Swine flu cases spread across US

BBC Monday, 4 May 2009 13:36 UK

Some 226 swine flu cases have been confirmed in 30 states and more are expected, US health officials say.

They said most cases were mild - although a small boy visiting from Mexico died - and the spread was no worse than seasonal flu.

Mexico, where the outbreak originated, says cases of new infections are declining and authorities will decide on whether to allow schools to reopen.

But the World Health Organization (WHO) has warned against complacency.

WHO chief Margaret Chan said the real test would come when the winter influenza season hit countries.

"We hope the virus fizzles out, because if it doesn't we are heading for a big outbreak," she told the UK's Financial Times.

"I'm not predicting the pandemic will blow up, but if I miss it and we don't prepare, I fail. I'd rather over-prepare than not prepare".

She indicated that the WHO was likely to raise its flu alert level to the top of its six-point scale - meaning the virus had spread between different regions and a global pandemic was under way.

But she stressed that this did not necessarily mean every country would be affected or that there would be many more deaths.

"It is a signal to public health authorities to take appropriate measures," she said.

The WHO said on Monday that 985 cases of the virus had been officially reported across 20 countries.

Person-to-person transmission has been confirmed in six countries.

Slightly more than 100 people in Mexico are thought to have died from the swine flu strain, although only 25 cases have been confirmed.

Elsewhere:

• Portugal's health ministry confirmed its first case of swine flu

• The number of confirmed cases in Italy rose from two to four

• Spain raised the number of confirmed cases from 40 to 54, making it the worst-hit country in Europe

• Turkish media reports of a patient dying from swine flu in the southern Antalya province were denied by a hospital spokeswoman to Reuters news agency

'Not over yet'

In the US, the number of confirmed cases rose from 160 to 226. Officials said this was because the results of lab tests were now coming through, rather than because of a new surge in cases.

But an expert from America's Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the virus was fairly widespread.

"Virtually all of the United States probably has this virus circulating now," Dr Anne Schuchat said.

"That doesn't mean that everybody's infected but within the communities, the virus has arrived."

She said that although she expected cases to become more severe and to lead to deaths, this in itself would not be unusual as every year 36,000 people died in the US after contracting seasonal flu.

But she warned: "I don't think we're out of the woods yet."

'Discriminatory measures'

Mexican officials are due to decide on Monday whether to allow schools and businesses to reopen after reporting that its most lethal outbreak might be levelling off.

Health Minister Jose Angel Cordova said that the virus appeared to have peaked between 23-28 April.

"The evolution of the epidemic is now in its declining phase," he told a news conference.

President Felipe Calderon, meanwhile, denounced what he described as "discriminatory measures" against Mexicans by some countries "because of ignorance and misinformation".

He did not name any countries but his remarks came after Mexico criticised China for placing in quarantine up to 70 Mexicans, even though they had shown no sign of having contracted swine flu. China just tried to prevent the swine flu and there were SARS and Bird flu here before so I think they didn't want that to happen again. However, quarantine people who didn't show any symptoms should not be detained, just checking their body should be enough.

Mexico said it was planning to send a plane to Beijing to pick up the Mexicans.

China denied it was being discriminatory. "This is purely a question of health inspection and quarantine," the foreign ministry said.

More than 300 guests at a hotel in Hong Kong have also been under quarantine for a week after a fellow guest contracted the disease.

One guest, Kevin Ireland, spoke of a "sense of paranoia" initially by the authorities - who tackled the Sars outbreak in 2003 - but added that "there's no restriction on any kind of interaction" among the guests.

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Swine flu cases hit 20 countries

By Liz Szabo, USA TODAY

Doctors have confirmed 985 cases of the H1N1 flu virus in 20 countries and, for the first time, a sick farm worker has infected pigs, according to the World Health Organization.

A farm worker who had recently traveled to Mexico has infected a herd of pigs in Alberta, Canada, said Peter Ben Embarek, a food safety scientist at the WHO at press conference Sunday morning. The worker returned to the farm in mid-April and the animals began getting sick eight to 10 days later, Embarek said. The infection was mild, however, and the farm worker and pigs have recovered.

On another front, some aspects of the swine flu threat appeared to be leveling off on Monday, as Mexican Health Secretary Jose Cordoba announced most businesses there would reopen Wednesday. Cordoba said that an ebb in the number of cases in Mexico was responsible for the decision, which would end a five-day closure of nonessential businesses to stop the spread of the new virus. After reopened business, Mexico would reduce the port tax in order to stimulus the tourism.

