As of Thursday morning, 14 confirmed cases and more than a dozen suspected cases of influenza have been reported on campus. The cases are suspected to be the new H1N1 flu virus, commonly known as swine flu.
The cases arose from seasonal camp employees and students in on-campus summer programs, including Duke's Talent Identification Program, the American Dance Festival and youth summer science and writing camps.
The cases are mild and similar to the seasonal flu, University officials reported Thursday. Duke is also working closely with the Durham County Health Department and Duke's infectious disease specialist to discuss protocols on how to handle the situation.
"On the outside, [the situation] seems fairly simple [to take care of]," said Dr. Bill Purdy, executive director of Student Health. "But it's actually very complex with so many kids on campus, so many programs, everyone from across the country. So that makes it very, very difficult."
Purdy said the University is handling the situation in compliance with guidelines from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, which suggest identifying the virus early, staying away from others if infected and staying hygienic.
But this was not the first case of swine flu at Duke this summer. Purdy said two campers arrived on campus carrying the strain and were sent home immediately. The first case that arose at Duke was brought to Student Health's attention June 15.
If diagnosed, an infected person must be isolated for seven days and live apart from those who are not infected. Purdy said the students who have been diagnosed are currently all in a dormitory on East Campus under the care of University health officials.
"You can imagine for campers who live halfway across the country, this is a very difficult thing to figure out," Purdy said.
Student Health has also stopped testing students who go in with flu-like symptoms, Purdy said.
"The word is, if anyone comes in and has the flu - it's not the season that anyone would have the flu, so it's most likely that they have the H1N1 flu," he said.
No cases of swine flu have been reported on West Campus and officials for West Campus camps have been notified of the situation, Purdy added.
Parents of campers have also been notified through their children's respective programs.
Students are advised to wash their hands frequently, not share drinks with each other and cover their mouths with their sleeves if coughing.
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