Clinical definition
Acute respiratory illness accompanied by fever (more than 38°C), with the spectrum of disease ranging between influenza-like illness (ILI) to pneumonia, an inflammation of the lungs accompanied by congestion
Common definition
A highly contagious acute respiratory disease of pigs, caused by one of several swine influenza A viruses. The virus is spread among pigs by aerosols, direct and indirect contact, and asymptomatic carrier pigs.
Sometimes pigs can be infected with more than one virus type at a time, which can allow the genes from these viruses to mix. This can result in an influenza virus containing genes from a number of sources, called a “reassortant virus. Although swine influenza viruses are normally species specific and only infect pigs, they do sometimes cross the species barrier to cause disease in humans.
How do humans contract the disease?
Swine flu can infect humans, especially persons with direct exposure to pigs (e.g. children near pigs at a fair or workers in the swine industry). Human-to-human transmission can occur through close contacts with an infected person and easily contracted in closed groups of people or recent travel to an area where there are confirmed cases of swine influenza.
What’s a probable case?
An individual with a clinically compatible illness or who died of an unexplained acute respiratory illness who is considered to be epidemiologically linked to a probable or confirmed case.
What’s a confirmed case?
Swine influenza infection is confirmed through laboratory tests, which include one or more of the following:
. Real-time RT-PCR: a laboratory technique used for both research and diagnostic methods
. Viral culture: laboratory test in which samples are placed with a cell medium that the virus being tested for are able to infect
. Four-fold rise in swine influenza A(H1N1) virus specific neutralizing antibodies
Symptoms of swine flu in humans
. Fever
. Lethargy
. Coughing
. Lack of appetite
. Runny nose
. Sore throat
. Nausea
. Vomiting
. Diarrhea
. Other influenza symptoms such as headache and muscle aches
What to do when symptoms appear
. Seek medical help
. Stay at home and keep away from work, school or crowds as much as possible
. Rest and take plenty of fluids. . Cover your mouth and nose with disposable tissues when coughing and sneezing and dispose of the used tissues properly. . Wash your hands with soap and water frequently and thoroughly, especially after coughing or sneezing. . Inform family and friends about your illness and seek help for household chores that require contact with other people such as shopping.
Protection
. Avoid close contact with people who appear unwell and who have fever and cough.
. Wash your hands with soap and water frequently and thoroughly.
. Practice good health habits including adequate sleep, eating nutritious food, and keeping physically active.
If there is an ill person at home:
. Try to provide the ill person a separate section in the house. If this is not possible, keep the patient at least 1 meter in distance from others.
. Cover mouth and nose when caring for the ill person. Masks can be bought commercially or made using the readily available materials as long as they are disposed of or cleaned properly.
. Wash your hands with soap and water thoroughly after each contact with the ill person.
. Try to improve the air flow in the area where the ill person stays. Use doors and windows to take advantage of breezes.
. Keep the environment clean with readily available household cleaning agents.
Are there vaccines?
There are no vaccines that contain the current swine influenza virus causing illness in humans.
Symptoms that require investigation on country level
. Clusters of cases of unexplained ILI or acute lower respiratory disease
. Severe, unexplained respiratory illness occurring in one or more health care worker(s) who provide care for patients with respiratory disease
. Changes in the epidemiology of mortality associated with the occurrence of ILI or lower respiratory tract illness, an increase in deaths observed from respiratory illness or an increase in the occurrence of severe respiratory disease in previously healthy adults or adolescents
. Persistent changes noted in the treatment response or outcome of severe lowerrespiratory illness.
– Compiled from the official websites of the World Health Organization and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
