Prince George, B.C. - One of the cases of confirmed “swine flu” in B.C. is within the Northern Health Authority boundaries.  The case is in Prince George, and the person  is suffering with mild illness and is said to be recovering.

 

Dr.  Danuta Skowronski, epidemiology lead-influenza and respiratory illness with the BC Centre for Disease Control  says there are now eleven confirmed cases of this strain of flu in B.C.   That is up from 6 confirmed cases reported yesterday. The new cases involve three young adults, and two children (one under 5, the other child 10-15 years of age). So far, all but one of the eleven cases involved people who had recently returned from Mexico.   All of the cases are said to be mild, and only one required an overnight stay in hospital. “That person has been discharged and is recovering.”

 

Dr. Skowronski says while the cases all seem to be mild, that is not to say this is not serious. “We expect to see more person to person spread cases that are not direct travel related.” She says it is important that all of us practice basic common procedures that will reduce the spread of the illness “Washing hands, and certainly if you are feeling feverish or have a serious cough, you should stay at home. If you think you have this flu and want to see your Doctor, please call ahead so the office can take the proper precautions, if you plan to go to the hospital, again, please call ahead so they too can take proper precautions.”

 

Nationally there are 30 cases in Canada,  in the United States there are 109 cases, and worldwide (outside Mexico) there are 257 cases in eleven countries.