SWINE FLU GUIDLINES
For parents of children and young people with congenital heart disease
In view of recent health announcements regarding the vast increase in swine flu cases in the UK, please see the following guidelines for parents of congenital heart children written by Dr Shakeel Qureshi, Head of Services at the Department fo Paediatric Cardiology, Evelina Hospital, London:
Symptoms of swine flu
The common symptoms of swine flu are abrupt onset of fever (greater than 38 degrees centigrade) plus two or more of the following:
- cough and/or runny nose;
- sore throat;
- headache;
- muscle aches and pains;
- feeling very tired and listless; and
- diarrhoea or vomiting.
Recommended actions/precautions
If your child is in close contact with someone with flu, we advise they should receive prophylactic (meaning preventative) course of medication called tamiflu (also called Oseltamivir) to reduce the risk of getting flu.
Please call your GP to arrange this; you may want to print a copy of this page and hand it to your GP.
Direct contact with a case of swine flu means being within one metre of someone with swine or symptoms for at least one hour. This would include someone with swine flu symptoms who:
- lives with your child,
- is in the same class as your child at school or nursery,
- plays with your child.
