WHO confirmed 615 H1N1 swine flu cases - Confirmed cases of swine flu jumped by more than 65 percent Saturday with the World Health Organization reporting 615 people in 15 countries infected with the virus commonly known as swine flu.
The organization had reported 367 cases on Friday. The jump in cases was due to ongoing testing of a backlog of specimens in Mexico, the WHO said.
The most cases were in Mexico, where 397 people were infected and 16 deaths were attributed to the virus, according to the WHO. Next was the United States, which has 141 cases and one death.
"What the increase reflects is that we are moving forward in confirming many of the cases that have been left untested for some time, so in an way that's reassuring," said WHO spokesman Paul Garwood.
"We know that these cases are being dealt with, these specimens are being looked at and assessed, and we're getting more and more info about this virus.
"So we haven't seen, say, a spike in new cases or new influenza cases appearing in Mexico City, for example," Garwood continued. "It's just the fact that this reporting backlog is bearing fruit and we're seeing the results of that."
The latest developments come as parts of Asia discovered they were not immune to the spread of the virus
Hundreds of guests and staff were under quarantine in China on Saturday after health officials determined that a hotel guest had contracted the H1N1 virus.
Nearly 200 hotel guests and 100 staff members were ordered to stay in Metro Park Hotel in Hong Kong for seven days to stop the spread of the H1N1 virus, a government spokesman said. Read more about quarantined hotel guests
The quarantine was ordered after a 25 -year-old Mexican man stayed in the hotel and became sick, according to the spokesman. It is the first confirmed case of the virus in Hong Kong, local medical officials said.
South Korean officials on Saturday confirmed their first case -- a 51-year-old nun who recently traveled to Mexico for volunteer work.
The other countries with confirmed cases are Canada, with 34; Spain and the United Kingdom, which each have 13; Germany and New Zealand, which each have four; Israel, with two; and Austria, China, Denmark, France, the Netherlands, South Korea, and Switzerland, which each have one.
But the border and planes are still open..Bullshit.
MihiLibertas 2 years ago 4
China standing up now, not cowering to Mexican like United States!
tdt1000 2 years ago