Britons Held At Gunpoint In Egypt Over Flu

A British family have told of their holiday hell after being held in quarantine by armed guards amid swine flu panic in Egypt.

Stewart Harbut, his pregnant wife Sasha and their four young children claim they were “pinned down” at Sharm el Sheikh International Hospital while doctors forced them to give swabs.

The family – who spent £6,000 on the First Choice break – had earlier been bundled into the back of van and driven from Sharm el Sheikh airport to the hospital with a full police escort.

When Mr Harbut, an engineer, tried to leave the hospital after being kept in a “filthy” isolation unit overnight, he was confronted by three armed guards who blocked his way.

Tests eventually confirmed that none of the family had the infection.

Speaking from their Red Sea resort hotel after being “released” Mr Harbut, 37, said he had been treated like a drug smuggler.

He said travellers should be warned about the level of panic in Egypt, a country which plans to kill all of its 300,000 pigs, against World Health Organisation advice.

He told Sky News Online he believed the family may have been singled out because they had stamps on their passports from a holiday in Mexico six months previously.

“We landed at the airport and were queueing up with the rest of the holidaymakers, looking forward to the break,” Mr Harbut said.

“All of a sudden we were surrounded by armed guards and police – there must have been about 30.

“All the kids were crying, my wife was crying and I could not believe it.

“It felt like something out of a drug-smuggling film. There were guns everywhere and we were bundled into the back of a van.

“The sirens were going and it felt like we were going at 100mph. The children were hysterical.”

Mr Harbut said he was promised the family would be out of hospital in a couple of hours but instead they were held in a dusty room with just five beds.

“The kids were pinned down and instruments were put down their throats. The Egyptians were in a complete panic.”

By lunchtime Mr Harbut, from Southampton, had had enough and tried to “escape” the isolation unit with Sasha and the four children – Echo, two, Lennon, five, Nikita, seven and Nathaniel, eight.

“There was absolutely no way out – there were large iron gates slammed shut at the front of the hospital and as I walked towards them three armed guards came towards me holding their guns.”

The family were only allowed out of the hospital after all of the tests were confirmed as negative, nearly 24 hours after landing in the country.

The family is keen for the Government and First Choice to warn travellers about the panic sweeping Egypt.

“This was absolute hell – we’re just hoping that the kids aren’t too traumatised,” Mr Harbut added.

Violence has erupted in Egypt as farmers tried to prevent the cull of their pigs.

On Saturday, health officials began the slaughter in earnest, moving in on a Cairo slum where rubbish collectors are said to keep around 60,000 pigs.

U.S. Health Officials Troubled By New Flu Pattern

The new influenza strain circulating around most of the United States is putting a worrying number of young adults and children into the hospital and hitting more schools than usual, U.S. health officials said on Monday.

The H1N1 swine flu virus killed a vice principal at a New York City school over the weekend and has spread to 48 states. While it appears to be mild, it is affecting a disproportionate number of children, teenagers and young adults.

This includes people needing hospitalization — now up to 200, said Dr. Anne Schuchat of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“That’s very unusual, to have so many people under 20 to require hospitalization, and some of them in (intensive care units),” Schuchat told reporters in a telephone briefing.

“We are now experiencing levels of influenza-like illness that are higher than usual for this time of year,” Schuchat added. “We are also seeing outbreaks in schools, which is extremely unusual for this time of year.”

New York City Health Commissioner Dr. Thomas Frieden agreed with Schuchat.

“We’re seeing increasing numbers of people going to emergency departments saying they have fever and flu, particularly young people in the 5 to 17 age group, ” Frieden, who has been named by U.S. President Barack Obama as the new CDC director, told a news conference.

About half of all cases of influenza are being diagnosed as the new H1N1 strain, while the rest are influenza B, or the seasonal H1N1 and H3N2 strains. Flu season in the United States is usually almost over by May.

CDC officials say around 100,000 people are likely infected with the new flu strain in the United States and Schuchat said the 5,123 confirmed and probable cases and six deaths in the United States were “the tip of the iceberg.”

MORE ILLNESS OVERALL

“We are seeing more reports of influenza-like illness from outpatient visits that we monitor than is typical for this time of year,” Schuchat said.

Because doctors usually treat symptoms and only occasionally give flu tests to patients, the CDC must monitor reports of symptoms such as fever, cough and muscle aches to track flu activity. Some centers are doing actual influenza tests to confirm the patterns that are seen.

