State public health officials announced today that five new cases of swine flu, or the H1N1 virus, have been confirmed in Norfolk County.
According to the Department of Public Health, the new cases all involve school-age children – 6, 10, 11, 16, and 17 years old, respectively. The state does not identify the cases by town.
But Dedham, Norwood, Walpole and Westwood still appear to be clear of swine flu, school nurses and health officials in those towns said today.
“I can confirm that there’s nothing to confirm in Walpole,” said Kathi Garvin, the school nurse leader there.
While the virus continues to spread across the U.S., its impact on those sickened has been less severe than once feared. All of the 26 additional cases the DPH announced today are expected to fully recover.
“They weren’t sure what to expect,” Garvin said of health authorities. “Fortunately, the severity of the illness doesn’t seem to be any worse than the severity of the regular flu, so they’re very happy about that at (the Centers for Disease Control) and the Department of Public Health, obviously. So that’s very good news.”
For more on this story, see Friday’s Daily News Transcript and www.dailynewstranscript.com.
Daily News staff writer Edward B. Colby can be reached at 781-433-8336 or ecolby@cnc.com.
