Russ H asked: Over spring break (April 4-April 9) I went to New York City. Cases of the swine flu are now being recognized in the city and I am experiencing symptoms of an upper respiratory infection. I’m scared I’ve been exposed. How long after exposure to swine flu do symptoms take to generate?
My [...]

What is “Swine” flu? Swine Influenza (swine fl u) is a respiratory disease of pigs caused by type A influenza viruses that causes regular outbreaks in pigs. People do not normally get swine flu, but human infections can and do happen. Swine fl u viruses have been reported to spread from person-to-person, but in the [...]

The symptoms of 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, and, in some cases people have reported diarrhea and nausea. Like seasonal flu, swine flu may cause a worsening of underlying chronic medical conditions.
Swine influenza (swine flu) [...]

Outbreaks and sporadic human infection with swine influenza have been occasionally reported. Generally clinical symptoms are similar to seasonal influenza but reported clinical presentation ranges broadly from asymptomatic infection to severe pneumonia resulting in death.
Since typical clinical presentation of swine influenza infection in humans resembles seasonal influenza and other acute upper respiratory tract infections, most [...]

Anyone who has contact with an infected person may be exposed to swine flu. Human transmission is thought to occur in the same way as seasonal flu: through aerosolized particles that are released when an infected person coughs or sneezes.
Here are the best ways to avoid getting or spreading swine influenza:
• Encourage all people to cover [...]

Most genetic changes in the flu viruses human, pig, and bird are small and subtle point mutations in the virus’s RNA. Less common but more alarming are sudden, wholesale changes that replace entire genes and are more likely to circumvent the immune system. This process, called genetic shift, is exactly what is now occurring in [...]

Swine Influenza (swine flu) is a respiratory disease of pigs caused by type A influenza viruses. Outbreaks of swine flu happen regularly in pigs. People do not normally get swine flu, but human infections can and do happen. Most commonly, human cases of swine flu happen in people who are around pigs but it’s possible [...]

Influenza viruses exist in three “types,” designated A, B and C. Of these, only influenza A viruses are significant concerns for the health of pigs. However, there are a large number of different “subtypes” of influenza A viruses. These subtypes are defined by the hemagglutinin (H or HA) and neuraminidase (N or NA) proteins of [...]

Concern over Swine Flu (H1N1) can make children and parents anxious. Although to date very few people in the United States have become sick, there is uncertainty about how far and quickly the virus will spread. Acknowledging some level of concern, without panicking, is appropriate and can result in people taking actions that reduce the [...]

Influenza, also known as the flu, is a contagious respiratory disease caused by different strains of viruses. In the United States, there is a flu season that begins every fall and ends every spring. The type of flu people get during this season is called seasonal flu. Flu viruses spread from person to person when [...]