Three teenagers at the Baltimore City Juvenile Justice Center have swine flu, state health officials confirmed Thursday, prompting precautions to limit the spread of the virus.
Another 18 youths and two staff members at the downtown facility are reporting flu-like symptoms. All 21 teens are being treated with antiviral medicine. The sick youths have been separated from the general population and placed in two 12-bed dormitories, which are self-contained and have their own bathroom facilities, said Tammy Brown, a spokeswoman for the center.
The sick staff members have been told to stay home.
Justice center officials called the parents of sickened children and sent letters to others notifying them of the outbreak, Brown said. None of the youths, whose ages range from 14 to 18, has been hospitalized. Masks and gloves have been made available to try to stem transmission.
State health officials stressed that the virus is no more dangerous than seasonal flu and said they expected cases to crop up in institutional settings, as cases spread statewide. Officials have confirmed 305 cases of the flu known as H1N1 in Maryland. Cases have been mild, and there have been no deaths.
"Any time you have people together, especially when you have people coming in and out of the general community - where this thing is being passed around - you have the likelihood of this developing," said Dr. Clifford Mitchell, director of environmental health coordination for the state health department. "This is not a surprise to anybody."
The institution, which houses 123 juveniles awaiting court dates or placement in other facilities, is limiting visitors, Brown said.
"Any parent that expresses concern and wants to see their child, we're certainly not going to prohibit that," she said. "But we are trying to limit the number of people who come into the infected area, for obvious reasons."
Juvenile justice officials are making prescriptions for antiviral medications available to any staff member who wants one and the institution will reimburse the cost. Taking antivirals, such as Tamiflu, to try to prevent the illness, doesn't always work, said Mitchell. It is typically recommended only for people who have been exposed to the virus or are at risk for complications if they acquire it, such as people with compromised immune systems, he said.
The diagnoses come a month after the first cases of the virus in Baltimore were confirmed.
