H1N1 Flu Information

Details

• Corporate Authors:
  University of Texas at Tyler. Southwest Center for Agricultural Health, Injury Prevention, and Education
• Description:
  What is H1N1 (swine) flu? H1N1 (referred to as "swine flu" early on) is a new influenza virus causing illness in people. This new virus was first detected in people in the United States in April 2009. Other countries, including Mexico and Canada, have reported people sick with this new virus. This virus is spreading from person-to-person, probably in much the same way that regular seasonal influenza viruses spread. Why is this new H1N1 virus sometimes called "swine flu"? This virus was originally referred to as "swine flu" because laboratory testing showed that many of the genes in this new virus were very similar to influenza viruses that normally occur in pigs in North America. But further study has shown that this new virus is very different from what normally circulates in North American pigs. It has two genes from flu viruses that normally circulate in pigs in Europe and Asia and avian genes and human genes. Scientists call this a "quadruple reassortant" virus. How severe is illness associated with this new H1N1 virus? It's not known at this time how severe this virus will be in the general population. CDC is studying the medical histories of people who have been infected with this virus to determine whether some people may be at greater risk from infection, serious illness or hospitalization from the virus. In seasonal flu, there are certain people that are at higher risk of serious flu-related complications. This includes people 65 years and older, children younger than five years old, pregnant women, and people of any age with chronic medical conditions. It's unknown at this time whether certain groups of people are at greater risk of serious flu-related complications from infection with this new virus. CDC also is conducting laboratory studies to see if certain people might have natural immunity to this virus, depending on their age. What are the signs and symptoms of H1N1 (swine) flu in people? The symptoms of H1N1 (swine) flu in people are similar to the symptoms of regular human flu and include fever, cough, sore throat, body aches, headache, chills and fatigue. Some people have reported diarrhea and vomiting associated with H1N1 (swine) flu. In the past, severe illness (pneumonia and respiratory failure) and deaths have been reported with H1N1 (swine) flu infection in people. Like seasonal flu, H1N1 (swine) flu may cause a worsening of underlying chronic medical conditions. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Communicable Diseases Health Promotion Occupational Health Public Health Safety Viral Diseases
• Keywords:
  Disease Control H1N1 Influenza Health Promotion Infectious Diseases Public Health Safety Education Swine Flu Swine Influenza Viral Diseases
• Publisher:
  The Southwest Center for Agricultural Health, Injury Prevention, and Education
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Newsletter
• Place as Subject:
  OSHA Region 6 ; Texas
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-2
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20053614
• Citation:
  Monthly Safety Blast. Tyler, TX: The Southwest Center for Agricultural Health, Injury Prevention, and Education, 2009 Sep; :1-2
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2009
• NORA Priority Area:
  Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing
• Performing Organization:
  University of Texas Health Center at Tyler
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20010930
• Source Full Name:
  Monthly Safety Blast
• End Date:
  20270929
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:9bdef7f3e07b81c4b95646f8fdca25ab1ab546da6da3c29f4b4cc68cbf7b445f3caa18ed4e7d369279fd37e84ed339c1ca487fd84aea5421470c92360a88e3dc
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/216340/cdc_216340_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 74.71 KB ]