Local "swine flu" case confirmed in Lewis County

By By NICOLE ESTAPHAN

Story Created: May 1, 2009 at 5:07 PM EDT

Story Updated: Jun 3, 2009 at 11:15 AM EDT

LOWVILLE, N.Y. (WKTV) - The first local probable case of the H1N1 virus has been confirmed in Lewis County. Two others are being tested, and one more has yet to be tested.

This probable case is just one of the four suspected cases in Lewis County. The sample was sent in on April 28 and the result came back Friday morning.

It's important to note that the Center for Disease Control in Atlanta is considering all probable results at this point as confirmed cases of the H1N1 virus.

The infected individual had recently traveled to Mexico. And we're told they are being treated by their primary care physician and they are already on the road to recovery.

Two other samples have been sent to Albany for testing, and those results are expected in the next 24-48 hours. But Lewis County Manager David Pendergast says there is no reason to panic.

Pendergast went on to say that there are 900 viruses that can cause the flu.

And just to put this into perspective, thousands of people die every year from your common strains of influenza. And so far there has only been one death linked to the swine flu in the U.S. - that being a toddler from Mexico.
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