About 2,500 students at Washington State University have come down with possible cases of swine flu since classes began two weeks ago, CNN reports. “It takes about three to four days to get over the [H1N1] virus, so many of the people who have had it are already feeling better and are back in class,” said James Tinney, WSU director of media relations. He said that on Wednesday, 169 new suspected cases of the virus were reported among the nearly 18,000 students who comprise the school’s Pullman, Washington campus. Although Washington State University is no longer testing sick students to confirm whether they have the virus, it is following guidelines from the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention and the local health department by “treating all patients with influenza-like symptoms as if they have H1N1,” according to CNN. Students who contact the school health services department complaining of symptoms of swine flu are urged to stay at home and drink fluids. None of the suspected H1N1 cases has required hospitalization so far, said a university news release. Despite the high number of possible cases, media director Tinney said the students and faculty are not alarmed. “The symptoms are fairly mild; some people have said milder than a regular case of the flu. I don’t see people walking around the campus wearing masks,” he said. But Tinney said officials were surprised that the long Labor Day weekend, when most students left campus, did not do more to interrupt the virus’ spread. “I guess we are an early test case of how this virus will spread over the population,” Tinney said.

TAGS: H1N1 virus, James Tinney, swine flu, Washington State University

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