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Parts of UK "near an H1N1 epidemic," 14 dead
Published in Saudi Press Agency on 09 - 07 - 2009


Fourteen Britons who had
contracted H1N1 flu have died and the rapid spread of infection
in two areas of the country is close to epidemic level, Reuters cited health officials as saying today.
The Department of Health (DoH) said Britain now had 9,718
laboratory-confirmed cases, the third most in the world behind
the United States and Mexico.
Britain's Chief Medical Officer Liam Donaldson said the
actual number of cases was likely to be higher.
All 14 who have died had underlying health issues and it was
not clear in how many cases the patients had died as a direct
result of the virus, known as swine flu.
"In London and the West Midlands we are getting pretty close
to epidemic levels. We've seen big surges there," Donaldson told
BBC TV.
"For the country as a whole, the average is about the level
of the flu season but in some parts of the country the levels
are getting pretty big."
The World Health Organisation declared on June 11 that the
outbreak of the virus was a pandemic and more than 94,500 cases
have been reported worldwide.
Health Minister Andy Burnham said last week the government
was projecting more than 100,000 new cases a day of the flu by
the end of August.
While most people who have caught the infection have
suffered mild symptoms, in a small minority it has proven more
severe.
The Department of Health said that 335 people in Britain
were currently in hospital after contracting the infection, with
43 of those described as critical.
Donaldson said there were no signs the virus was becoming
more virulent, although he warned it could mutate.
"It does tend to affect people with underlying illnesses
quite severely and a small number of healthy adults can get the
severe complications of flu but the majority of them get a mild
illness," he said.


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