Halifax school board on watch for swine flu

School board officials in Halifax are checking on a dozen high school students and teachers who visited Mexico last month to see if they have swine flu-related symptoms, though there have been no reports of problems.

The 16 students and four adult chaperones were in Mexico's Campeche area from March 7 to 20.

Doug Hadley, spokesman for the Halifax Regional School Board, said there's no indication that anyone was exposed to the swine flu, but it's important to check because the students represented nearly every high school in the Halifax region.

The Grade 11 students travelled to Mexico as part of a leadership training program. Their visit included stops at an orphanage and a shelter.

Public health officials in Nova Scotia said Monday they know of only four confirmed cases of the swine flu in the province — all at a private school in Windsor.

A group from King's Edgehill school had also travelled to Mexico, where 150 deaths have been linked to the human swine flu. Officials at the school said all four students have recovered.

Even though those cases were mild, said Dr. Todd Hatchette, an infectious disease specialist at the QEII Health Sciences Centre in Halifax, it's important to monitor the swine flu in Nova Scotia.

"We're seeing it in various places of the world," Hatchette said.

"There's always the potential that this could evolve into something more serious like a pandemic. Granted, what's happening in Nova Scotia is much different than in Mexico — everyone seems to have mild cases — but we want to be vigilant to make sure we monitor things so things don't change."

The Public Health Agency of Canada is warning against travel to Mexico unless absolutely necessary.

The agency urges travellers to take precautionary measures such as getting a flu shot, frequently washing their hands, and covering coughs and sneezes.