As of April 28, two probable cases of swine flu were reported in Los Angeles County as well as two possible cases, which are being carefully monitored by health authorities. Test results are expected by the weekend.

"These cases do not yet indicate that we have laboratory confirmed swine influenza in Los Angeles County, but it is likely," said Jonathan E. Fielding, director of public health and health officer.

Health authorities have asked health care providers, airport authorities and school districts to appropriately inform the public in order to identify symptoms, and to take measures if any case is fully identified, local health officials said early this week.

Jonathan Freedman, chief deputy of Los Angeles County's Department of Public Health, said during an April 27 press conference at the agency's downtown office, that the health department began a local surveillance April 23 looking for the influenza that started in Mexico. Authorities there have shut down schools nationwide for more than a week and have limited public gatherings, after the death toll rose to 149 people.

As of April 28, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had reported 68 cases of swine flu in six states, primarily in New York but also in California, Texas, Indiana, Kansas and Ohio. Authorities still classify the condition as a mild illness, Freedman said.

The symptoms of the swine flu are similar to the ones of a regular flu, but "there is not a strong understanding why it is that severe," said Laureene Mascola, director of acute communicable disease control for L.A. County. "This is a new virus not seen before, but we know there is human to human transmission beyond the point of containment."

The physician said the public health department is working closely with hospital emergency rooms, paramedics and the Los Angeles United School District (LAUSD) to "separate the ill from the well and to treat the ill."

Mascola said the federal government has opened supply chain resources and has provided logistics to complement local supplies in case the new virus is fully identified in the county. "There is still no decision to supply those resources to practitioners," she affirmed.

Test negative in Claremont
Last weekend, a first grade student at Our Lady of the Assumption School, Claremont, fell ill with flu-like symptoms four days after returning from vacation in Mexico with her mother, who also reportedly suffered from the same symptoms. The county health department reported April 28 that neither the student nor her mother has the swine flu, after having been tested. Both were staying home to recuperate, said Bernadette Boyle, principal.

On April 27, a number of parents who expressed their concerns picked up their children early, and the school remained closed April 28 as a cautionary measure, said Boyle, in a letter to school parents posted on the school's website.

Classes at Our Lady of the Assumption were scheduled to resume April 29. Boyle said the school classrooms, bathrooms and communal areas were thoroughly cleaned on Monday, and that three professional cleaning services, and the school's own maintenance crew, came in to clean on Tuesday.

In her memo, Boyle said county health officials advised the observance of precautionary measures --- "hand washing, covering mouths when coughing or sneezing, etc., to avoid potential contamination." Boyle said Department of Public Health advised that the wearing of facemasks is not recommended.

"The masks themselves can often become a source of infection," she said, "because people tend to touch their face more often when wearing one, and they give a false sense of security."

Parents were instructed to monitor their children' health, and report any illnesses to health officials immediately. Those parents who called us to report absences were also advised to take precautions and to continue to monitor their child closely.

The Archdiocesan Department of Catholic Schools, in an April 27 memo to principals, suggested that school officials urge their school families to take similar precautions regarding students' health. Currently, there are almost 90,000 students attending the archdiocese's 224 Catholic elementary schools and 50 Catholic high schools.

Pat Livingston, superintendent for elementary schools, said the archdiocese was in touch with the county health department in monitoring the swine flu situation.

"I think it's something that we really have to watch and really have to think about," she told The Tidings, referring to the large number of school and parish families who have relatives in Mexico and visit the country periodically. "We certainly can't tell parents they can't go back to visit their families. But we're concerned because it's a public health issue just like every other school."

Possible closures
No public schools have been closed, although authorities are free to decide to do so. Mascola noted, though, that the result of investigations of clusters of the illness in Santa Clarita Valley and San Pedro could lead to school closures in those areas in the future. Laboratory results are expected by the end of the weekend. Closure of other public gatherings has not been suggested either, she said.

Airport authorities also issued tighten travel warnings, especially for those traveling from Mexico, said Michael Molina, senior director for external affairs of Los Angeles World Airports. There are 260 weekly flights to and from different destinations in Mexico at LAX and seven weekly flights at Ontario Airport, also under the jurisdiction of L.A. World Airports.

Mascola said there is no certainty if all the cases in Mexico are of swine flu or other type of influenza with similar symptoms, such as high fever (more than 100 degrees), constant coughing, sore throat, body aches, headaches, runny nose, chills and fatigue.

The health specialist said there is no rapid test to detect the illness, which requires laboratory confirmation that can take about four days. She described the masks used in Mexico as ineffective and did not recommended them for the general public.

"They get moist or people take them on and off and put them in their pockets, which is unhealthy," she said.

According to health authorities, each year 36,000 people die from the type A and B influenza in the U.S. and about 1,200 in Los Angeles.

Recommended prevention measures include covering the mouth when coughing or sneezing, washing hands, staying at home if feeling sick, and calling or reporting critical cases to health care institutions or school nurses. Officials made clear that the public should not call 911 for this matter.

Regarding medications, Mascola said that at this point no specific drugs for the swine flu have been recommended, noting that the disease is not as contagious as the avian virus.

According to the health officials at the conference, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention work closely with the Mexican government to determine further consequences in the U.S.

"We are concerned because we don't know the full characteristics of the virus in Mexico and we don't have a vaccine in our portfolio for the new virus," Freedman said.

R.W. Dellinger and Mike Nelson contributed to this story. For more information, visit www.lapublichealth.org or www.cdc.gov/flu/swine/index/htm.