DIAGNOSIS AND PREVENTION OF SWINE FLU
INTRODUCTION Swine Influenza (swine flu) is a respiratory disease of pigs caused by type A influenza viruses that regularly cause outbreaks of influenza in pigs. Swine flu viruses do not normally infect humans. However, sporadic human infections with swine flu have occurred. When this happens, these viruses are called "variant viruses." The disease originally was nicknamed swine flu because the virus that causes the disease originally jumped to humans from the live pigs in which it evolved. The virus is a "reassortant" -- a mix of genes from swine, bird, and human flu viruses. The swine flu in humans is most contagious during the first five days of the illness, although some people, most commonly children, can remain contagious for up to ten days. It spreads like common flu directly from airborne droplets from the cough or sneeze of an infected person or contact with an object contaminated by the cough or touch of an infected person and then touching your eyes, mout...