Influenza is a factor in 36,000 deaths a year in the United States and 250,000 to 500,000 deaths globally, the CDC says.

“Unlike the seasonal flu, we are seeing relatively few cases or hospitalizations in people over 65,” Schuchat said. Usually flu kills the elderly and people with chronic diseases.

There is no evidence that a second, bacterial infection is worsening the H1N1 cases, Schuchat said.

When family members are questioned, it seems clear that children and teens are more prone to infection than older adults, Schuchat said. “People under 18 are more likely to have infections when another person in the family is infected,” she said.

“One of our working hypotheses is that older adults may have some pre-existing protection against this virus due to their exposure long ago to some virus that may be distantly related,” Schuchat said.

An alternative hypothesis is that it just has not had a chance to make its way into the older population yet.

New Swine Flu Cases Confirmed

Two more people in England have been confirmed with swine flu, the Health Protection Agency said.

The new cases, together with the three in Scotland announced on Friday, take the total number of confirmed cases in the UK to 87.

The latest patients to be confirmed with the virus are both adults, one who recently returned from travelling and another whose source of infection is yet to be established.

One is from the South East and the other from the East of England.

The latest cases come after the Foreign Office told British travellers they should feel free to go to Mexico after a fall in the number of new swine flu cases.

Holiday makers and business travellers had been advised against all non-essential travel to the country, but the Foreign Office changed its guidance on Friday night.

A spokesman said: “This change follows a decline in new cases of swine flu reported in Mexico since a peak on April 26 and takes into account information and advice from a variety of sources, including the UK Health Protection Agency.”

Swine Flu Cases Pass 100

The number of people confirmed with swine flu in the UK has passed the 100 mark.

The Health Protection Agency (HPA) said 14 more cases have been diagnosed, bringing the total to 101.

Six adults and eight children were among the latest cases in London, the South East and the East of England.

A total of 11 of the latest cases involved patients who were contacts of previously confirmed cases, while two were returning travellers.

The source of infection for the other person remains under investigation, according to the HPA.

The latest cases follow updated advice from the Foreign Office telling British travellers they should feel free to go to Mexico after a fall in the number of new swine flu cases

WHO Meets On Production Of Swine Flu Vaccine

As swine flu cases topped 6,600 worldwide, vaccine makers and other experts met Thursday at the World Health Organization to discuss the tough decisions that must be made quickly to fight the evolving virus.

Pharmaceutical companies are ready to begin making a swine flu vaccine — but as the virus may mutate, questions abound: How much should be produced? How will it be distributed? Who should get it?

The expert group’s recommendations will be passed to WHO Director-General Margaret Chan, who is expected to issue advice to vaccine manufacturers and the World Health Assembly next week.

WHO’s flu chief said the meeting of industry representatives and independent experts sought to answer questions including when to recommend to manufacturers that they switch from a seasonal vaccine to one that works against the pandemic strain.

“No big decisions, no announcements,” Keiji Fukuda told reporters after the meeting. “These are enormously complicated questions, and they are not something that anyone can make in a single meeting.”

But some feel the main decision has already been made.

“It’s a foregone conclusion,” said David Fedson, a vaccines expert and former professor of medicine at the University of Virginia. “If we don’t invest in an H1N1 (swine flu) vaccine, then possibly we could have a reappearance of this virus in a mild, moderate, or catastrophic form and we would have absolutely nothing.”

Most flu vaccine companies can only make one vaccine at a time: seasonal flu vaccine or pandemic vaccine. Production takes months and it is impossible to switch halfway through if health officials make a mistake.

Vaccine makers can make limited amounts of both seasonal flu vaccine and pandemic vaccine — though not at the same time — but they cannot make massive quantities of both because that exceeds manufacturing capacity.

“What is really going to be wrestled with is that seasonal influenza itself has a significant impact on people,” said Fukuda. “This is an infection which is estimated to kill some hundreds of thousands of people each year around the world, so there is a real trade-off if you just say we’re going to stop making that vaccine.”

At the moment, health officials aren’t sure how deadly swine flu is, and whether they will need more seasonal flu vaccine or swine flu vaccine. And if the swine flu mutates, scientists aren’t sure how effective a vaccine made now from the current strain will remain.

WHO estimates that up to 2 billion doses of swine flu vaccine could be produced every year, though the first batches wouldn’t be available for four to six months.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is currently working on a “seed stock” to make the vaccine, which should be ready in the next couple of weeks. That will be distributed to manufacturers worldwide so they can start producing the vaccine.

