Swine flu affects youngsters more: Reports

Swine flu is affecting youngsters under the average age group of 16-18 more, suggest new reports.

Swine flu and age: It’s worse for youngsters

H1N1 virus’s attack on youngsters is a total departure from the normal pattern of the influenza virus which mainly targets the elderly.

With the new swine flu outbreak, it is more and more younger people than the aged are entering hospitals, as per hospital sources in US.

“Very few” patients with swine flu are older than 50, and the median age is 17. It’s possible that the elderly have greater immunity, said Anne Schuchat of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

CDC  has posted information specific to institutions of higher education as part of  its programme to prepare for any cases of H1N1 flu among their student and employee populations.

According to the CDC higher education alert, symptoms for H1N1 flu have included fever, headache, upper respiratory tract symptoms (cough, sore throat, runny nose ), muscle aches, fatigue, vomiting and/or diarrhea. “Illnesses among persons infected with H1N1 flu virus have mostly been treated at home, but some cases have been hospitalized and deaths have been reported,” said the alert.

Most people will not have immunity to this new virus and, as it continues to spread, more cases are expected in the coming days and weeks.

The CDC’s goals regarding H1N1 flu “are to reduce transmission and illness severity, and provide information to help health care providers, public health officials and the public address the challenges posed by the new virus.

Instruction for the prevention of the disease include:

• Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze.
• Throw the tissue in the trash after you use it.
• Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze. Alcohol-based hand cleaners are also effective.
• Avoid close contact with sick people.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs spread this way.

If you experience influenza-like illness symptoms, stay home from work or school except to seek medical care, and limit contact with others to keep from infecting them.

Swine flu has spread to almost all states of the US and countries across Central America, Europe, the Middle East, Asia and New Zealand.

Started in Mexico, swine flu has now confirmed in Colombia, El Salvador, Austria, Canada, Costa Rica, Denmark, France, Germany, China (Hong Kong), Ireland, Israel, Italy, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, the U.K., and the U.S.

There are three main flu virus strains that cause seasonal influenza– H3N2, another form of H1N1, and type-B virus. The flu virus is estimated to cause  250,000 to 500,000 deaths a year globally, according to the WHO.

As H1N1 virus spreads more and more countries, WHO raised its alertness level to 5 -next to the highest level-urging countries to prepare to face the disease on a war footing will declare swine flu a pandemic any time soon, as the H1N1 virus has spread to 30 US states and with 20 countries across the world  confirming swine flu infection in little more than a week.

The H1N1 virus is probably circulating in virtually all U.S. states.

First reported in the US and Mexico, H1N1 also has been confirmed in Central America, Europe, the Middle East, Asia and New Zealand.