Prevention
Prevention of swine influenza consists of the following three steps-
a) Prevention in swine
This involves
- Facility management using disinfectants and providing an ambient temperature that helps to control the virus
- Herd management. This involves making sure that infected pigs are seperated (quarantined) and not allowed to mingle with the non- infected ones.
- Vaccination of pigs
b) Preventing pig to human transmission
Farm hands and veterinarians need to use a face mask and gloves when dealing with infected animals. Smoking is believed to predispose a person to an increased risk of swine flu infection.
c) Preventing transmission between humans
The swine flu in humans is most contagious during the initial week of the illness.
The following recommendations may be followed to prevent spread of the virus among humans
- Wash hands frequently with soap and water or with hand sanitizers,
- Use disinfectants to clean household surfaces
- A person having flu must stay away from work or public places
- Cover mouth and nose while sneezing or coughing
- Protect yourself through vaccination (which is soon to be ready for public use)
