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October 20, 2011

Maine CDC investigating new swine-origin flu

By John Richardson jrichardson@mainetoday.com
State House Bureau

The Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention is investigating a new type of swine flu that sickened a child in Cumberland County.

The agency has not provided any more details about who was affected or where, but said it is an isolated event in Maine and has not been detected in people who had contact with the child. The child was hospitalized and is recovering, it said.

The child got sick earlier this month after "exposure to swine including time spent in a closed setting at an agricultural fair," according to the CDC alert.

This virus is genetically similar to four previous cases identified in the United States this year, three in Pennsylvania and one in Indiana, all of which had exposure to swine, it says.

The strain is considered new, but it also has a component of the pandemic H1N1 virus.

The CDC is advising doctors to be on the lookout for cases of the flu and is emphasizing seasonal flu precautions, including vaccinations.

 

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