Swine flu confirmed in Monroe County area
5/12/2009MONROE - The Toledo area's first case of swine flu has been confirmed in northern Monroe County, health officials said Monday.
Dr. Carl Schmidt, director of the Monroe County Health Department, said the Michigan Department of Community Health confirmed the H1N1 infection on Sunday.
He said the child, who was tested Friday for the flu virus, is a student in a Monroe County school district. He said he didn't know the gender or age of the youngster.
"The school district has been notified. We know the school district notified the pertinent children in the school district," he said. "There is no concern that the school should be shut down."
Henry Schafer, Airport Community Schools superintendent, confirmed that the youngster who tested positive for the flu virus is a student in his district. "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 home sick all last week with what the parents believed was strep throat. Dr. Schmidt said the child is responding well to treatment.
State health officials said 131 cases of the virus had been identified in the state as of Sunday.
The case of a recovering 10-year-old Fulton County girl was upgraded yesterday to probable swine flu, and confirmation testing will be conducted, the Ohio Department of Health said.
The unidentified girl, a student in the Wauseon Exempted Village School District, has not been in school since she fell ill, Michael Oricko, county health commissioner, said. She contracted what could be swine flu after a visit by someone from an area where there are cases of what officially is known as H1N1 influenza A, Mr. Oricko said. None of her family members has become ill, and she has been isolated in their home, the county Health Department said.
"She's doing well," Mr. Oricko said. "We're expecting her to be able to go back to school shortly."
There have been no confirmed cases in northwest Ohio, and just one other suspected case locally, in Wood County, according to Ohio Department of Health statistics released yesterday.
There have been seven confirmed and four probable cases of swine flu in Ohio, including the one in Fulton County. Thirty suspected cases in northwest Ohio have been ruled out, the state said.