Hundreds Of University of Maryland Students Come Down With Flu

NBC4 ^ | 2/12/2008 | n/a

[Pyro7480]

COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- Hundreds of students have been diagnosed with the flu in recent weeks at the University of Maryland College Park campus.

Officials are calling it the most severe outbreak in 10 years, News4's Cheryl Butler reported.

More than 400 students have been diagnosed with the flu on campus, and that number is rising.

Students are lining up at the university's health center for diagnosis and relief.

Junior music major Rachel Israel said the flu has made her miss clarinet rehearsals and classes.

"It started with a really severe cough and then a fever. It got worse from there. I can't go to class or anything," Israel said.

Israel said the health center gave her a prescription and told her to take over-the-counter medicine to sleep at night. She said she has never been this sick at school.

The outbreak began when students returned from winter break. Most students said they know clusters of students with the flu, small groups of friends or members of sororities and fraternities.

Dr. Gail Lee said students are suffering from high fevers and shaking chills. Some feel weak and tired or dehydrated, she said. Some are coughing, and some have gastrointestinal symptoms.

She said students who come in within 24 hours of the onset of the flu can be given Tamiful, an antiviral medication that can lessen the length and severity of the symptoms.

Health officials also recommend fluids, rest and over-the-counter cold medicine. They said people should cover their mouths when they cough and wash hands frequently.

University of Maryland health officials recommend flu shots as a preventive measure. The shots are offered at the health center for a small fee.

[Pyro7480]

It's really going around this year apparently. I fell ill this past weekend, went to the doctor's on Monday, and tested positive for influenza A. I'm on Tamiflu now. I live on the other side of the Beltway from UMD.

[AppyPappy]

It had slammed us pretty hard here as well.

[Senator Goldwater]

Its raging through the house here, but I got a flu shot last fall and so far have been able to hold my own.

[Raymann]

Hmm, I got a really nasty cough this past weekend at CPAC...could have been from these infected kids.

[A Balrog of Morgoth]

Obama fever.

[twigs]

Tamiflu is a miracle drug from what I can see. My daughter was on it last week and recovered very quickly, at least from the flu. Her underlying asthma takes longer. But I was amazed at how quickly she felt much better from the flu symptoms.

[Greg F]

This flu was different than any I ever had. It was chills, muscle aches for a few days, very strange feeling, and then it lingered in my chest, bad cold type symptoms but for well over a weak. I’m not sure I’m at 100% yet. Rough flu. Whole family got it and nobody recovered in just a few days.

[theDentist]

No guarantees, but wash your hands as often as you can.

[Pyro7480]

Yeah, I was at CPAC as well on Thursday and Saturday. I started feeling bad before Saturday, but I could have had a second exposure while I was there.

[johnny7]

Hillary payback...

[Pyro7480]

LOL! Obama did visit UMD recently.

[maine-iac7]

My brother is down with it - nasty.

I took him over some supplies last night - a few hours later, started getting that warning sign - sharp twinge in the nose.

Grabbed a clove of garlic, smushed the end of it and, while watching TV, sat and sniffed it in each nostril for several minutes - repeated a few times in next few hours. Haven’t (knock-knock) had the flu in quarter century.

Garlic will kill even gangrene - but back to the nose-twinge. That is the first signal that germs have entered your body and are digging their trenches in preparation for full scaled attack. There is a ONE HOUR window in which to lay them low and keep them from advancing.

If I am lazy and don’t catch them there, then I turn to my ‘penicillin soup’ which includes chicken broth (REAL - not the flavored water in a can) lotsa onions and LOTSA garlic, “parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme”, myrrh powder, cayenne pepper and ginger.

Proven that chicken broth soothes the lungs, ginger keeps congestion broken up, garlic kills germs, etc etc.

I have other things I'd rather be doing than fighting off the flu -

[riverdawg]

The flu raging through the local community and state U. is an Australian strain (high fever, nasty persistent cough) against which this year’s flu shot offers no protection.

[silverleaf]

We’ve all got the flu at our house too. Even spouse who got the shot. Picked up my DD at school yesterday and the nurse said she had already sent home 7 kids before 10AM.

[luckystarmom]

My husband got flu, so I called my doctor and our pediatrician. My doctor got me a prescription, and I was a little bit sick yesterday and I’m feeling much better this morning.

Our pediatrician would not prescribe it, and my daughter now has a fever of 102. My other daughter has a siezure disorder. I’m calling the pediatrician to try and get the tamiflu started again for my daughters. I’m a little bit mad at them.

[Vision]

I’m sick over in Catonsville and most people at work are suffering through it.

[twigs]

Why not? I’ve had flu once in my life and I’ve never been sicker. My daughter started to get very ill, very quickly and tamiflu quickly halted its progress. I was really amazed. It didn’t stop her underlying respiratory problem, so she’s still dealing with that, but it stopped the flu symptoms in fairly short order.

[Paulus Invictus]

Now, just imagine the worst of all possibilities-- a bird flu pandemic. The Feds and the State health guys are really worried. I got a letter from the heath department asking me how many courses of Tamiflu vaccine I wanted to buy, at $20 a shot, to combat bird flu in the event it arrives here and begins to infect humans big time. Mama mia!

Modest Prediction: If bird flu does come to the US there will be no election, but martial law will be enforced. Think of it: No Hitlery! No Obama! No McLame! At a predicted mortality rate of about 30%, millions of Americans will be toast. OK now, let's all cheer up! Don't worry, be happy!

[ElectricStrawberry]

Only half the flu strains are covered in the vaccine this year.

I didn’t get the shot, my girlfriend did...and we were both out last week....married to the bathroom floor.

[Gabz]

It’s on this side of the Bay as well. Half the Bingo regulars didn’t show up last week, and I’m talking die-hard players!!!!