Swine Flu Slowing Worldwide
Posted on: Saturday, 14 November 2009, 06:45 CST
The worst may be behind us for swine flu outbreaks, according to new reports from the World Health Organization on Friday.
The global death toll is slowing, although 6,250 people have died since the onset of the pandemic, AFP accounted.
In the week of November 8, the number of deaths from A(H1N1) increased about 179, while there were 224 a week prior and a significant leap of about 700 in the last week of October.
The pandemic has affected 206 countries or territories globally, the WHO stated on its website.
The influenza season marked signs of peaking in North America, but Europe and Central and Eastern Asia show signs the pandemic is intensifying, the UN health agency said.
"Very intense and increasing influenza activity continues to be reported in Mongolia with a severe impact on the health care system," it added.
However, the WHO investigated the sudden surge in flu cases in the Ukraine and discovered no indications that the swine flu virus was becoming stronger.
"The initial analysis of information indicates that the numbers of severe cases do not appear to be excessive when compared to the experience of other countries and do not represent any change in the transmission or virulence of the virus," the statement said.
The Americas have experienced the largest number of deaths since the onset of the pandemic virus in April, 4,512 in Mexico and the United States.
In Europe, deaths tolls remained stable at least 300, with signs of peaking in parts of Britain, Ireland and Iceland.
Cases have been reported in recent weeks in Israel and Afghanistan, with sharp increase of incidence in several western and southern Asian nations. China and Japan are experiencing growing numbers as well.
The pandemic flu is diminishing in most of south and southeast Asia and in the southern hemisphere as they begin their warmer months.
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Source: RedOrbit Staff & Wire Reports
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User Comments (4)
| 4. |
Posted by swineflu on 11/20/2009, 09:26 did this take in consideration that some countries (US, Brazil...) are not required to update the death toll on a weekly basis because of they \"can\'t keep up the count\"... |
| 3. |
Posted by mthrndr on 11/16/2009, 10:07 The Ukraine case seems to me to be classic panic. 200 dead out of 1 million+ cases is a .02 % death rate. That is significantly lower than even seasonal flu. There is a report from the Express UK that is classic sensationalist journalism. there's no indication, other than the excessive measures taken by Ukrainian leadership -stoking panic in severely impoverished areas- that there is anything abnormal to what's happening there. |
| 2. |
Posted by andre on 11/14/2009, 19:59 Why is the title "Swine Flue Slowing Worldwide" when the article indicates "The influenza season marked signs of peaking in North America, but Europe and Central and Eastern Asia show signs the pandemic is intensifying". Also, in regards to 4000 dead in the US being a "wild estimate", I'm of the mind that it is a SIGNIFICANT under-counting, just as the official number of 14 H1N1-confirmed dead in Ukraine is a ridiculous under-counting of the 300 or so that died during the past ten days. |
| 1. |
Posted by sarah on 11/14/2009, 07:58 it should be mentioned though that the US figure of over 4,000 is a wild estimate. the lab confirmed US swine flu cases is only around 700. sure, this may be underestimated, but probably not to the degree the CDC is claiming. |
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