Spring Break
Swine flu hits Colo., local health experts claim too much anxiety
Madeline Novey
Issue date: 5/1/09 Section: Opinion
Even after two cases of swine flu were confirmed in Colorado Thursday afternoon, CSU health, safety and travel experts agreed that there is too much anxiety over the global outbreak and were sure that the university is prepared if the situation blooms into a pandemic.
And while they believe this holds true, several CSU medical scientists said there is not enough substantial data to know how the flu will progress.
"What has created the dilemma here is that too little data is available," said Gerald Callahan, a professor of immunology and public understanding of science in the Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology. "But everyone knows about (it), and it gets readers. It shows up in the newspapers."
A pandemic plan is in place if the flu were to migrate to campus, and the CSU Public Safety Team and senior-level administration has been involved in safety discussions, according to media relations.
"The University's Public Safety Team will continue to monitor the situation, and will inform campus if there are significant concerns or additional precautions advised regarding swine flu," said Brad Bohlander, CSU's chief spokesperson, in an e-mail to the university.
Of Mexico's 260 confirmed human cases of infection and 12 deaths, according to an April 30 Associated Press article, Callahan said only a few of the deaths were a direct result of the swine flu. In the case of the other deaths, which came from the disease that is similar to the common flu, the infected person died of a resultant cause such as pneumonia.
All agreed that the new flu strain was hard to predict and that they were unsure of how the virus would spread and whether it would spur a full-blown pandemic.
Rumors and fears that a person can get the flu from a pig is incorrect, said CSU's Gabriele Landolt, an assistant professor in the Department of Clinical Sciences. She was unsure though of whether the virus could evolve and be transferred from pigs to humans in the future because of the unpredictable nature of influenza.
And while they believe this holds true, several CSU medical scientists said there is not enough substantial data to know how the flu will progress.
"What has created the dilemma here is that too little data is available," said Gerald Callahan, a professor of immunology and public understanding of science in the Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology. "But everyone knows about (it), and it gets readers. It shows up in the newspapers."
A pandemic plan is in place if the flu were to migrate to campus, and the CSU Public Safety Team and senior-level administration has been involved in safety discussions, according to media relations.
"The University's Public Safety Team will continue to monitor the situation, and will inform campus if there are significant concerns or additional precautions advised regarding swine flu," said Brad Bohlander, CSU's chief spokesperson, in an e-mail to the university.
Of Mexico's 260 confirmed human cases of infection and 12 deaths, according to an April 30 Associated Press article, Callahan said only a few of the deaths were a direct result of the swine flu. In the case of the other deaths, which came from the disease that is similar to the common flu, the infected person died of a resultant cause such as pneumonia.
All agreed that the new flu strain was hard to predict and that they were unsure of how the virus would spread and whether it would spur a full-blown pandemic.
Rumors and fears that a person can get the flu from a pig is incorrect, said CSU's Gabriele Landolt, an assistant professor in the Department of Clinical Sciences. She was unsure though of whether the virus could evolve and be transferred from pigs to humans in the future because of the unpredictable nature of influenza.
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