MANILA, 20 July 2009, 1600 hrs – Singapore became the latest country in the Western Pacific Region to issue warnings to people at high risk of serious illness from Pandemic (H1N1) 2009, after announcing its first death linked to the virus.
A 49-year-old man with multiple underlying health conditions, who had tested positive to the virus, died on 18 July. The cause of death, according to Singapore’s Ministry of Health, was a heart attack caused by severe pneumonia and underlying Pandemic (H1N1) 2009 infection.
Singapore’s Ministry of Health strongly advised individuals in a high-risk group to seek prompt medical attention if unwell with flu-like symptoms, local media reported. The death brought to 47 the number of fatalities in the Region associated with the virus.
People who may be at high-risk of serious disease from the virus include those with chronic respiratory conditions such as asthma, bronchitis and emphysema, sufferers from cardiac disease, diabetes, or chronic metabolic, renal, neurological or blood conditions, and anyone with an immunosuppressive condition such as cancer or HIV/AIDS. Pregnant women, the morbidly obese, and smokers, may also be at higher risk.
New Zealand’s Ministry of Health, which has reported the deaths of 10 people with the virus, clarified in a media statement that Pandemic (H1N1) 2009 was the primary cause of death in each case. When the cause of death in a person with the virus is unclear, tests will be conducted to determine how that person died, the Ministry said.
As schools resumed around New Zealand after the holiday break, health authorities urged students and teachers to stay home if sick. “If you have flu-like symptoms, stay at home until you are, essentially, well”, said Dr Mark Jacobs, the Director of Public Health.
Last week, Australia and New Zealand urged pregnant women to wash their hands thoroughly after contact with other people, and seek medical care promptly if they develop flu-like symptoms. The warnings followed the hospitalization of several pregnant women with the virus in Australia.
Several countries in the Western Pacific Region have shifted to a mitigation phase in response to Pandemic (H1N1) 2009, and are no longer testing all suspected cases nor reporting new confirmed cases daily. As a result, the actual number of infections in the Region is likely to be significantly higher than official WHO figures.
The Solomon Islands reported its first two confirmed cases in the reporting period to July 20. Australia also reported new cases and now has more than 12 000 cases overall. New infections were also identified in Cambodia, Hong Kong (China), Macao (China), Japan, New Zealand, and Viet Nam.
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