U.S. health officials have released new guidelines for schools on how to handle swine flu outbreaks.
    
The new advice allows a sick child to return to school 24 hours after a fever is gone instead of staying home for a week.

The Centers for Disease Control is also discouraging quick school closures following confirmed cases of the H1N1 virus.
    
This is a reversal of what was seen when schools were hit with the swine flu cases last Spring.
 
"The virus is so widespread that it's not clear that closing a school down is actually helpful," said Dr. Greg Poland, a flu expert with the Mayo Clinic, in Rochester, Minn. 

"If a lot of kids were getting it and became an epidemic just in the school year, then yeah, I think it should be closed," said parent Dawn Crockett.

Education Secretary Arne Duncan said closing schools should be a last resort.

Health officials are testing a swine flu vaccine Friday. It will then be available by mid-October.