Although the name 'swine flu' brings up a lot of extra fear and worry, it is important to note that swine flu is just an influenza A H1N1 virus.

That means that it is just another type of flu virus, just like that causes our typical seasonal flu symptoms. The big difference is that the current swine influenza A （H1N1） virus is new and most of us don't have any immunity to it. That is why it so easily became a pandemic virus （with the ability to cause a global outbreak）, because it could easily spread from person to person.

After a summer of declining flu cases, instances of swine flu began to rise again in early fall and there are now widespread swine flu cases in most of the US, as you can see on this swine flu map.

Swine Flu Symptoms

According to the CDC, like seasonal flu, symptoms of swine flu infections can include:

fever, which is usually high, but unlike seasonal flu, is sometimes absent

cough

runny nose or stuffy nose

sore throat

body aches

headache

chills

fatigue or tiredness, which can be extreme

diarrhea and vomiting, sometimes, but more commonly seen than with seasonal flu

Signs of a more serious swine flu infection might include pneumonia and respiratory failure.

If your child has symptoms of swine flu, you should avoid other people and call your pediatrician who might do a rapid flu test to see if he has an influenza A infection. Further testing can then be done to see if it is a swine flu infection. （Samples can be sent to local and state health departments and the CDC for confirmation of swine flu, especially if a child is in the hospital.）

Swine Flu High Risk Groups

With regular seasonal flu, young children and the elderly are usually thought to be most at risk for serious infections, in addition to people with chronic medical problems. Swine flu high risk groups, people who are thought to be at risk for serious, life-threatening infections, are a little different and can include:

pregnant women

children under age two years old

people with chronic medical problems, such as chronic lung disease, like asthma, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and immunosuppression

children and adults with obesity

It is important to keep in mind that unlike seasonal flu, more than half of the hospitalizations and a quarter of the deaths from swine flu are in young people under the age of 25.

Serious Swine Flu Symptoms

More serious symptoms that would indicate that a child with swine flu would need urgent medical attention include:

Fast breathing or trouble breathing

Bluish or gray skin color

Not drinking enough fluids

Severe or persistent vomiting

Not waking up or not interacting

Being so irritable that the child does not want to be held

Flu-like symptoms improve but then return with fever and worse cough

Swine Flu Symptoms vs. a Cold or Sinus Infection

It is important to keep in mind most children with a runny nose or cough will not have swine flu and will not have to see their pediatrician for swine flu testing.

This time of year, many other childhood conditions are common, including:

fall allergies - runny nose, congestion, and cough

common cold - runny nose, cough, and low grade fever

sinus infections - lingering runny nose, cough, and fever

strep throat - sore throat, fever, and a positive strep test

What You Need To Know

Swine flu likely spreads by direct contact with respiratory secretions of someone that is sick with swine flu, like if they were coughing and sneezing close to you.

People with swine flu are likely contagious for one day before and up to seven days after they began to get sick with swine flu symptoms.

Droplets from a cough or sneeze can also contaminate surfaces, such as a doorknob, drinking glass, or kitchen counter, although these germs likely don't survive for more than a few hours.

Anti-flu medications, including TamifluRelenza （zanamivir）, are available to prevent and treat swine flu in high risk children.

（oseltamivir） and

The latest swine flu news from the CDC includes advice that daycare centers should do daily health checks, separate ill children until they can go home, encourage kids to stay home until they are free of fever for at least 24 hours, encourage proper hand-washing, and teach kids to properly cover their coughs and sneezes to help everyone avoid the flu.

