Influenza Advice for Returning Travellers

Influenza Advice for Returning Travellers

Hawke’s Bay people returning from North America or Mexico within the last fortnight who have influenza like symptoms are being asked to ring their GP or nearest medical centre for advice.

Medical officer of Health Caroline McElnay said the DHB would be following up with a small group of people who had returned to Hawke’s Bay, and had been on the same flight as the affected Auckland students.

Dr McElnay said the DHB understood there had been at least four Hawke’s Bay people on the same flight but was awaiting confirmation from the Auckland Regional Public Health Service

The public should listen and take notice of public health warnings and messages, and most importantly prevent catching or spreading the flu with frequent hand washing, keeping sick children at home not going to work if sick and covering mouth and nose when coughing or sneezing.

Members of the public who have travelled to Mexico or North America in the last fortnight should contact Healthline (0800 611 116) for information regarding the situation.

The normal; symptoms of influenza include fever, cough, headache, muscle aches and pains, runny nose and sore throat. Patients with the Swine flu in Mexico and North America have also reported nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea.

Anyone with flu like symptoms should initially treat it as a normal flu or cold and stay home keep warm and if the symptoms worsen contact their GP.

ENDS

Influenza Infection Control Measures

Influenza viruses are easily passed from person to person though coughing and sneezing by infected individuals. The virus enters the body through the nose and throat and it can then take between 1 to 4 days before symptoms appear. Adults are usually infectious (i.e. able to pass the virus on to others) from the day before symptoms appear through to 5-7 days afterwards. Children can be infectious for more than 10 days after the onset of symptoms and severely immunocompromised people (people with existing conditions which impair their body’s immune response to infection) can shed virus for weeks or months after symptoms begin.

People who know or suspect that they have influenza should observe the following precautions until 7 days after they develop symptoms (10 days in children):

1. Stay indoors and keep contact with others to a minimum until the resolution of symptoms.

2. Frequent hand washing with liquid soap rather than bar soap, especially after contact with nose, mouth and respiratory secretions e.g. after coughing. Use disposable tissue to dry hands. Used tissues should be placed in rubbish bags immediately.

3. Family members should wash their hands frequently and avoid touching the eyes, nose and mouth with their hands.

4. Avoid close contact with family members (e.g. kissing, hugging).

5. Avoid sharing food, eating utensils and towels with family members.

6. Maintain good ventilation at home.

7. Telephone your GP if condition deteriorates and any further symptoms develop.

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