Until vaccine manufacturers get the seed stock, they won’t know how many doses of vaccine they can make or how long that would take. Sanofi Pasteur, the world’s biggest vaccine producer, said Thursday it is waiting for the green light from WHO before it starts making swine flu vaccine.

WHO is also negotiating with vaccine producers like GlaxoSmithKline PLC to save some of their swine flu vaccine for poorer nations. Many rich nations like Britain, Canada, Denmark, France, Switzerland and the United States signed deals with vaccine makers years ago to guarantee them pandemic vaccines as soon as they’re available.

As of Thursday, at least 33 countries reported more than 6,600 cases of swine flu worldwide, with 70 deaths. The figures are based on tallies provided by national governments and WHO. According to the global body’s pandemic alert level, the world is at phase 5 — out of a possible 6 — meaning that a global outbreak is “imminent.”

“It’s a no-brainer,” Fedson said of the decision to make swine flu vaccine. “All that’s being discussed now is the details of how to make sure you have enough seasonal flu vaccine and the logistics of making the switch to H1N1 vaccine production.”

While the vaccine question hangs in the air, WHO has given Indian pharmaceuticals giant Cipla the medical go-ahead to produce a generic version of the anti-viral medication Tamiflu. The drug, also known as oseltamivir, is one of two anti-virals shown to work against swine flu.

WHO said Cipla’s generic version was as effective as the original made by Swiss firm Roche Holding AG and would hopefully make the drug more accessible to poor countries.

North America has been the hardest-hit continent. The United States has reported 3,352 laboratory-confirmed cases of swine flu, including four deaths. Arizona officials reported Thursday the latest case, a woman in her late 40s who died last week from what appeared to be complications from the illness.

On Thursday, New York City closed three schools in response to a swine flu outbreak that has left an assistant principal in critical condition and sent hundreds of kids home with flu symptoms, in a flare-up of the virus that sent shock waves through the world last month.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg said that four students and the assistant principal have documented cases of swine flu at a Queens middle school.

Mexico has 2,656 cases and 64 deaths, while Canada has 389 cases with one death, according to WHO figures.

Mexico confirmed 374 more cases Thursday including four more deaths, but Health Secretary Jose Angel Cordova said the new cases show the virus is appearing less deadly. Mexico’s swine flu deaths now represent 2.4 percent of its confirmed cases, he said.

Spain and Britain have the most cases in Europe, at 100 and 78 respectively.

In Central America, Costa Rica has eight cases and one death and Panama has 29 cases.

Officials Say US Deaths Expected From Swine Flu

NEW YORK – The global swine flu outbreak worsened Tuesday as authorities said hundreds of students at a New York school have fallen ill and federal officials said they expected to see U.S. deaths from the virus. Cuba suspended flights to and from Mexico, becoming the first country to impose a travel ban to the epicenter of the epidemic.

The mayor of the capital cracked down further on public life, closing gyms and swimming pools and ordering restaurants to limit service to takeout.

Confirmed cases were reported for the first time as far away as New Zealand and Israel, joining the United States, Canada, Britain andSpain.

Swine flu is believed to have killed more than 150 people in Mexico, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the U.S. has 68 confirmed cases in five states, with 45 in New York, one in Ohio, one in Indiana, two in Kansas, six in Texas and 13 in California.

“I fully expect we will see deaths from this infection,” said Richard Besser, acting director of the CDC.

That was echoed by Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano.

“It is very likely that we will see more serious presentations of illness and some deaths as we go through this flu cycle,” she said.

President Barack Obama asked Congress for $1.5 billion in emergency funds to fight the illness.

In New York, there were growing signs that the virus was moving beyond St. Francis Preparatory school, where sick students started lining up last week at the nurse’s office. The outbreak came just days after a group of students returned from spring break in Cancun.

At the 2,700-student school, the largest Roman Catholic high school in the nation, “many hundreds of students were ill with symptoms that are most likely swine flu,” said Health Commissioner Thomas Frieden. The cases haven’t been confirmed.

Twelve teachers reported flu-like symptoms as well, said the principal, Brother Leonard Conway.

A nearby public school for special education students was shut down after more than 80 students called in sick. Frieden said that some of the students have siblings at St. Francis.

“It is here and it is spreading,” Frieden said.

