New Yorkers and travelers to this area still have a lot of questions about swine flu, but some preventative measures can be taken. NY1's Health reporter Kafi Drexel filled the following report about what can be done to stay safe.

While they say there is no need to push a panic button over swine flu, top health officials warn there is still room to be cautious about a new virus they are still learning about that could have pandemic potential.

"I wouldn't rest on the fact that we have only seen cases in this country less severe," says Dr. Richard Besser, the acting director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "As we continue to look I expect that we will see additional cases and I expect the spectrum of disease will expand."

Doctors say a major complication in tracking these kind of outbreaks is that the symptoms are similar to viruses we see all the time. Those can include fever, cough, sore throat, body aches, headache, chills and fatigue. Some people with swine flu have reported gastrointestinal issues like diarrhea and vomiting.

The period of being contagious generally lasts seven to 10 days after onset of symptoms.

Physicians in New York and around the globe are on the alert for more cases. In the meantime, prevention advice is the same as it is for all forms of cold and flu.

"I think anyone who has flu-like symptoms should not be going into work or school anyway regardless of whether there is a swine flu outbreak or not because even if you have the regular flu, that is contagious," says Dr. Joseph Rahimian of St. Vincent's Medical Center. "That would help to limit spreads of these sort of infections. Also, if you see that there is someone who is sick ,who is coughing, who has a runny nose, who is in your proximity, trying to minimize your contact with those people would be a good idea. The most important thing that one can do is hand-washing and good hygiene because that can also prevent transmission of this infection."

Doctors say it is also important to separate fact from fiction like avoiding eating pork or pork products.

"We heard from the World Health Organization to not eat from street vendors while we are here. So we are not eating from street vendors," says one New Yorker.

Some countries have even imposed bans pig meat from Mexico and other affected countries where outbreaks have occurred. But health experts say there is no reason to be concerned about eating food because flu virus is not transmitted that way.

"This isn't a disease that you can get from cooked foods or cooked meat," says Rahimian. "You can, however, get it from live animals that have the infection. So contact with animals that carry the infection can give you the infection."

As far as treatment for those who are have been stricken with serious cases of swine flu, antiviral treatments Tamiflu and Relenza have been effective. Doctors say that's good news because those same drugs have not worked with some more common flu strains this season.