NYC officials: Swine flu now most prevalent strain

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NYC officials: Swine flu now most prevalent strain

BY MICHAEL AMON | michael.amon@...

10:33 PM EDT, May 24, 2009

As New York City officials announced Sunday a second swine flu death, they said

the H1N1 virus was now more widespread than the seasonal flu and urged quick

treatment for any flu sufferers who also have an underlying medical condition.

" If you have flulike symptoms, it's more likely you have the H1N1 virus than the

seasonal flu, " said Scaperotti, a spokeswoman for the city's Department

of Health and Mental Hygiene.

Authorities released scant information about the latest swine flu fatality,

saying only that the Queens woman in her 50s died over the weekend and had an

underlying medical condition.

The woman's death comes a week after the first swine flu fatality,

Wiener, a Queens educator.

Nassau and Suffolk health officials said they agreed that the H1N1 virus was

more widespread than previously believed, but were not sure if it had become

more predominant than seasonal flu on Long Island.

Curtis, Nassau's deputy county executive for health and human services,

said such a trend wouldn't surprise her.

" We've been saying for a while now [H1N1 virus] is prevalent in the community, "

Curtis said.

Dr. Humayun Chaudhry, commissioner of the Suffolk Department of Health Services,

said more respiratory illnesses than usual have been recorded on Long Island

this spring, but " to attribute that wholly to H1N1, there's not enough data to

support that on Long Island. "

" It's difficult to quantify at this point, " he said, noting that respiratory

illnesses other than flu were also up this year.

There have been 280 confirmed swine flu cases in New York City, 38 in Nassau and

21 in Suffolk, officials said. On Long Island, all of the patients have

recovered and the majority have been mild cases.

Health officials said those numbers represent a small fraction of the actual

number affected by the virus because only severely ill patients or those who

became sick in a cluster are being tested.

Scaperotti said the city Health Department urged people who are suffering from

flulike symptoms and also have chronic conditions such as diabetes, asthma,

emphysema and HIV to contact their doctor immediately. Children with asthma are

especially vulnerable, she said.

" The Health Department is stressing that any New Yorker who has an underlying

health condition and flulike symptoms should contact their doctor immediately, "

Scaperotti said.