1st Toledo-area swine flu case confirmed in Monroe County

5/11/2009

MONROE The first case of swine flu in the Toledo area has been confirmed in Monroe County, health officials said Monday.

Dr. Carl Schmidt, director of the Monroe County Health Department, said the

H1N1 infection was confirmed Sunday by the Michigan Department of Community Health.

He said the child, who was tested Friday for the flu virus, is a student in the Monroe County school district. He said he did not know the gender or age of the youngster.

"The school district has been notified. We know that the school district notified the pertinent children in the school district," he said. "There is no concern that the school should be shut down."

Airport Community Schools Superintendent Henry Schafer confirmed that the youngster who tested positive for the flu virus is a student in the north Monroe County school distsrict.

"I can confirm that we do have one student with the H1N1 virus," he said.

"This our first suspected case and our first confirmed case."

Mr. Schafer said the student was sick at home all of last week with what the parents believed was strep throat.

State health officials said that 131 cases of the influenza virus had been identified in the state as of Sunday.

Dr. Schmidt said the local child who tested positively for the flu virus is responding well to treatment.

The case of a recovering 10-year-old Fulton County girl was upgraded Monday to probable swine flu, and confirmation testing will be performed, according to the Ohio Department of Health.

The unidentified girl, who has not been in school, became ill with what could be swine flu after she was visited by someone from an area where there are cases of what officially is known as H1N1, said Michael Oricko, Fulton County health commissioner.

"She s doing well," Mr. Oricko said Monday. "We're expecting to be able to go back to school shortly."

The girl s case is the first probable incident of swine flu in northwest Ohio. There have been no confirmed cases in northwest Ohio, and currently there is just one other suspected case, which is in Wood County, according to Ohio Department of Health statistics released Monday.

Statewide, there have been seven confirmed and four probable cases of swine flu, including the one in Fulton County, according to the state department. Thirty suspected swine flu cases in northwest Ohio have been ruled out, it said.