We report a high attack rate among a group of traveling medical students but a much lower secondary attack rate selleck screening library among their contacts after return from the trip. These findings may aid the development of recommendations to prevent influenza. The first cases of human infection

with the 2009 pandemic influenza A(H1N1) virus were detected in two children in Southern California during late April 2009.1 A few weeks earlier, health officials in Mexico had detected an increase in severe pneumonia affecting mainly young, healthy adults that was subsequently determined to be because of infection with a nontypeable influenza A(H1N1) virus genetically similar to that isolated from the children in California.2 From then until late 2009, this pandemic virus caused more than 500,000 cases of influenza worldwide, including over 10,000 deaths.3 We describe an outbreak of H1N1 influenza among medical students who traveled from Spain to the Dominican Republic in June 2009. Most 2009 pandemic check details influenza A(H1N1) virus infections resulted in clinically mild disease without complications. However, the virus caused substantial morbidity and mortality, even in young, healthy people.4

Compared to seasonal influenza, the incidence of 2009 pandemic influenza A(H1N1) was higher among people aged 5–65 years.5–7 In Europe, about 80% of reported cases occurred in people aged <30 years.8 From the beginning of the influenza pandemic until the time the outbreak described here was detected, 77,201 cases with Flucloronide 332 deaths had been reported worldwide, mostly in the United States and Mexico. By June 29, 2009, 6,173 cases of influenza A(H1N1) disease had been reported in Europe; 541 of these were in Spain.9 In the Hospital Clinic of Barcelona, 13 cases had been detected, all with a recent history of travel to Mexico, the Dominican Republic, or Chile. Concurrently, 108 cases had been reported in the Dominican Republic.9 On June 27, 2009, a group of 113 sixth-year medical students from the University of Barcelona returned from an 8-day vacation in the Dominican Republic. From 1–3 days before the return trip, six students developed mild influenza-like

illness (ILI) manifested primarily by respiratory symptoms and accompanied in some cases by fever and diarrhea. On their return, one student presented to the emergency department of the Hospital Clinic, where a nasal swab was positive for 2009 pandemic influenza A(H1N1) by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Four students with similar symptoms were seen at the same emergency department in the following hours. This led to suspicion of an outbreak, and an epidemiological investigation was initiated to assess the impact of pandemic influenza A(H1N1) infection in this group of students and their residential contacts. We attempted to contact all the 113 medical students who traveled to the Dominican Republic between June 19 and June 27.