Update on confirmed swine flu cases
24 May 2009
11 further patients under investigation in England have today been confirmed with swine flu bringing the current total number of confirmed UK cases to 133.
Testing of the swine flu virus is carried out by the Health Protection Agency's laboratories.
The 11 new confirmed cases in England are six adults and five children from the East Midlands region, London, the South East region and the West Midlands region - four are returning travellers and seven are linked to previously confirmed cases.
Region
|
Confirmed new cases 24 May 2009
|
Totalconfirmed cases as 24 May 2009
|
|---|
East of England
|
1
|
12
|
East Midlands
|
–
|
3
|
London
|
4
|
70
|
North East
|
–
|
1
|
North West
|
–
|
6
|
South East
|
2
|
13
|
South West
|
–
|
3
|
West Midlands
|
4
|
11
|
Yorkshire & Humber
|
–
|
–
|
TOTAL ENGLAND
|
11
|
119
|
Northern Ireland
|
–
|
1
|
Scotland
|
–
|
13
|
Wales
|
–
|
–
|
TOTAL UK
|
11
|
133
|
For the bank holiday weekend only confirmed cases are being reported. The publication of the figures for the number of cases that are currently under laboratory investigation in the UK will resume on Tuesday 26 May.
Anyone who is being investigated as a possible case of swine flu (which means they meet the epidemiological criteria and have symptoms) or has been confirmed with the infection will be given antivirals and will be asked to stay at home and limit their contact with other people.
Where antivirals are prescribed, it is important that the specified course of treatment is followed and completed, even though in some cases this medication may cause nausea.
To help us identify cases of swine flu in the community, the Health Protection Agency's Centre for Infections will be continuing its regular surveillance work throughout the summer, at the same pace that is applied during the normal "flu season" (October to May).
In England this surveillance work includes the collection of data from 3,300 GP surgeries across the country, and the testing of patient samples from over 100 surgeries. Information on flu activity is also provided by a network of boarding schools and NHS Direct.
To further enhance our ability to detect cases of swine flu, the HPA is issuing regular guidance to GPs on the testing of possible cases. Plans to increase the number of surgeries participating in surveillance schemes, and to facilitate more widespread testing in communities where cases of swine flu have been identified, are currently being implemented.
This can be found at:
http://www.hpa.org.uk/web/HPAweb&HPAwebStandard/HPAweb_C/1242949546976