Swine Flu Update, UK

Main Category: Swine Flu
Also Included In: Flu / Cold / SARS;  Respiratory / Asthma;  Public Health
Article Date: 08 Jun 2009 - 5:00 PDT

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On Wednesday 3 June 2009 the situation in the UK was as follows:

1 confirmed case in Wales (a 31 year old male from the Caerphilly local authority area. He has had mild flu symptoms, has been offered antivirals and is recovering at home).

- 0 probable cases in Wales.

- 103 people have been under investigation in Wales. Of these, swine flu has been confirmed in one case (see above) and ruled out in 93 cases, leaving nine still under investigation. All of these are displaying, or have displayed, mild symptoms.

- Of the nine people under investigation, six were well when first identified, but reported recent flu-like symptoms following travel to affected areas. Blood tests are being undertaken on these individuals to see if they had the flu and to help the NPHS understand the pattern of the disease from the past. Their symptoms may or may not have been due to swine flu. Testing will be conducted in a number of weeks to check whether these people did have swine flu - scientifically it won't work before that. Investigations have shown that people they had close contact with did not catch flu from them when they were ill.

- There are now 340 confirmed cases in the UK - one case in Wales, 42 cases in Scotland, 295 cases in England and two in Northern Ireland.

- For the latest international figures for the spread of swine flu, visit the website of the World Health Organization at http://www.who.int

Comment from Welsh Assembly Government and National Public Health Service for Wales

- Chief Medical Officer for Wales, Dr Tony Jewell, said:

"We have made it clear all along that there would be cases in Wales and everyone must continue to be vigilant and try to reduce the spread of the virus.

"It is likely that further cases will continue to emerge and we are continuing to monitor the situation very closely. However, while numbers remain low, our focus continues to be on learning as much as we can about the virus and working to slow its spread.

"Our advice to the public remains the same, people should follow good respiratory and hand hygiene to help prevent the spread of influenza - always using a tissue to catch sneezes, throwing away used tissues where germs can linger and regularly washing your hands, or cleaning them with a sanitising gel.

"Although it is natural for people to feel apprehensive, we would like to reassure the public that we have been working to prepare for the arrival of the virus for many years and have robust procedures in place."

- Dr Roland Salmon, Director of the Communicable Disease Surveillance Centre, National Public Health Service for Wales, said:

"We continue to advise that anyone who has flu-like symptoms and has travelled to one of the affected areas should stay at home and phone their GP or NHS Direct Wales on 0845 46 47.

"People should not go to Accident and Emergency Departments or to their GP surgery without ringing first, as this may risk spreading the infection. It also places undue pressure on the emergency services.

"Although there are indications that this flu is mild, we know that seasonal flu can be severe, particularly for elderly and vulnerable people, so there is still good reason for us all to take action to reduce its effects. Flu is often confused with a bad cold but is in fact far more serious and leads to many deaths each year in Wales.

"The National Public Health Service for Wales will continue to assess any person with flu-like symptoms who has travelled to affected areas."

Public health advice and messages

- If you have returned from an affected area and have flu-like symptoms, stay at home, phone your GP or NHS Direct Wales and you will be assessed and receive treatment if necessary. Do not go into your GP surgery or Accident and Emergency department unless you are advised to do so or are seriously ill, as you may spread the illness to others.

- Further information including health advice can be found at http://www.wales.gov.uk, http://www.nphs.wales.nhs.uk and http://www.hpa.org.uk. You can also call the Swine Flu Information line on 0800 1 513 513 for recorded information, or NHS Direct Wales on 0845 46 47 for health advice.

-- It is always good practice to follow respiratory and hand hygiene such as:

- Covering your nose and mouth when coughing or sneezing, using a tissue when possible.
- Disposing of dirty tissues promptly and carefully.
- Maintaining good basic hygiene, for example washing hands frequently with soap and water to reduce the spread of the virus from your hands to face or to other people.
- Cleaning hard surfaces (e.g. door handles) frequently using a normal cleaning product.
- Helping your children follow this advice.

Facemasks

Although we are aware that facemasks are being given out to the public in Mexico, the available scientific evidence does not support the general wearing of facemasks by those who are not ill whilst going about their normal activities. We are, however, reviewing NHS supplies and stockpiles of facemasks for healthcare workers who are likely to come into regular contact with people who may have symptoms. The UK will receive an additional 227 million surgical facemasks and 34 million respirators. Wales will receive its proportionate share.

Control measures

- Agreements have been signed between the UK Government and vaccine manufacturers to secure supplies of up to 90 million doses of H1N1 vaccine by the autumn. This will not affect the usual seasonal flu vaccination and will be made available to frontline healthcare workers and vulnerable people. Advance purchase arrangements are also in place to buy enough vaccine for the whole population should a pandemic be declared.

- The Welsh Assembly Government's Health Emergency Preparedness Unit has issued guidance to Local Health Boards on anti-viral distribution. The unit is co-ordinating work on identifying appropriate collection points and the necessary arrangements to support this process.

- People who have travelled to affected areas and have flu-like symptoms have been advised to stay at home and call NHS Direct Wales on 0845 4647 or phone their GP for health advice.

- The national Swine Flu Information line - 0800 1 513 513 - provides recorded information. People requiring health advice should contact NHS Direct Wales on 0845 4647.

- The National Public Health Service for Wales has provided advice to port health authorities on arrangements for returning travellers.

Features of the outbreak

- Based on assessment of all available information and following several expert consultations, the World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the level of influenza pandemic alert at phase 5.

- Phase 5 indicates that WHO considers a global pandemic to be imminent. This change is a signal to countries' governments to ramp up their pandemic preparations.

- More investigations and testing are needed to determine the severity of the disease and the ease with which it can spread. These investigations are currently underway with the support of the WHO.

- Testing has shown that the human swine influenza H1N1 can be treated with the antiviral oseltamavir (Tamiflu®) and zanamivir (Relenza®).

- Evidence of sustained person to person spread in Mexico and the USA. Person to person transmission of swine flu has also been confirmed in other countries across the world.

- Further information on Swine Flu and Pandemic Flu is available bilingually from http://www.nphs.wales.nhs.uk

- Further information from the Welsh Assembly Government response is available bilingually at http://www.wales.gov.uk

Source
Welsh Assembly Government