Cafes, museums and libraries were among the businesses that would open their doors back up, but health officials still need to inspect schools before children are allowed back in, Mexico City Mayor Marcelo Ebrard said.

In the Alberta, Canada, case, the virus that infected the pigs is the same H1N1 virus in circulation among people and there is no indication that the transfer between species has caused the flu bug to mutate to a new or dangerous form, Embarek said.

"This is not a big surprise," he said, noting that officials had expected that pigs could be infected in areas where the virus is circulating.

While farm workers are at risk of contracting H1N1 from pigs, Embarek stressed that people cannot become infected from eating pork. Both heat and the curing process used to make ham kill the virus, and the virus doesn't live long on surfaces, Embarek said.

"You can continue to safely eat your prosciutto," Embarek said. and enjoy eating Moo Ping :)

The USA has confirmed 286 in 36 states. There has been one death, that of a Mexican toddler who was treated at a Texas hospital.

Mexico is now reporting 590 confirmed cases of H1N1, including 25 deaths, according to the WHO. Even as Mexican officials say the virus appears to have peaked, the number of confirmed cases is increasing as laboratories test previously collected specimens.

Scientists at the WHO say they don't yet know whether the outbreak has truly peaked, however.

Also in Mexico, officials have chartered a plane to bring back dozens of their citizens who were quarantined while visiting China, including some who were taken to isolation from arriving flights.

"I think it's unfair that because we have been honest and transparent with the world some countries and places are taking repressive and discriminatory measures because of ignorance and disinformation," Mexican President Felipe Calderon said.

China's foreign ministry denied it was discriminating against Mexicans.

The infamous 1918 flu pandemic, which killed 50 million people worldwide, began in the spring, became dormant in the summer and roared back to life in the fall, said WHO spokesman Gregory Härtl.

Of the 10 pandemics over the past 300 years, about half have begun in fall or winter, while the other half began in the spring or summer, says Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota.

Hartl noted that flu season usually ends in the Northern Hemisphere at this time of year, as the weather warms up.

Flu season in the Southern Hemisphere often begins at this time of year, however, as temperatures drop. WHO has confirmed one case in Colombia, as well as cases in Central America — one in Costa Rica and two in El Salvador. New Zealand also has had one confirmed case.

Confirmed cases of H1N1 virus approach 1,000

May 4, 2009 -- Updated 0812 GMT (1612 HKT)

(CNN) -- The World Health Organization cautioned that the swine flu outbreak could gain momentum in the months ahead, despite claims by the health secretary of Mexico -- the epicenter of the outbreak -- that the virus "is in its declining phase."

As of early Monday, Mexican health officials reported 568 cases and 22 fatalities linked to the flu. WHO says it has confirmed 506 cases and 19 deaths in Mexico. Mexico has been accused to be the origin of the swine flu but some thought that it might be from somewhere else. It was just because this country had the highest case of this flu doesn't mean it was origin from here wasn't it?

The world has 985 confirmed cases of the virus, known to scientists H1N1 virus, in a total of 20 countries, WHO said Monday.

The United States has reported 226 confirmed cases in 30 states. The U.S. cases include one death -- a Mexican toddler visiting relatives in the United States.

According to WHO, Canada has 85 confirmed cases; Spain has 40; the United Kingdom has 15; Germany has 8; New Zealand has 4; Israel has 3; El Salvador has 2; France has 2; and Austria, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Denmark, Ireland, Netherlands, Italy, South Korea and Switzerland each have one.

The outbreak is only about 10 days old, and even if the illness is declining, it could return, said Gregory Hartl, the WHO spokesman for epidemic and pandemic diseases, at a briefing Sunday. It was only 10 days and there were like almost 1,000 confirmed cases around the world?

"I ... would like to remind people that in 1918 the Spanish flu showed a surge in the spring, and then disappeared in the summer months, only to return in the autumn of 1918 with a vengeance," Hartl said. "And we know that that eventually killed 40 million to 50 million people."

Mexican authorities believe the most active period of the virus in Mexico was between April 23 and April 28, and Mexican Health Secretary Jose Cordova described the outbreak as being in decline in his country.

In China, officials have quarantined 68 people, including 13 crew members, who were passengers of a Mexico City to Shanghai flight, which carried a passenger who tested positive for the virus, China's state-run Xinhua news agency reported Sunday. None of the other passengers has exhibited any flu-like symptoms, one health official said.

About another 110 people who were on the Aeromexico plane went on to other destinations, and may face quarantines elsewhere, the news agency said. Fifteen have been quarantined at a Beijing hotel.

