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A second local case of H1N1 swine flu has been confirmed in a family friend of a Mecklenburg County child who became sick with the virus over Memorial Day weekend, health officials said Wednesday.
Mecklenburg health officials announced the county's first case of swine flu Monday, in an elementary-school-age child who had traveled with family to New York City. Communicable disease investigators said the second case developed in a friend of the child's mother who had come to the home to help care for the child.
Health officials said the friend was hospitalized with flu-like symptoms, and a test for swine flu returned positive Wednesday. The friend remains in isolation at home, taking antiviral medicines. The child also remains at home.
Dr. Steve Keener, medical director for the county Health Department, said this week that, because the child has not returned to school, there is no need for intervention among classmates.
Health department staffers are monitoring those who have been in close contact with both patients for any sign of infection.
The H1N1 outbreak, which began this spring in Mexico, has caused nearly 11,000 people to become ill in the United States. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has linked the virus to 15 deaths in the United States.
Mecklenburg health officials have sent more than 20 samples from “probable” swine flu cases to the state health lab for testing, and all but two have returned negative, Keener said.
Not everyone with flu-like symptoms is being tested for the H1N1 virus, Keener said. Only those who become severely ill, with an unremitting high fever and respiratory symptoms, and who require hospitalization are recommended for testing.
Health officials continue to remind people of the importance of good hygiene to prevent the spread of the virus: Wash hands carefully, cough and sneeze into a tissue or into your sleeve, stay home when you're sick, avoid being around sick people and avoid touching your hands to your face.
