The recent outbreak of swine flu in California, including in the Los Angeles area, has prompted university officials to address campus and community concerns about the potential health pandemic.
UCLA has plans in the event of a local outbreak and is currently working closely with federal, state and local health officials to remain prepared, according to a statement released by Chancellor Gene Block.
On campus, the Arthur Ashe Student Health and Wellness Center, the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center and the Office of Residential Life are in communication to share and stay current with information about swine flu.
Dr. Jo Ann Dawson, the interim director at the Arthur Ashe Student Health and Wellness Center, said that the outbreak in the United States appears to be much milder than the one in Mexico.
Swine flu is similar to the annual seasonal influenza, Dawson added.
“There is no preventative vaccination available for the swine virus, and development is still probably months away,” Dawson said.
In the United States, there have been five hospitalizations due to swine flu, but no reported deaths.
However, officials from the governor’s office announced Tuesday that a state of emergency has been declared due to the recent outbreaks in California.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger explained that a state of emergency “will support and facilitate our state health departments’ response to this outbreak,” according to a statement.
The declaration gives the Department of Public Health greater resources and personnel to deal with increased demands from the swine flu concerns.
It also increases the ability to monitor and test for the spread of swine flu by deploying public health experts across the state, the online press release said.
Dr. Brian Coburn, a UCLA post-doctorate fellow, said he has modeled the development and spread of super-strains of influenza.
Coburn’s work originally dealt with outbreaks of influenza in Southeast Asia, including Thailand and Indonesia. However, he said he was not surprised to see similar outbreaks in Mexico.
Super-strains of influenza, like that of the swine flu, develop from the interaction of pigs and people, when pigs act as a host to a virulent strain that may then emerge in human populations, he said.
The danger of strains of influenza such as swine flu is their ability to spread from human-to-human, he added.
Preventing such outbreaks necessitates the regulation of farming practices to reduce the human-to-pig contact that propagates virus outbreaks, he said.
Swine flu presents comparable symptoms to normal influenza, including fever, body aches, fatigue, sore throat and, in some cases, vomiting and diarrhea, Dawson said.
To prevent contracting and spreading swine flu, it is important to practice good hand and respiratory hygiene by washing hands thoroughly, coughing into tissues and disposing of them, and using hand disinfectants when appropriate, she said.
It is especially important for students in dorms or other dense housing to take preventative steps and reduce contact with others when feeling symptomatic, including refraining from classes or dining halls, she said.
If students do feel ill, drinking fluids, resting, and taking painkillers for body aches and pains are the best approaches, in addition to visiting or calling the Ashe Center, she said.
In the past, including events such as the 1918 flu epidemic, super-strains of influenza have affected the healthiest sector of the population more often than the average seasonal flu, Coburn said.
For this reason, it is important for everyone to monitor the news and stay aware of the situation, he added.
However, Dawson said there is no reason to become overly concerned.
“Students should not be afraid to go about their everyday business,” she said.