The Travelers Virus - H1N1

[Whatabout]

It would be interesting if travelers were screened for H1N1 at airports before they leave on their journeys.

Apparently, H1N1 has its hub in airports around the US. It should be called the "Travelers Virus."

I don't believe the 1918 virus was flung so far and wide as quickly as this new novel H1N1.

 

[tropical]

Re: The Travelers Virus - H1N1

It would be interesting if travelers were screened for H1N1 at airports before they leave on their journeys.

Apparently, H1N1 has its hub in airports around the US. It should be called the "Travelers Virus."

I don't believe the 1918 virus was flung so far and wide as quickly as this new novel H1N1.

The asymptomatic will pass through without real quarantining.

Obviously the travelers are the main international spreading vectors.

The international touristic business spreading vector.

 

[Shiloh]

Re: The Travelers Virus - H1N1

Well...I imagine many of the folks returning to their home countries would not admit to being ill at point of departure for a variety of reasons. Some might not have travel insurance that covers medical expenses out of country. Also, some hotels will not accept you if you are confirmed with AH1N1 so where would one stay if denied departure?
Fever monitors may slow entry of the virus into a country but will not eliminate it. As Tropical points out, there are asymptomatic cases out there likely slipping through every type of screening.

 

[Shannon Bennett]

Re: The Travelers Virus - H1N1

It is not at all uncommon to be sick with H1N1 and not have a fever. Odd but true.

 

[Snicklefritz]

Re: The Travelers Virus - H1N1

Yes, there are 'asymptomatic' as well as 'pre-symptomatic' that can easily pass throught airport checkpoints.

The problem, as I see it, is that airport checkpoints give a false sense of security.

Dancing with the devil regards...

Snick

 

[mixin]

Re: The Travelers Virus - H1N1

I was curious about passengers becoming infected while on the flight and found the two articles below. I wonder if there is any one place on a plane that would make a person more susceptible to becoming infected?

IIrc, at least 2 baggage handlers were infected. I wonder how many luggage handles they contaminated?

Will you catch Swine Flu on your next flight? Probably not.
[snip]
But the reality is that these systems use HEPA filters that has a 99% rate of efficiency in filtering out particles larger than 0.3 microns (and while individual viruses can be smaller than that, they often form colonies that are then too big to pass through the HEPA filter.) What’s more, the systems circulate the air every 2-3 minutes, so it’s constantly refreshing.
http://www.businessweek.com/lifestyle/travelers_check/archives/2009/05/will_you_catch.html

And then Boeing has a good Q&A session on cabin quality; I wonder if there is a special procedure for handling dirty filters.
[snip]
Myth: When the air filters get dirty, they're no longer effective.
Fact: The high efficiency filter, in particular, actually becomes more effective because the trapped particles make it more difficult for other matter to pass through. The filters are replaced at regular maintenance intervals. If several intervals were missed, and an abnormally heavy build-up of particles occurred, the only effect would be reduced flow of the recirculated air -- but whatever air did pass through would be extremely well filtered. In any case, the filters do not affect the flow of the outside-air portion.
http://www.boeing.com/commercial/cabinair/facts.html

 

[AlaskaDenise]

Re: The Travelers Virus - H1N1

When the plane is still parked or on the tarmack, those air filtration systems may not be working. There is an old FT thread about this;

(snipped)

Although large droplets probably accounted for some cases in the Alaska Airlines outbreak (9), this outbreak was remarkable for its high attack rate (72%) and for deficient ventilation, which would increase transmission by aerosols but not by large droplets. Passengers with influenza are common, yet with proper ventilation such an attack rate is uncommon.

I purposely stay at the end of the boarding line, so as to minimize time in a stuffy cabin. However, the "last one on" competition is getting more crowded.

.

 

[AlaskaDenise]

Re: The Travelers Virus - H1N1

outbreak referenced in above snippet:


An outbreak of influenza aboard a commercial airliner.

Moser MR, Bender TR, Margolis HS, Noble GR, Kendal AP, Ritter DG.

A jet airliner with 54 persons aboard was delayed on the ground for three hours because of engine failure during a takeoff attempt. Most passengers stayed on the airplane during the delay. Within 72 hours, 72 per cent of the passengers became ill with symptoms of cough, fever, fatigue, headache, sore throat and myalgia. One passenger, the apparent index case, was ill on the airplane, and the clinical attack rate among the others varied with the amount of time spent aboard. Virus antigenically similar to A/Texas/1/77(H3N2) was isolated from 8 of 31 passengers cultured, and 20 of 22 ill persons tested had serologic evidence of infection with this virus. The airplane ventilation system was inoperative during the delay and this may account for the high attack rate.

