H1N1 Flu Virus Is a Huge Problem on College Campuses

(New York Times) There are now more than 2,000 swine flu victims on college campuses, according to an American College Health Association survey. And as colleges welcome students back this month, they are keeping those infected with the H1N1 virus at a safe distance. On top of dispensing face masks, circulating lists of warning signs and encouraging contagious students to stay home, many campuses are roping off sick-student-only zones. Carnegie Mellon University designated a vacant sorority house for the infected. St. John’s University set aside a gymnasium. And Princeton did the opposite, reserving spaces for healthy students, so sick roommates can sleep in solitude. Swine flu is most prevalent at colleges in the Southeast and Northwest, according to the health association survey, with the largest outbreaks at campuses in Georgia, Mississippi, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and Washington. Of the 189 colleges that responded to the survey, more than half had experienced a swine flu case in the last week of August.

MRSA Infection a Major Public Health Problem

Eco-Rx, producer of proprietary air purification products, commented upon the editorial in the New York Times on November 20, 2007 entitled “Another Very Scary Germ.” The editorial concludes that, “The discovery that MRSA is more prevalent than anyone thought reinforces the need for an aggressive, multi pronged approach to curb the growing number of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.” The conclusion reached in the October 17, 2007 issue of the Journal of American Medical Association (JAMA) stated, “Invasive MRSA infection affects certain populations disproportionately. It is a major public health problem primarily related to health care but no longer confined to intensive care units, acute care hospitals, or any health care institution.”