Flying in the face of H1N1

[Star Tribune, November 07, 2009] For months, travelers have been zooming through the skies, locked into a tight space with strangers, without benefit of an H1N1 vaccination. That situation probably won't change before Thanksgiving, historically the busiest travel season of the year. The Minnesota Department of Health reports that the majority of doses of the vaccine may not arrive until after the holiday. What's a worried ticket-holder to do? In most cases, fly, but use vigilance. "Most of the [H1N1 flu] transmissions appear to be contact and not airborne," said Dr. Frank Rhame, an infectious-diseases physician at Abbott Northwestern Hospital in Minneapolis.