SWINE FLU DETAILS II

Adults Need Attention If Present With:
Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
Pain or pressure in the chest or abdomen
Sudden dizziness
Confusion
Severe or persistent vomiting
Diagnosis:
To diagnose swine influenza A infection ,a respiratory specimen (nasopharyngeal swab/aspirate or nasal wash/aspirate, combined nasal swab with an oropharyngeal swab, endotracheal aspirate) would generally need to be collected within the first 4 to 5 days of illness (when an infected person is most likely to be shedding virus).
However, some persons, especially children, may shed virus for 10 days or longer Specimen should be placed into sterile viral transport media (VTM) and immediately placed on ice or cold packs or at 4°C (refrigerator) for transport to the laboratory.
1. Samples to be Collected
 
From Ambulatory patient
Throat Swab and
Nasal / Naso pharyngeal Swab
Blood for serological tests

From an intubated patient
 
Lower respiratory aspirate
Blood for serological tests
. Personal Protective Equipment
Before initiating collection of sample a full complement of PPE should be worn. This includes :
Masks (N-95)
Gloves
Protective eye wear (goggles)
Hair covers
Boot or shoe covers
Protective clothing (gown or apron)
CDC helps in diagnosing cases by performing following test in laboratory

Real-time RT-PCR
Viral culture
Routine serodiagnostic tests in use are based on hemagglutination inhibition (HI) and ELISA.
Drugs effective in swine flu:
Influenza antiviral drugs work best when started soon after illness onset (within two 2 days), but treatment with antiviral drugs should still be considered after 48 hours of symptom onset, particularly for hospitalized patients or people at high risk for influenza-related complications.

There are four different antiviral drugs that are licensed for use for the treatment of influenza:
 Amantidine
 Rimantadine
 Oseltamivir
 Zanamivir

While most swine influenza viruses have been susceptible to all four drugs
Most recent swine influenza viruses isolated from humans are resistant to Amantidine and Rimantadine
CDC recommends the use of Oseltamivir (Tamiflu) or Zanamivir (Relenza) for the treatment and/or prevention of infection with swine influenza viruses.