Fifty-one cases of the H1N1 strain of influenza, more commonly known as swine flu, have been reported in Georgia as of June 23, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Although zero cases have been reported so far in Athens, the virus could still affect the University.

Steven Dumpert, risk communicator for the Office of Emergency Preparedness’ 10th district, said not only were there no reported cases in Athens-Clarke County, but there were none in the 10-county district surrounding Athens.

Dumpert cautioned that just because there are no cases, it does not mean H1N1 is not present in the area.

“It just means they’re not on record or have not been tested,” he said. “H1N1 is probably everywhere now.”

The World Health Organization recently declared H1N1 a pandemic, which “is characterized by community level outbreaks in which the flu is spread person-to- person in at least two countries in different regions of the world,” Michael Doyle, academic director for the Center for Food Safety-Georgia, told The Red & Black.

Doyle said more than 70 countries reported infections of H1N1 since the outbreak began. He said H1N1 is spread primarily by infected persons coughing and by person-to- person contact with nasal secretions.

“Fortunately, to the best of my knowledge, the virus is not hardy on hard surfaces such as kitchen or bathroom counters, so [it] would likely not remain infective after a few hours on a dry surface,” he said.

Because H1N1 has become so widespread, Doyle advises students to stay away from people who are or might be infected. In addition, he said students should be “avoiding the age-old tradition of shaking hands.”

Doyle also advised students to wash hands after contacting communally handled materials such as newspapers, magazines, towels and clothing.

Representatives from the CDC assure students the term “pandemic” does not indicate the severity of the disease.

Tom Skinner, a CDC spokesman, said H1N1 “doesn’t compare to the 1918 Spanish influenza pandemic,” and a lot of factors determine how severe the disease will be.

Skinner cited some of these factors as the novelty of the virus, how prepared a country is to handle it and how many citizens have adequate access to health care and health facilities.

He also said though none of the influenza vaccines are effective against H1N1, five pharmaceutical companies are working on developing vaccines against the strain. He said they should be on U.S. shelves by late fall.

“What’s unusual [about H1N1] is the fact that we’re seeing the level we are now in the summer,” he said. “It also appears to be impacting younger people in their 20s and 30s.”

Randall Bourquin, a junior from Suwanee, called that fact “unnerving,” especially since at first, “no one really knew how the swine flu is transferred.”

Bourquin returned to the U.S. in the first week of May after spending most of a semester in Monterrey, Mexico, on an international student exchange program. His flight arrived in Georgia shortly after the H1N1 outbreak began in Mexico.

Bourquin said the Mexican government handled the situation well. In late April, the government closed all schools until May 6, during which time Bourquin decided to return to Georgia and finish his international studies in-state.

“The University [in Monterrey] was really good about letting me do e-mail correspondence,” he said.

Bourquin will receive credit for the courses he completed after returning to the U.S.

The CDC has routine procedures in place to keep sick people from traveling, said Skinner. The captain and crew of any inbound international flight to the U.S. are required to report any kind of illness to CDC

officials at the airport.

The ill passenger is then met by a CDC official and examined in isolation and could then either be sent to a hospital or allowed to continue traveling.

Skinner also said the CDC has posted symptom information at all airports and is continuing to follow standard operating procedures when it comes to suspected H1N1 cases.

“We don’t want people who are ill to get on an airplane,” he said.

Bourquin said the only H1N1 screening he received at the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport was a survey of symptoms when he stepped off of his Delta Airlines flight from Mexico.

“They were like the symptoms of a hangover,” Bourquin said. “I marked no for all of them and no one really reviewed it.”

He calls himself “completely normal,” though he said he does have to put up with a lot of swine flu jokes. He said he was angry at the whole situation.

“The American media blew [H1N1] out of proportion, and it cost me a month of my studies,” Bourquin said.