尽管"猪流感"这个名字带来了许多额外的恐惧和忧虑，重要的是要注意，猪流感不过是一种甲型流行性感冒H1N1病毒。

这就意味着它只是另一种类型的流感病毒，就像引起我们典型季节性流感症状的病毒那样。最大的区别是，当前的猪流感甲型（H1N1）病毒是新的，而我们大多数人对其没有任何免疫力。这就是为什么它那么容易成为大规模流行病毒（具有引起全球爆发的能力）的原因，因为它能够不费力地在人与人之间传播。

在夏天流感病例下降之后，初秋猪流感的病例开始再次上升。如同你可以在这张猪流感分布图上看到的，现在美国的大部分都有广泛分布的猪流感病例。

猪流感的症状

据疾病控制和预防中心的报告，像季节性流感那样，猪流感感染的症状包括：

* 发烧，通常是高烧，但是不像季节性流感，有时是不发烧的

* 咳嗽

* 流鼻涕或者鼻塞

* 喉咙痛

* 身体疼痛

* 头痛

* 发冷

* 疲劳或者倦怠，可能极其严重

* 腹泻和呕吐，有时出现，但是比与季节性流感更常见

更为严重的猪流感感染可能包括肺炎和呼吸衰竭。

如果你的孩子有猪流感症状，应该避免和别人接触并且去瞧儿科医师，他可能做一个快速的流感测试，以分辨你的孩子是否受到甲型流感病毒的感染。然后可以做进一步的测试，看看是不是猪流感感染。（样品可以送往当地的和州立的卫生部门以及美国疾病控制与预防中心，用来确认猪流感，特别是如果孩子正在住院时。）

猪流感的高危人群

对于常规季节性流感来说，儿童和老年人通常被认为是最具有严重感染风险的，此外是对于具有慢性医疗问题的人。猪流感的高危人群，那些被认为处于严重的、威胁生命的感染危险的人有点不同，可能包括：

* 孕妇

* 2 岁以下的儿童

* 具有慢性医疗问题的人，例如慢性肺部疾病，像哮喘、心血管疾病、糖尿病以及免疫抑制等

* 具有肥胖症的儿童和成人

重要的是要记住，与季节性流感不同，一半以上的住院者和四分之一由于猪流感死亡的人数是年龄25岁以下的年轻人。

严重猪流感的症状

更为严重的症状，可能表明一个患猪流感的孩子需要紧急医疗照顾，包括：

* 快速呼吸或者呼吸困难

* 蓝色或者灰色肤色

* 不喝足够的流体

* 严重的或者持续性的呕吐

* 不醒或者没有互动

* 变得急躁易怒，以致孩子都不愿被抱起

* 流感样症状改善，但是然后转为发烧和糟糕的咳嗽

猪流感症状与感冒或者鼻窦感染的比较

这是很重要的，要记住大多数流鼻涕或者咳嗽的孩子并不是患猪流感，不需要去瞧他们的儿科医师进行猪流感的测试。

每年这个时候，很多其它的儿童情况是普遍的，包括：

* 秋天过敏症--流鼻涕、充血以及咳嗽

* 普通感冒--流鼻涕、咳嗽以及发低烧

* 鼻窦感染--连绵地流鼻涕，咳嗽以及发烧

* 脓毒性咽喉炎--喉咙痛、发烧以及链状球菌感染测试阳性

你需要知道的事情

* 猪流感可能通过直接接触某人的呼吸道分泌物而传播，该人患猪流感病，可能是在他们接近你咳嗽和打喷嚏的时候。

* 患猪流感的人很可能在开始生病具有猪流感症状的前一天，直到开始具有猪流感症状之后的第七天，具有传染性。

* 咳嗽或者打喷嚏的飞沫也可能污染比如门把手、水杯或者厨房柜台的表面，虽然这些细菌可能不能超过几小时存活。

* 抗流行性感冒的药物。包括达菲（oseltamivir）和瑞乐沙（zanamivir）,可用来在高危儿童中预防和治疗猪流感。

* 来自疾病控制与预防中心的最新的猪流感消息，包括建议日托中心应该进行每天的健康检查，分开生病的孩子直到他们能回家时，鼓励孩子们呆在家里直到他们至少24小时不再发烧，鼓励正确的洗手，以及教导孩子们适当地挡住他们咳嗽和打喷嚏来帮助大家避免流感。