Some of the New York students who tested positive for swine flu after a trip to Mexico passed it on to others who had not traveled — a significant fact because it suggests the strain suspected in dozens of deaths inMexico can also spread through communities in other countries, said Keiji Fukuda, assistant director-general of the World Health Organization.

“There is definitely the possibility that this virus can establish that kind of community wide outbreak capacity in multiple countries, and it’s something we’re looking for very closely,” Fukuda said. So-called “community” transmissions are a key test for gauging whether the spread of the virus has reached pandemic proportions.

Fukuda warned, however, against jumping to the conclusion that the virus has become firmly established in the United States.

Still, U.S. officials stressed there was no need for panic and noted that flu outbreaks are quite common every year. The CDC estimates about 36,000 people in the U.S. died of flu-related causes each year, on average, in the 1990s.

The increase in cases was not surprising. For days, CDC officials said they expected to see more confirmed cases — and more severe illnesses. Health officials nationwide stepped up efforts to look for symptoms, especially among people who had traveled to Mexico.

Scientists hope to have a key ingredient for a vaccine ready in early May, but it still will take a few months before any shots are available for the first required safety testing. Using samples of the flu taken from people who fell ill in Mexico and the U.S., scientists are engineering a strain that could trigger the immune system without causing illness.

“We’re about a third of the way” to that goal, said Dr. Ruben Donis of the CDC.

The economic toll also spread. Officials said Mexico City is losing $57 million a day amid a shutdown that includes schools, state-run theaters and other public places.

Cuba announced a 48-hour ban on flights to and from Mexico, except in “exceptional cases.” The last flight from Mexico touched down in Havana around 4 p.m., then returned to Mexico City with passengers before the two-day suspension officially began.

The U.S. stepped up checks of people entering the country and warned Americans to avoid nonessential travel to Mexico. Canada, Israel and France issued similar travel advisories.

For all the government intervention, health officials suggested that efforts to contain the flu strain might prove ineffective. Around the world, officials hoped the outbreak would not turn into a full-fledged pandemic, an epidemic that spreads across a wide geographical area.

“Border controls do not work. Travel restrictions do not work,” said WHO spokesman Gregory Hartl, recalling the SARS epidemic earlier in the decade that killed 774 people, mostly in Asia, and slowed the global economy.

The pork industry was dealing with a public relations nightmare over the virus, which is a never-before-seen hybrid of human, swine and bird influenza that is widely called swine flu.

Public health officials have said people cannot get sick from eating pork, but some countries, such as China, Russia and Ukraine, have banned imports from Mexico and parts of the U.S.

U.S. officials said they may abandon the term “swine flu” for fear of confusing people into thinking they could catch it from eating pork.

“It’s killing our markets,” said Francis Gilmore, 72, who runs a 600-hog operation in Perry, Iowa, outside Des Moines, and worries his small business could be ruined by the crisis. “Where they got the name, I just don’t know.”

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a state of emergency to help California agencies coordinate efforts in response to the outbreak. He cautioned, however, that “there is no need for alarm.”

In New York, the city called on the CDC for additional resources to investigate the outbreak at St. FrancisPrep.

About 1,500 students replied to surveys sent out by the health department about the outbreak, helping the city get a better sense of how the virus is spreading. Some students have complained of sudden nausea; others dealt with high fever, sore throats, coughs and aches.

Rachel Mele and her mother, Linda, were relieved when the 16-year-old’s fever broke Tuesday for the first time in five days. It had been hovering around 101.

The family could finally breathe easy — a relief after a terrifying night Thursday in which Mele’s parents bundled her into the car and rushed her to the hospital when they realized she was having trouble breathing.

“I could barely even catch my breath. I’ve never felt a pain like that before,” Mele said. “My throat, it was burning, like, it was the worst burning sensation I ever got before. I couldn’t even swallow. I couldn’t even let up air. I could barely breathe through my mouth.”

Global Swine Flu Cases Pass 5,000

China ramped up efforts to contain swine flu and awaited confirmation Wednesday of a second suspected case on the mainland, as the number of infections worldwide soared past the 5,000 mark.

State news agency Xinhua said a man was under treatment in eastern China’s Shandong province where he had arrived by train after flying to Beijing from Canada.

China has already isolated 349 people, including foreigners, who travelled with the mainland’s first swine flu case.

However this second case raises the prospect of hundreds more having to be traced and quarantined — a hugely complex task in the world’s most populous nation.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) said Tuesday more than 5,250 cases had been reported in 30 nations, around half of them — including three deaths — in the United States.

