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Cuyahoga County Board Of Health

Tuesday, February 5, 2013

New Strain of Norovirus - The Winter Vomiting Bug - On the Rise

Officials say it's active locally, but no reports of widespread cases have been made in Cuyahoga County.

Although the flu is on everyone’s minds this season, the winter vomiting bug, or the norovirus, is making its rounds — though it's not known how many cases have been contracted locally. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that the norovirus causes about 70,000 hospitalizations and 800 deaths each year, mostly in young children and the elderly. Follow us on Twitter | Like us on Facebook Some of the virus' common symptoms include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and stomach pains. The CDC points out that the norovirus is often referred to as the stomach flu, but it is unrelated to influenza. In fact, the flu rarely involves intestinal symptoms. "Really everything from the chest down is something like the norovirus," …

Monday, January 14, 2013

Flu Still Widespread in Cuyahoga County

The illness has been reaching high levels across the state and country.

Ohio is in the midst of an “unusually” active influenza season, the Ohio Department of Health reports.  The Cuyahoga County Board of Health tracks influenza activity by the week. According to the most recent report, which ended on Jan. 5, flu activity in the county is still “widespread,” but the figures look a bit better than the last week of 2013. Flu-related hospitalizations were down a bit after a sharp increase the week ending Dec. 28, 2012. The latest figues show 59 flu-related hospitalizations the week ending Jan. 5; the week of Dec. 28, there were 134, and the week before, there were 73.  About 4 percent of all emergency department visits were for fever or flu symptoms, down from 4.9 percent the week before.  According to the …

Friday, January 4, 2013

Flu Season Picking Up in Cuyahoga County

The number of influenza-related cases has been on the rise in recent weeks.

Make sure you have your tissues and ginger ale ready—flu season is picking up in Cuyahoga County.  The Cuyahoga County Board of Health tracks influenza activity by the week. According to the most recent report, which ended on Dec. 22, there was “widespread” flu activity in the county. About 5 percent of all emergency department visits were for flu-related symptoms during that time, and throughout December, there were about 24 to 34 flu-related hospitalizations each week.  Google.org’s flu trends for Cleveland show numbers increasing rapidly in recent weeks and reaching “intense” levels.  The county’s figures show that complaints for symptoms of the flu—like congestion, coughing and vomiting—are all slightly higher than they were at this …

Tuesday, August 28, 2012

POLL: Tattoo Art or Cleanliness - What's More Important?

Cuyahoga and Summit county health departments offer tips on tattoo safety.

What do you spend more time on? Picking the artist that totally gets your artistic intention or one that works at a super hygenic shop? Yeah, I know what the answer is. But don't brush off the importance of a clean shop. You should choose a shop that uses universal precautions to prevent skin infections or blood-borne pathogens. There's nothing cool about skin infections.  Here's why: A recent study published by the New England Journal of Medicine revealed that the ink a New York artist was using exposed his customers to a rash that was hard to get rid of. Turns out the manufacturer used distilled instead of sterile water. In another rash outbreak, artists were cleaning needles between colors with distilled instead of sterile water.  The …

Kathy Adult

8:14 am on Wednesday, August 29, 2012

7 out of 8 at G&G. Wouldn't think of going anywhere else.   more ›

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