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(Updated 1:54 p.m.) MANILA, Philippines – The first ever Filipino victim of the dreaded Influenza A(H1N1) virus is doing well, but health authorities have said they would observe the 17 people the patient had close contact with.

The patient – a 10-year-old girl who arrived last May 18 after traveling to the United States and Canada – is being quarantined in a facility the Department of Health (DOH) wouldn't disclose in the mean time.

In press conference in Manila on Friday, Health Undersecretary Mario Villaverde said among the 17 people the young girl had been in close contact with were members of her family.

The girl's mother was among the first people in the household to undergo testing. The result was negative.

“Negative siya, that's the good news. And since negative ang mother and we hope that since the mother is the closest in contact sana wala nang ibang na-infect [She tested negative. That's the good news. Since she tested negative and she's the closest contact, we hope no one else was infected]," Villaverde said.

Fifth of world down with the flu; over 400 people sickened each day

A fifth of the world – 41 countries out of 195 – has been stricken with the deadly Influenza A(H1N1) virus that sickened 11,034 people with 85 who died in Mexico, United States, Canada, and Costa Rica, data from the World Health Organization (WHO) showed.

The latest total number of cases (11,034) contained in WHO’s Update 35 released on May 21 is a 44,036 percent jump from the 25 cases that the organization first reported on April 24, based on GMANews.TV’s computation.

This means that about 408 people contract the disease each day in the last 27 days since the WHO first came out with its report about the outbreak.

Also based on GMANews.TV’s computation, the WHO’s May 21 report showed that 95 percent of the cases or 10,454 are in the Americas; 2.6 percent or 286 are in Europe; 2.5 percent or 275 are in Asia and less than 1 percent each are in Oceania with 12 cases and the Middle East with seven cases. Continue reading...
The official said they have already obtained a copy of the flight’s manifest, and have begun tracking down the other passengers who had been in close contact with the girl.

Meanwhile, the crewmen in the girl’s flight had also been advised to subject themselves under self-quarantine.

After arriving home from the airport, the girl came in close contact with the people in the household. The next day, she developed a fever.

After confirming that the girl carried the deadly novel virus, the DOH conducted contact tracing and eventually found out who were in danger of possibly contracting the disease – that had already downed more than 11,000 people globally.

Doctors required the mother to take medicine and undergo a prophylaxis, as she was the one watching her daughter while in quarantine.

"We are conducting a thorough assessment today of all the household contacts. Ginagawa na namin ang lahat ng dapat magawa [We are doing everything that needs to be done]," Villaverde assured.

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said if the girl’s health indicators continue to improve further, she could be discharged within five days.

The Health official stressed that despite the global outbreak and the virus reaching the Philippines, the DOH sees no reason why a travel ban should be ordered.

Nevertheless, health authorities reiterated their advice to defer unimportant out of the country travels.

1 million capsules

President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo has already directed not only the Health department but all concerned agencies to coordinate with each other to intensify the campaign against the virus.

Mrs. Arroyo had earlier said in case the need arises, the government is prepared to distribute one million capsules of Tamiflu – a famous brand of oseltamivir which is an anti-viral drug ingested to fight off Influenzas A and B.

The President also said that information materials have already been prepared for distribution to various provinces.

Mrs. Arroyo, who is currently attending a fiesta in her home province of Pampanga, reminded Filipinos to continue praying for the safety of the country.

No RP patients yet in Canada

In Canada, Philippine consul general Morales Prado assured that no Filipino has yet been stricken by the deadly virus, despite the ballooning number of cases of flu infection which is currently pegged at 719. (See: WHO map of the spread of A(H1N1) virus.)

Prado was quoted in a radio report as saying that of the 117 cases in Vancouver - where his office is situated – no Filipinos have been reported to have contracted the illness.

The official said that Philippine Ambassador to Canada Jose Brillantes has been in close coordination with Canadian officials in laying out a more efficient information campaign against the A(H1N1) virus.

According to its latest update (Update 35), the World Health Organization (WHO) has so far recorded 11,034 confirmed cases of A(H1N1) infection in 41 countries. The WHO has yet to include the Philippines in its official tally.

The virus – a new mix of swine, North American bird, and human influenza strains – has already caused 85 deaths among people, 75 of which happened in the epicenter, Mexico.

The United States of America continues to record the highest number of confirmed cases with 5,710. – GMANews.TV



source:http://www.gmanews.tv/story/162388/1st-Pinoy-A(H1N1)-victim-had-contact-with-17-people---DOH