Sixty seven of the 1,300 member freshman class at the Air Force Academy have or are suspected to have H1N1 influenza. Seventy more have symptoms but either tested negative or have recovered (meaning we do not know how many of this group had H1N1). The cadets only arrived at the Air Force Academy on June 25 and in a little over ten days the first symptoms were reported.
In itself, this outbreak is of little importance. None of the recruits required hospitalization and the outbreak will burn itself out in a week or so. The only real casualty was the cancelation of the cadets’ first day off. However, the outbreak must stand as a warning on the dangers of infectious diseases in the military. This time it was an influenza, next time it could be something worse.
Despite the low danger of H1N1 influenza for young, healthy cadets, the Air Force should be commended for their quick action. The first signs of H1N1 appeared only a week ago and since then the freshman class was screened, suspected cases isolated, and healthy cadets continued activities with minimal disruption. Future outbreaks of other diseases are certain, in this case the Air Force has shown impressive readiness to respond to these emerging threats.
Christopher Albon is a Ph.D. candidate specializing in armed conflict, public health, human security, and health diplomacy.
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{ 2 comments }
Doctor Albon (used in the academic sense only)
Your statement that “Despite the low danger of H1N1 influenza for young, healthy cadets, the Air Force should be commended for their quick action.” is in error at best.
The distinction between this incarnation of swine flu and ordinary flu strains is that it is apparently much more similar to the 1918 outbreak in that the young and healthy are the precise target for vulnerability. This is the exact reason why there is so much concern on the WHO’s part.
Please reaserch the subject before making blanket statements that are not based in fact
Thanks for the comment Glenn!
Actually, I did my research.
While H1N1 does spread amongst the young (1o to 45), according to the WHO: “of the more serious cases, more than half of hospitalized people had underlying health conditions or weak immune systems.”. These are primarily seen in small children, pregnant women, and the elderly.
Conversely, underlying medical conditions are rare among “young, healthy” cadets, and so the risk of observing serious cases amongst Air Force cadets is low.
Cheers!
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