The Cochise County Health Department is providing updated information about the international outbreak of Swine-Origin Influenza A (H1N1) strain (also known as the swine flu) and is recommending the usual precautions for the prevention of any influenza virus.
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As of 5/6/09, the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) is reporting that there are 49 confirmed cases of swine flu in Arizona. More confirmed cases are expected in Arizona in the days to come as state and federal laboratories catch up on the backlog of samples to be tested. To date there are no confirmed cases of swine flu in Cochise County and there are no samples for confirmatory testing from Cochise County.
The Cochise County Health Department remains in frequent contact with local hospitals, clinics and laboratories to assist with Influenza A testing. The Health Department is also in close touch with doctors and Ministry of Health professionals in Sonora, Mexico as part of its routine disease surveillance activities.
The United States’ public health system has been working very hard to contain the outbreak, investigate cases, and conduct the research needed to more fully understand this new virus and to work towards developing a vaccine for it. This has been a successful collaboration at the national, state, and local levels.
Fortunately, information to date reveals that this novel virus appears to be no more dangerous than the seasonal influenza. It should be remembered that each year in the United States seasonal influenza results, on average, in an estimated 36,000 deaths and more than 200,000 hospitalizations from flu-related cases. However, as viruses are continually evolving organisms, public health officials continue to monitor the H1N1 virus’s progression carefully.
Confirmed Cases of H1N1 in Arizona by County as of 5/6/09:
Maricopa 20
Pima/Tohono O’odham/Marana 10
Yuma 11
Pinal 5
Santa Cruz 2
La Paz 1
Total 49
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