Pennsylvania no longer has to feel left out in the ongoing swine flu drama gripping our area and the nation.
The Keystone State now has its first confirmed case of the H1N1 virus, Pa. Gov. Ed Rendell announced Sunday afternoon.
Lab tests show that a 31-year-old Montgomery County man was infected with the disease. Officials did not say how the man might have contracted the virus.
The confirmed case wasn't the only news from Pa. on the virus. Bucks County health officials also announced Sunday that the county has its first probable case.
It involves a 20-year-old woman who recently visited Mexico. She is receiving treatment and has not required hospitalization.
Sunday's findings bring the total number of confirmed cases in our area to 18 with 24 probable:
Pennsylvania
1 Confirmed
7 Probable (3 in Philadelphia; 1 in Bucks County; 1 in Montgomery County)
Delaware
10 Confirmed (All of the confirmed cases are Univ. of Del. students)
16 Probable (two are elementary students in the Red Clay School District)
New Jersey
7 Confirmed
1 Probable
In New Jersey and Delaware, health officials closed some schools as a precaution after students showed symptoms of the flu. Hainesport Township School in Burlington County, N.J. will be closed until at least Wednesday while officials await initial test results from two students who have flu-like symptoms. Test results will also determine when officials reopen Baltz Elementary School in Elsmere, Del. Two students there have probable cases of the H1N1 virus.
On Friday, the CDC visited the University of Delaware -- the epicenter of that state's flu outbreak -- to assist with the school's 10 confirmed cases. In New Jersey, two more cases were confirmed on Friday, but officials didn't yet say which part of the state they're from.
“Now that Pennsylvania has a confirmed case, it is even more important for the public to understand and follow the commonsense steps that can help prevent the spread of the flu,” said Gov. Rendell.
Symptoms of the disease include coughing, fever, chills, and fatigue.
A Swine Flu Hotline is open around the clock to answer questions in New Jersey: 866-321-9571. Delaware also has a Swine Flu Hotline: 866-408-1899. For more information in Pennsylvania, go to www.health.state.pa.us.
