CDC confirms Queens high school students have swine flu

BY Erin Einhorn and Tina Mooore
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITERS

It's confirmed: it's swine flu.

Mayor Bloomberg said Sunday federal health officials have found that eight prep school students in Queens have the dreaded illness.

He urged New Yorkers to stay home from work if they have any symptoms of the flu - but also urged people not to panic or flood hospital emergency rooms.

"If you have a cough or a sore throat stay home," Bloomberg said at a morning news conference. "Do not go to work or school and if you're not very sick don't go to the hospital."

The warning came afte U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tests confirmed that human swine flu has infected eight students at St. Francis Preparatory School in Queens.

About 100 students - many of whom recently took a trip to Mexico - have flu symptoms.

The students have mild symptoms and many are improving, Bloomberg said.

But it has been linked to 81 deaths more than 1,000 illnesses in Mexico - and CDC officvials expect more illnesses around the nation. So far there six cases in California, two more in Texas and two in Kansas.

The World Health Organization has warned the virus threatens to become a global pandemic.

Eight of the students tested positive for Influenza A but did match any of the known human variants of that virus - the H1 and H3 human subtypes - by available testing methods.

That led health officials to fear a new strain of the quickly evolving virus.

"We are concerned that we may have a new strain," Health Commissioner Tom Freiden said at a morning news conference. "But we have not identified an increase of influenza."

The Queens investigation began last week, when students at the prep school developed flu-like symptoms, including fever and sore throat. The Health Department's Public Health Laboratory tested nine nose and throat swabs.

The CDC also reported today that an investigation of sickness at a Bronx daycare facility has so far not identified any confirmed or probable cases.

Sen. Chuck Schumer said he spoke with the CDC and was informed that New York City was "better prepared than just abut anyone else."

Swine flu is a respiratory infection caused by influenza type A viruses that regularly cause outbreaks of influenza in pigs. People do not normally get swine flu, but human infections can occur.

Human cases typically involve people who have had direct contact with pigs, but the CDC said likely person-to-person transmission has now been reported in California, Texas, Mexico and New York City.

While the cases in Mexico have had a high fatality rate, but the confirmed cases in the U.S. have been mild and all patients have recovered without treatment.

The symptoms of swine flu in people appear to be similar to the symptoms of regular seasonal flu and include fever, cough, sore throat, body aches, headache, chills and fatigue.

Some people have reported diarrhea and vomiting as well.

hkennedy@nydailynews.com