Tue Feb 09 2010
By DARLENE PRINCE
Flu and respiratory viruses are widespread in Defiance and Henry counties, while Paulding County seems relatively untouched.
At Tinora Elementary School, flu/respiratory viruses are hitting the student body very hard. A spokesman said, by the end of Monday, 90 out of 387 students were out sick. She noted that this was very unusual, adding that the illnesses have spread from the fourth-fifth-sixth grades to the second and third grades.
She said no one has reported any students being hospitalized, and added that it seems to have slowed down somewhat this morning.
Denise Wright, principal at Noble Elementary School, said, "About 15-16 percent of the students were out on Monday and it looks like the percentage will be the same today. There were 32 out of 186 students out sick on Monday."
She said the flu/respiratory viruses are spread throughout kindergarten and first grade. She reported no major problems last week and that the problems started on Monday.
At Defiance Elementary School K-2 pod, Barb Klein said, "We had an increase yesterday of sick students. We had about 70-75 students who called in on Monday out of about 1,250 students. It looks like there are fewer students today, probably about 50 who have called in."
At the Defiance County Health Department, county health commissioner Kim Moss and director of nursing Laura Coressel said it is too early in the year for seasonal flu, so most cases of flu now being reported are H1N1 flu.
"Cases of H1N1 flu do not have to be reported to the health department," Moss said. "A physician can have a patient tested with a nasal swab, have the results confirmed at a private laboratory and we would not be informed of it.
"The best way to avoid this flu is to wash your hands and stay home if you are sick and not spread the illness," Coressel said.
At the Henry County Health Department, nursing director Pam Pflum said, "Absenteeism in the Napoleon schools is above normal." She said the illnesses are widespread throughout the county and the state.
Julie Adkins, school nurse at the Napoleon Area Schools, said absenteeism is increasing over last week in the district and flu-like symptoms are being reported.
In Paulding County, a spokesman for the Paulding County Health Department said there have been no reports of any widespread illnesses in the county schools.
At the Ohio Department of Health, spokesman Kristopher Weiss said, "Since August, we have not been taking reports of individual cases of H1N1 flu. We have a system where we have a group of 70 sentinel doctors throughout the state who report flu-like illnesses to us. We are also watching hospitalizations and reports on sales of over-the-counter medicine that is being sold.
"The vast, vast majority of flu cases now are assumed to be H1N1 flu," he said. "We are reporting to the Centers for Disease Control that H1N1 flu is widespread throughout the state."
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