there last week, and the vomit spot I had to step over in the office when I checked Truman out Thursday. I began to feel sorry for that school nurse, no doubt more overwhelmed than usual. I thought I might send her a gift to show my appreciation, considering she had seen so much of my son these past two weeks.

Check out what I found! It’s a gift set especially for school nurses! This gift set from Educational Innovations/Teacher Source is adorable, funny, and outrageously expensive, but it includes several giant Microbes including Louse, Sore Throat, Stomach Ache, Common Cold, Cough, Ear Ache, Flu and Mono. Or, as the Web site says, “the germs most common in schools.” Now, what better way to show your appreciation to the school nurse than giving her germs? Awesome!

Photo, Educational Innovations, TeacherSource.com

Post from: Blisstree

Great Gift Idea for Overworked School Nurse

The service is echoing the position of the CDC, and strongly encouraging everyone to get a traditional flu vaccine as soon as possible.  These shots are available in a number of places, and are generally very reasonably priced.  You’ll find them through your work, at your doctor’s office or clinic, at your neighborhood pharmacy, supermarket, and community center.  If you don’t know where to find a location, ask at a nearby pharmacy or medical clinic.  They’ should have the information about where shots are being offered and will be able to direct you to the right place.

H1N1 shots should be available soon, but it’s recommended that you get a tradition flu shot now, helping to build immunities and get your immune system ready to do battle with all sorts of nasty germs and viruses.

Besides the flu shots, there are lots of things that you can do to minimize your risk of getting the flu.  Most are common sense habits, like washing your hands frequently and coughing and/or sneezing into your sleeve.

If you are scheduled to travel, but feel sick, stay home – and remain at home until at least 24 hours after you are free from signs of a fever (without taking medication).  And that goes for the kids, too.  Don’t travel with sick kids.  Contact your airline, hotel, tour operator regarding any travel plans that you have and advise them that you are too sick to travel.  Most have money-back provisions, although it may require a medical verification form.

It’s horrible to miss a vacation because you’re sick, and even worse when you just want to get home.  But it is much worse, and far more irresponsible, to travel when you are ill.  You run the risk of making yourself even sicker, but also can infect a lot of other travelers as well.  In an era where we all talk about personal responsibility, this is a perfect chance to step up and choose to do the right thing for yourself and for your family.

It’s a simple rule of thumb:  Don’t travel when you are sick.

I have never traveled when I’ve been sick with flu-like symptoms.  I’ll muddle through with a headache or the occasional allergy problem, but that’s about it.  My health is too important for me to put at risk.

How about you?  Have you traveled when you’ve been sick?  How did you justify the risk?

Photo credit: SXC

Post from: Blisstree

US Customs & Border Protection Issue Flu Warnings

A detailed report released by the CDC, and reported today by the North County Times, puts the condition into perspective, but hardly puts my mind at ease. According to the report, unlike the usual seasonal flu that kills half or more of children age 4 and younger, the swine flu is taking a higher toll on school-age kids. At least 40 – or about one in 13 U.S. swine flu deaths – are in children between the ages of 5 and 17. Some epidemiologists say that may be because school-age kids are more apt to be around other kids at camps and school than younger children. That may also explain why the Southeast is seeing more cases of swine flu than other regions, because our schools tend to start earlier.

Other differences between the ordinary flu and N1H1 detailed in the CDC report include secondary conditions. For example, two-thirds of the children who died from swine flu had an underlying neurodevelopmental condition such as epilepsy or cerebral palsy, compared to one-third with ordinary flu. And, other germs, such as a bacterial infection, on top of the swine flu proves more deadly to otherwise healthy children. Of the 10 children who were healthy before they got N1H1 but died from the virus, eight had a bacterial infection, such as bacterial pneumonia, along with the flu.

The CDC doesn’t track the usual seasonal flu so it is hard to say whether the swine flu is more prevalent than the ordinary flu. But there is some good news. The virus doesn’t appear to be mutating to become more deadly than it is now, as some scientists have feared.

Photo, JWJourney

Post from: Blisstree

CDC Report: School-Age Kids At High Risk