PMID: 463858 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/463858?dopt=Abstract

On a recent flight, I was glad to see the ventilation system running as we boarded.

.

 

[mixin]

Re: The Travelers Virus - H1N1

I've never been on a big plane. Are the air conditioner outlets like those in restaurants and motel conference rooms... where they blow almost directly on people?

Where/how does the old air enter the ac system? I wonder if virus particles are more concentrated there?

I found this at the CDC site; I wonder how many times they forget:
Management of Passengers or Crew Members with Symptoms of Influenza
[snip]
The flight deck crew should ensure that the aircraft air conditioning/ventilation system stay on until all passengers and crew have disembarked in order to maximize continued removal of virus particles from the cabin air.

http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/guidance/air-crew-dom-intl.htm

 

[tropical]

Re: The Travelers Virus - H1N1

#6/.../...

It is true that an more vigorous stream of viral filtered plaine circulating air could deminish the incidence of infecting,
but this must not give us a false sense of security.

The exhausted air breathed out from the lungs of infected passengers, could not instantaneously be sucked by the ventilation, so it would traveling by air streams through many seats before it is going to be filtered.

So, all the tached passengers have a chance to get it.

To not mention the usage of the same toalet rooms ...

Additionaly, one infected crew member roaming between the passengers could easily proliferate the infection by enaugh short breathing and splashing droplets distance..

The distribution of foods, etc, even if manipulated in gloves, could this way cary some additional bugs.

Corrolary: many who travel by plains, stay at airport hubs, in other closed vehicles, or places, will get it, especialy when it goes to bigger numbers of already infected people.

 

[mixin]

Re: The Travelers Virus - H1N1

I'm also curious about the air conditioning systems in schools.

 

[tropical]

Re: The Travelers Virus - H1N1

I'm also curious about the air conditioning systems in schools.

It is many closed rooms, and atriums, the same thing.

The diference is that at the scholls they probable did not have viral filters ...

 

[Whatabout]

Re: The Travelers Virus - H1N1

I work for a company where people constantly travel. I am concerned that one of them may bring back the virus.

I went to the CDC website and read their recommendations for airlines. I noted that there is no guidance on cleaning up the planes before they take off with a new group of passengers after someone from a previous group had H1N1. I find it very interesting that people who are visiting Chicago and traveling on to other countries are getting sick with the virus. Again, I am concerned that either the aircraft themselves or the airports have become vectors of the virus. Since it can live outside of the human body for a number of hours. I haven't seen the CDC address this issue other than to tell us that the air is filtered.

Any comments directed to this subject are welcome and I thank you all who have commented thus far

 

[tropical]

Re: The Travelers Virus - H1N1

I agree.

I hope that they will change to more strict measures if the WHO flag goes to 6, no matter the degree of seriousness
(or maybe they stil don't ...)

Aussi goes to internal "sustained" instead of "contain", so it is "noon", not early "morning".

I work for a company where people constantly travel. I am concerned that one of them may bring back the virus.

I went to the CDC website and read their recommendations for airlines. I noted that there is no guidance on cleaning up the planes before they take off with a new group of passengers after someone from a previous group had H1N1. I find it very interesting that people who are visiting Chicago and traveling on to other countries are getting sick with the virus. Again, I am concerned that either the aircraft themselves or the airports have become vectors of the virus. Since it can live outside of the human body for a number of hours. I haven't seen the CDC address this issue other than to tell us that the air is filtered.

Any comments directed to this subject are welcome and I thank you all who have commented thus far

 

[mixin]

Re: The Travelers Virus - H1N1

Whatabout,
Here is a link: Interim Guidance for Aircraft Cleaning When Pandemic Influenza is Suspected in a Passenger or Crew Member

http://www.pandemicflu.gov/travel/cleaning_aircraft.html

 

[tropical]

Re: The Travelers Virus - H1N1

#15: guidance doc

"there are existing requirements that travelers on international flights arriving in the United States with symptoms suggestive of a condition of public health importance, such as a potential case of pandemic influenza, be reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Division of Global Migration and Quarantine for evaluation. This document provides guidance on appropriate cleaning procedures for passenger aircraft in such a scenario."


The above means that IF NO suggestive special symptoms (of public health importance/potential case of pandemic influenza) are/be reported,
as in cases of asymptomatic, non temperature exibited, non localizable infectious passengers carriers,
special decontamination procedures will NOT be held on the plain, before the next batch of passengers enter the plane.

 

[mixin]

Re: The Travelers Virus - H1N1

Tropical,
I wondered about that, too.

The same with keeping the air conditioning on until after all crew and passengers have departed. If no one is showing symptoms, then they would probably turn it off.

And how many will try to hide mild symptoms if there is a chance they will be quarantined?