Could you have swine flu?

Could you have swine flu?

Health agency looking to get better read on how many infected
The province’s public health agency will launch a major study Friday to get a clearer picture of how many Ontarians have already had Influenza A (H1N1), also known as swine flu, and is recruiting 3,000 volunteers willing to give blood samples.
“It will give us a sense of how widespread H1N1 has been in Ontario,” explained Dr. Michael Gardam, director of infectious disease prevention at the Ontario Agency for Health Protection and Promotion.
About 4,000 Ontarians have tested positive for the swine flu virus through lab tests. But it’s believed this number is just the tip of the iceberg because most people with influenza symptoms do not visit a doctor.
Some people who have contracted H1N1 wouldn’t have even known it because they had no symptoms, said Mount Sinai microbiologist Dr. Allison McGeer.
The results will give public health officials an indication of how many people might get sick in the fall.
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Cases of swine flu among US soldiers in Iraq climb to 67, Iraqi official says
BAGHDAD - There have been 67 confirmed cases of swine flu among American troops in Iraq with dozens more suspected, Iraqi officials said Wednesday, making U.S. soldiers the single largest group in the country to come down with the virus.
American soldiers account for more than two-thirds of Iraq's 96 swine flu cases, according to figures released by the Iraqi Health Ministry, as it presented steps being taken to control the spread of the virus that last week claimed its first fatality in Iraq.
In addition to the soldiers, 23 Iraqis and six foreigners have been diagnosed with the virus, said Dr. Amer al-Khuzai, the deputy health minister. A 21-year-old woman, described in poor health, died in the southern holy city of Najaf where she had been visiting revered Shiite shrines.
All American soldiers diagnosed with swine flu have either recovered or are undergoing treatment, he said, adding that there have been no fatalities among U.S. forces.
The U.S. military confirmed the 67 cases, an increase from the 51 it reported earlier this week. It also said 71 suspected cases were in isolation.
"None have been significantly ill. None have required hospitalization or evacuation," Col. Michael D. Eisenhauer, chief of clinical operations in Iraq, told The Associated Press in an email Wednesday.
Swine flu cases have been diagnosed at six American bases in Iraq, he said.
The military has been giving the ministry weekly updates on the number of cases found on their bases in Iraq, Eisenhauer said in another email to AP this week. "There has not been a sudden outbreak," Eisenhauer said, explaining that the cases have appeared over the last three months since the military began screening for the virus.
In May, 18 soldiers on their way to Iraq were diagnosed with swine flu while in Kuwait, leading to an agreement between Iraq and the U.S. military to share information about the number of confirmed cases.
Troops heading to and from Afghanistan and Iraq are now also screened.
In Afghanistan, 14 U.S. personnel were diagnosed with and treated for swine flu in June at Bagram Air Base, the main U.S. base north of Kabul. In the western Afghan city of Herat, 22 Spanish soldiers were quarantined with suspected cases in July.
The Iraqi Health Ministry said the higher prevalence of the flu in U.S. troops than Iraqis was likely a combination of factors, such as their close living quarters and their travels.
"We think they have this many cases because they come through different countries to come here. They come from the United States. They come from Europe," al-Khuzai said.
Health officials caught 10 cases of swine flu at Baghdad's International Airport during the now routine screenings of arriving travellers, said Dr. Sabah Karkukly, who oversees the ministry's swine flu program.
Two more cases were found in the southern city of Najaf, while three others were appeared in Karbala.


The cases in the south raise concern about Iraq's ability to control the virus' spread among millions of Shiites who regularly visit the shrines in Najaf and Karbala.

Al-Khuzai cautioned Iraqis to avoid crowded places, including religious sites, where the virus can easily be transmitted.
Iraq's Cabinet on Wednesday banned trips to Saudi Arabia's holy city of Mecca during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, during which millions of pilgrims will mingle at the holy sites there.
Iraq also has joined other countries in preventing children, the elderly and the chronically ill from the annual hajj pilgrimage in late November.
The World Health Organization, as of July 31, had tallied more than 162,000 swine flu cases worldwide. It counted at least 1,154 deaths, with more than 1,000 reported in the Americas, according to its Web site.
The Health Ministry also launched a public health campaign using posters, leaflets, television advertisements and radio spots to educate Iraqis about how to prevent transmission of the virus and what to do if they catch swine flu.
Iraq's Cabinet also approved the purchase of $100 million worth of the anti-viral medicine Tamiflu, which is enough for a quarter of Iraq's population, Karkukly said.