More than 2,000 other cases are in Mexico, the origin of the outbreak where the WHO has confirmed 56 fatalities and national authorities reported a further two.

Cuba, Finland and Thailand reported their first cases Tuesday while Canada said the virus, officially known as influenza A(H1N1), had reached the Yukon Territory in its far north, which traverses the Arctic Circle.

China has ordered heightened nationwide flu vigilance and urged anyone who travelled on the train or plane with the second suspected case to report in.

The 19-year-old student boarded the train to Jinan despite having a strong fever, the health ministry said, and alerted local authorities who picked him up on arrival.

Earlier, an official with the Beijing municipal health authority told AFP 78 foreigners were among those quarantined at a hotel in the capital for seven days.

“We are faced with even more serious challenges now,” Vice Health Minister Ma Xiaowei was quoted as saying by Xinhua news agency.

Mexico began pumping one billion dollars of emergency cash into its economy as officials there revealed tourist cancellations had forced 25 hotels in and around the resort of Cancun to close.

Health Minister Jose Angel Cordova said the epidemic in Mexico appeared to be waning. “Tourist destinations are safe in Mexico, people can return calmly, we are carrying out intensive checks,” he added.

However, a report by a WHO pandemic assessment team estimates 23,000 people were infected in Mexico, while US officials said their numbers were also just the tip of the iceberg.

Most of the cases have been treatable with antiviral drugs, and Swiss drugs giant Roche said it was donating 5.65 million treatment courses of Tamiflu — although a WHO expert said the virus was developing resistance.

Meanwhile, four countries — Ecuador, Honduras, Kazakhstan and the United Arab Emirates — lifted restrictions on Mexican pork imports applied after the outbreak of A(H1N1), Mexico’s economy ministry said Tuesday.

China and Russia are among others to have suspended pork imports from some swine flu-affected nations, although the WHO and others say there is no evidence the meat is a source of infection.

The Japanese women’s football team cancelled three friendly matches in the United States and Canada because of swine flu fears.

On a brighter note, a 25-year-old Spanish woman recovering from flu — it was not immediately clear what strain she contracted — emerged from her sick bed to claim a record 126 million euros (172 million dollars) in a lottery.

Swine Flu A Global Wake Up Call

The recent emergence of H1N1 “swine” flu is a powerful wake-up call to the health challenges ahead, reminding us of the important roles prevention and public health preparedness play in mitigating the spread of disease and in promoting good health. So far, 30 countries across five continents have reported cases of H1N1 infection. In the United States alone, as of May 12, more than 2,600 cases in 44 states (including the Washington D.C. metropolitan area) and three deaths have now been confirmed. The U.S. government has declared the H1N1 flu a “public health emergency” while the World Health Organization (WHO) echoed this assessment, raising its pandemic flu alert level to Phase 5 (its second-highest level), sending “a strong signal [to the world] that a pandemic is imminent.”

A pandemic is a massive, prolonged, and widespread disease outbreak on the global level. More specifically, an influenza pandemic occurs when a new influenza A virus emerges for which there is little or no immunity in the human population, causing serious illness and then spreading easily from person-to-person.

Historically, disease outbreaks affect many sectors of society; in the case of the H1N1 flu, world leaders fear that a pandemic could derail global economic recovery. Within a few days of the outbreak, public speculation caused crude oil, industrial metals, and hog futures to drop and sent stock markets tumbling. The H1N1 flu has also negatively impacted education, transportation, commerce, and tourism, causing school closings and flight cancellations. The rapid spread of cases of this flu and its widespread impact on society underscores that in today’s era of globalization, an infectious disease is not only a jet plane away but also capable of threatening the health of economies worldwide.

The ripple effects that infectious disease outbreaks have on societies are not new. These illnesses are major killers of humans and have been decisive shapers of history. For instance, one of the most catastrophic infectious disease outbreaks ever was the 1918-1919 Spanish influenza pandemic that infected one fifth of the world’s population and killed an estimated 20-50 million people globally. Even the milder influenza pandemics of 1957 and 1968 collectively claimed over 100,000 lives. What is new, however, is the unprecedented disruptive potential that infectious diseases have in an ever more interconnected world. Since the 1960s, the WHO has documented 40 new or re-emerging infectious diseases including this H1N1 flu strain, AIDS, Lyme Disease, SARS, and the H5N1 avian flu. The world has not seen a disease explosion of this magnitude since the Industrial Revolution. These diseases usually originate where animals and humans live in close proximity and are exacerbated by rapid population growth, international travel and trade, urban crowding, poverty, climate changes, and lack of access to healthcare.

