CDC: Preventive use of anti-virals may be a good idea for elderly

Whether they live in assisted living facilities or have charted out their own active living habits, seniors are being told by the Centers for Disease Control to be especially careful when it comes to dealing with the new swine flu outbreak.


They say that people over the age of 65 are a "high-risk" group for contracting the new strain, and older people are being advised to take anti-viral medicine as a preventive measure if they come into contact with a potentially contagious person, even before their own illness is confirmed.


In New York, an association of assisted living facilities is recommending that potentially ill adult sons and daughters not make visits to elderly parents.

"Our nursing homes and senior services staffs are following strict infection-control programs, and the public's compliance will be of enormous help," said Carl Young, New York Association of Homes and Services for the Aging.


The CDC had confirmed 64 cases as of April 28, and 45 of those were in the state of New York.


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