Flu Season Begins In Newtown

By Kaaren Valenta

Influenza is back, closing one public school in Connecticut, and prompting many across the state to seek protection through what is a rapidly dwindling supply of the flu vaccine.

There have been several confirmed cases of the flu in Newtown, and more cases are expected, according to Health District Director Donna McCarthy.

“We go by lab reports, and there have been only three reports,” she said this week. “There is always a delay in receiving the reports, so there may be more cases out there.”

 Almost 400 cases of the flu have been reported so far in the state this year, according to the Department of Public Health.

A public high school in Colchester was closed for several days this month when more than one-third of the 300-member student body and 17 faculty members called in sick with flulike symptoms.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report Connecticut as having “regional” flu activity, but infection is not as severe as in other states, where flu activity is classified as widespread. While doctors say the flu vaccine is one of the most effective means of prevention, it is in short supply because of high demand.

At Masses last weekend at St Rose of Lima Church, the traditional sharing of the chalice by members of the congregation was omitted. The Rev Robert Weiss, pastor, explained that after talking with Dr Thomas Draper, the town’s health advisor, it was agreed that because of the flu risk this year, the ceremony would be temporarily suspended.

Dr Draper said the physicians at Danbury Hospital are now using the emergency room to determine the number of confirmed cases. “What we won’t know for a while is the species of virus that we are seeking,” he said. “That has to be done by the reference labs at the CDC, so it will be another week or two or three.”

Dr Draper said that the variant of Influenza A that is being seen in much of the country is not part of the vaccine.

“If you are sick, stay home from work so you don’t give [the flu] to your co-workers,” he advised.

 With doctors warning of a severe flu season in Connecticut, school officials also are watching students closely and taking a host of measures to prevent infection. For many school nurses, it means enforcing what they have encouraged year after year: washing hands frequently, covering the mouth while coughing, keeping hands away from the face.

Dr Matthew Cartter of the state Department of Public Health has another suggestion to stop the spread of the flu: Stay in bed.

“There is just as much flu inside school as there is outside school. The number one thing people can do is if you are sick, stay home,’’ said Dr Cartter.

Nancy Turner, president of the Association of School Nurses in Connecticut, said absentee rates are climbing in southeastern Connecticut, where she is based. But because of the demands working parents face, more children may be coming back to school earlier than they should, she said.

“Parents are caught between a rock and a hard place,” she said. “I know there are lines out the door in the nurse’s office.”

Children should be fever-free for 24 hours before coming back to school, she said.

Children’s flu symptoms are similar to those of adults: muscle aches, fever, coughing or sneezing, and a sore throat. Children also frequently have intestinal problems, said Tom Skinner, a CDC spokesman. The illness can be fatal, but children who die from the flu usually have another underlying health problem, Mr Skinner said.

Children tend to put their hands near their face, eyes, and nose a lot, and share things like toys, making schools or day care centers a good ground for influenza to circulate, Mr Skinner said.

But prevention efforts do help, he added.

“When parents hear reports of children dying from the flu, it can be very scary and frightening,” he said. “For the most part, even when influenza affects kids, it may put them on their back for three or four days, but they’re going to recover,” he said.

Dee Cupole, school nurse supervisor in Newtown, said although during the past two weeks more children have been reporting to the nurses’ offices in the schools, the absenteeism is about average for this type of year. Although a higher number of teachers were out last week, it was because many of those teachers were attending a conference, she said.

Donna McCarthy said people just need t o exercise good judgment to avoid the flu.

“Try to be careful, stay out of crowds if possible, although I know that is difficult this time of year,” she said. “Don’t send your kids to school sick. If you shake hands with someone, keep your hands off your face afterwards until you can wash them.

“At this point you have to use good common sense to keep the germs, virus, flu from spreading,” she added.

(Associated Press reports were used in this article.)