Stemming the spread of the H1N1 flu outbreak and effectively responding to emerging infectious diseases in the future hinges upon three essential pillars of public health: 1) prevention and preparation, 2) surveillance and detection, and 3) response and containment. These steps for flu outbreaks are detailed in the Pandemic Preparedness Plans developed by the WHO and the U.S. government in recent years. Fortunately, advances in the scientific understanding and detection of infectious illnesses, the establishment and effective deployment of stockpiles of medications and supplies, the development of a test kit to detect the presence of H1N1 that has been shipped to all 50 states and other countries, and the enhancement of global networks for surveillance have better equipped health professionals and policy makers to respond to emerging diseases. Likewise, improved and coordinated communication messages and technological innovations that allow instant communication through e-mail alerts, podcasts, news feeds, and even “tweets” from Twitter have expedited the rapid and wide dissemination of information.

As health experts prepare and respond to the current flu outbreak, the public also has a critical role to play. Individuals should practice good hygiene by washing their hands often, covering coughs and sneezes, staying home if they are sick, and marking their calendars to get vaccinated for seasonal flu this coming winter. People are often surprised to learn that seasonal flu every year causes approximately 36,000 deaths in the U.S. and 250,000-300,000 worldwide. While laboratory analysis indicates that the currently available seasonal flu vaccine does not appear likely to confer significant immunity against the 2009 H1N1 virus, annual flu immunizations will save a significant number of the 36,000 lives lost in our country to seasonal flu every year, prevent suffering, and boost productivity.

While nations are better prepared for infectious disease outbreaks than ever before as evidenced by the rapid global response to the H1N1 flu, much remains to be done. Many developing countries, where new diseases (including strains of influenza) often originate, have inadequate public health infrastructure and are limited in their ability to respond because they lack sufficient surveillance capabilities, early warning systems, laboratories, and a robust health workforce. Moreover, even in the U.S. today, vaccines are still being made using inefficient techniques from the 1960s. Based on current methods using eggs from chickens, and with many manufacturing facilities located overseas, it could take many months to create a safe, effective vaccine for the H1N1 flu and years to produce enough vaccine to meet global demand.

Other issues that can impede an effective response in the U.S. include separate federal and state authorities, lack of sufficient surge capacity in emergency rooms and hospitals, scarce preparedness resources at the state and local level, and inadequate investments in public health infrastructure. Furthermore, despite the documented power of public health interventions to prevent and control disease outbreaks, only 1-3 % of US health expenditures are spent on prevention, a percentage that is unchanged since the 1930s. Additionally, the 47 million Americans who lack health insurance experience difficulty accessing and receiving care. This results in missed opportunities for early diagnosis and treatment of infectious illnesses such as the flu, which can lead to poorer health outcomes and the inadvertent spread of disease.

Looking forward, it is critical to marry the public health lessons of the past with new advances from science and medicine. Vigilance against infectious diseases requires a commitment from all nations to invest a significant portion of their health budgets on disease prevention and preparedness, to strengthen both national and global public health infrastructure, and to develop coordinated strategies for disease response that crosses sectors, agencies, and countries. Additionally, every business and community should be prepared. Taking these steps will pay a dual dividend to prevent and protect against this flu outbreak as well as other disease threats that face us today and those that will invariably emerge in the future. One adage remains certain: complacency is the enemy of preparedness.

Listed below are some steps that individuals, businesses and communities can take to improve health: 

For Individuals:

• Practice good hygiene:
  • Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze. Using alcohol-based hand cleaners is also an effective alternative.
  • Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze and dispose of them afterwards. If tissues are not immediately available, use the crook of your arm.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs spread this way.
• Try to avoid contact with sick people.
• If you get sick, stay at home and limit contact with others.
• Be alert to your symptoms and get help. H1N1 flu symptoms include fever, body aches, sore throat, cough, runny nose, lethargy and some cases, vomiting and diarrhea. If you exhibit any of these symptoms, seek medical attention immediately
• Develop an emergency plan for your family including having supplies at home such as food and medical supplies.