Shanghai's airport is now barring other Aeromexico planes from landing there, a representative of the airline told CNN. Aeromexico is suspending flights to Shanghai until May 15, the representative said. The airline does not fly to Hong Kong or Beijing.

In the United States, New York has the most confirmed cases, with 63, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Texas has 40; California has 26; Arizona 18; South Carolina 15; Delaware 10; Massachusetts and New Jersey each have seven; Colorado has four; Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Virginia, Wisconsin each have three; Connecticut, Kansas and Michigan each have two; Alabama, Iowa, Kentucky, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Tennessee and Utah each have one.

California officials suspended visitation and other "nonessential activities" at Centinela State Prison in Imperial County after an inmate was suspected of having swine flu. The case has yet to be confirmed with lab testing.

On Sunday, health officials in North Carolina and Pennsylvania announced the first confirmed cases in those states, and Louisiana's governor said his state had seven confirmed cases. The cases from those three states were not immediately included in the CDC tally.

In Washington, U.S. Secretary of Health Kathleen Sebelius, appearing on CNN's "State of the Union," warned that even if the flu outbreak wanes, "it could come back with greater force in the winter and fall, when we get into flu season."

"So, this is no time for complacency," she said. "We want to stay out ahead of this."

Dr. Anne Schuchat, the CDC's interim deputy director for public health, told reporters Sunday that she was "heartened" by Mexican authorities' reports but still is "very cautious."

"I know that influenza can be surprising, and the time course here in the United States is later. We believe we're just on the upswing here, and in several parts of Mexico, cases began quite a while ago," Schuchat said.

"From what I know about influenza, I do expect more cases, more severe cases and I do expect more deaths," she added. "And I'm particularly concerned about what will happen in the fall."

Acting CDC Director Richard Besser, also speaking on "State of the Union," said U.S. health officials are examining whether people who received flu shots for the swine flu in 1976 may have some level of protection from the current swine flu.

"That's going to play in very, very big as we move forward with our plans around vaccines, because that may help guide some of the issues around who is most at risk at getting this in the future," Besser said.

Offering a general picture of the state of U.S. efforts to combat the virus, Besser said "there are encouraging signs."

"We're not out of the woods yet," he said. "But what we've learned about the virus itself -- it doesn't contain the factors that we know are seen in much more severe flu strains."

While the new virus strain in the recent outbreak has affected humans, Canadian officials said it has shown up at a pig farm in Alberta, Canada.

Officials said the pigs may have been infected by a Canadian farmer who recently returned from a trip to Mexico, the epicenter of the outbreak. The pigs have since been quarantined.

"We have determined that the virus H1N1, found in these pigs, is the virus which is being tracked in the human population," said Dr. Brian Evans of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.

Evans and other officials said it is not uncommon for flu viruses to jump from humans to animals, and that it does not pose a risk for consuming pork. The number of pigs infected was not disclosed.

The infected farmer had flu-like symptoms, but he is recovering, Evans said.

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My Reaction

1.There are almost 1,000 people, in 20 countries, got the swine flu in just only 10 days after the outbreak.

2.Mexico got the most impact from the swine flu. There are more than 500 swine flu cases and 25 deaths.

3.Mexico closed all business for 5 days to stop the swine flu outbreak and this action already damaged Mexico's economy.

4.The United States has more than 200 swine flu cases and 1 death. However, there are about 30,000 people died from the seasonal flu every year in the U.S.

5.Actually the swine flu had occurred since 1918 which killed million of people around the world.

6.People can get infected from working with pig but can’t be contaminate from eating pork.

7.The swine flu caused conflict between Mexico and China. China tried to prevent the virus spreading but Mexico thought it was discriminatory measure.

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ConCluSion

985 swine flu cases were confirmed in 20 countries and more than 25 people died because of infecting the swine flu or H1N1 virus which has been spreading all over the world.

Swine flu, was originated from Mexico, caused by a virus that similar to the regular flu virus that circulates in people every year, but it is strange that this virus typically found only in pigs or in people who have directly contact with pigs. Then it spread from human to human and become the outbreak right now.

The number of swine flu patients may be decline but it may return and increase in the flu season which normally killed 30,000 people in the U.S. every year. Moreover from the swine flu situation, it will cause enormous economic and health damages to many countries especially Mexico.

In just ten days of outbreak, the number of patients and death are raising very fast. Many countries are panic and prepare to deal with this virus. Swine flu doesn’t only caused death and economic suffering but also the conflict between Mexico and China.