For Businesses and Communities:

• Develop preparedness plans as you would for other public health emergencies.
• Participate and promote public health efforts in your state and community.
• Talk with your local public health officials and health care providers; they can supply information about the signs and symptoms of a specific disease outbreak.
• Implement prevention and control actions recommended by your public health officials and health care providers.
• Adopt business/school practices that encourage sick employees/students to stay home.
• Anticipate how to function with a significant portion of the workforce/school population absent due to illness or caring for ill family members such as telecommuting.
• Provide current and updated health information for your employees.

UK Swine Flu Infections Rise To 65

Ten new cases of swine flu have been confirmed by health officials in England, taking the total number of UK infections to 65.

The Health Protection Agency says another seven adults and three children have contracted the disease.

The news came as four schools reopened in time for the crucial exams season after being closed when pupils became infected.

Three of them – Alleyn’s School in Dulwich, southeast London, Paignton Community and Sports College in Devon, and Downend School in Gloucestershire – are secondary schools with pupils sitting GCSEs and A-levels.

The Dolphin School, a private prep school in Battersea, southwest London, has also resumed classes.

But another school, the independent Hampton School in southwest London, has announced it is closing for a week from Monday.

One of its first-year pupils has been diagnosed with influenza A. The case has not yet been confirmed as swine flu but further tests are being carried out.

On Sunday, officials said medical experts were investigating 384 suspected cases of swine flu.

A Department of Health spokeswoman said: “So far, all infections in the UK have been mild, and cases have been diagnosed and treated early.

“This reduces the severity of symptoms, and helps to limit the spread.

“But we must not be complacent – it is right to prepare for the possibility of a global pandemic. The UK’s arrangements are continuing to ensure that we are well-placed to deal with this new infection.”

Can Masks Help Stop Flu Spread?

One of the abiding images of the swine flu outbreak is the pictures from Mexico of people wandering the streets wearing masks.

And as the disease has spread from country to country, reports have emerged of people purchasing all sorts of products on the internet.

But while the scramble is understandable, experts are sceptical about just how useful they are.

Professor John Oxford, a virologist at leading London hospital, The Barts and the London, said: “Really, there is very little evidence that masks actually offer much protection against flu.

“I think handing them out to the public as has happened in Mexico just destroys confidence.”

Health staff

It is these sorts of issues that has prompted officials from groups such as the World Health Organization and England’s Health Protection Agency to steer clear of calling for them for general public use.

While Mexico has handed them out to members of the public, most other countries, including the UK, are just reserving them for health staff.

Others, such as Belgium, have bought some for flu patients, while several, including Spain, have handed them out to passengers on planes returning from affected areas.

It is believed there are enough masks for half the NHS workforce, but officials are already in discussion with suppliers about ordering another 30m to help cope if a pandemic develops.

Health workers have been told to wear them, along with special gloves, if they are in contact with potential victims.

Professor Oxford believes this approach is right.

“They are the people who will be most likely to be coming into contact with the virus and the ones who could be passing it on.”

The Department of Health has focused on getting what are known as respirator masks. These have filters, which stop a person breathing in some particles in the air.

They are much more effective than the standard surgical masks or dust masks that are sometimes used by builders.

However, none of the masks can stop 100% of the particles getting through and become less effective once they become moist.

Instead, they are better at stopping the virus getting out.

Spread

Dr Ronald Cutler, deputy director of biomedical science at the University of London, said: “If you sneeze with a mask the virus will be contained so from that point of view if everyone wore them it might stop the spread.

“Or you could get the people with flu wearing them, but by the time they are diagnosed it could be too late.

“And the problem is that when someone sneezes they tend to take a mask off. I think masks give people a false sense of security.

“They are not bio-chemical suits. Masks are obviously just covering one part of the body so your hands and clothes could all have the virus on and when you take them off you will infect yourself.

“However, because people are wearing a mask they will think they are protected and may go into crowded areas.

“The best advice is to wash your hands and cover your mouth when sneezing.”

Gail Lusardi, an infection control specialist at Glamorgan University, agreed.

“Masks alone will not prevent spread of the influenza virus and basic hygiene measures like hand washing, safe use and disposal of tissues and cleaning of environmental surfaces are key to preventing infection transmission.”

She also said it was important they were correctly fitted – some of the more expensive respirator masks are molded to fit the face unlike standard masks that can be bought on the high street.

And she added: “A mask can be worn continuously for up to eight to 10 hours, but must be replaced if it is taken off at any stage.”