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12/01/2011
All-Ireland Battle Over Flu Outbreak
There have as yet been no deaths from the latest outbreak of swine flu in the Irish Republic.
As medical services north of the border continued to battle the latest outbreak of swine flu - with 14 lives already lost since November - Ireland's Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan has said that level of influenza infection is likely to rise over the next number of weeks - before any improvement is seen.
Dr Holohan made the remarks at a special media briefing in Government Buildings on the current flu outbreak in the Irish Republic alongside Dr Darina O'Flanagan of the Health Protection Surveillance Centre of the HSE and Dr Kevin Kelleher, the Assistant National Director of Population Health in the HSE.
Dr Holohan explained that each year the country experiences an 'Influenza Season', which is deemed to have started when the level of infection reaches 17 cases in every 100,000 people.
That level was reached in the second half of December and the level now is calculated 120 per 100,000 people.
Dr O'Flanagan advised that 114 people had been hospitalised with influenza and that 26 persons remain in Intensive Care but no deaths have so far been confirmed.
Dr Holohan said that level of infection is likely to rise over the next two to four weeks, after which the numbers of people getting the flu will decrease.
The majority of the flu cases identified are the H1N1 (swine flu) variety but Type B Influenza has also been identified and the doctors made clear that the current Influenza outbreak is consistent with the normal seasonal outbreak and should not be confused with the so called pandemic of last year.
The press conference provided considerably more detail, including advice for persons who may feel they have the flu.
In the majority of cases people will not need to see a doctor and will recover with isolation and precautionary behaviour.
Dr Kevin Kelleher gave a range of advice for persons to deal with the flu and about the need for inoculation against the flu.
See: Fresh Tragedy As NI's Swine Flu Level Rises
(BMcC/GK)
As medical services north of the border continued to battle the latest outbreak of swine flu - with 14 lives already lost since November - Ireland's Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan has said that level of influenza infection is likely to rise over the next number of weeks - before any improvement is seen.
Dr Holohan made the remarks at a special media briefing in Government Buildings on the current flu outbreak in the Irish Republic alongside Dr Darina O'Flanagan of the Health Protection Surveillance Centre of the HSE and Dr Kevin Kelleher, the Assistant National Director of Population Health in the HSE.
Dr Holohan explained that each year the country experiences an 'Influenza Season', which is deemed to have started when the level of infection reaches 17 cases in every 100,000 people.
That level was reached in the second half of December and the level now is calculated 120 per 100,000 people.
Dr O'Flanagan advised that 114 people had been hospitalised with influenza and that 26 persons remain in Intensive Care but no deaths have so far been confirmed.
Dr Holohan said that level of infection is likely to rise over the next two to four weeks, after which the numbers of people getting the flu will decrease.
The majority of the flu cases identified are the H1N1 (swine flu) variety but Type B Influenza has also been identified and the doctors made clear that the current Influenza outbreak is consistent with the normal seasonal outbreak and should not be confused with the so called pandemic of last year.
The press conference provided considerably more detail, including advice for persons who may feel they have the flu.
In the majority of cases people will not need to see a doctor and will recover with isolation and precautionary behaviour.
Dr Kevin Kelleher gave a range of advice for persons to deal with the flu and about the need for inoculation against the flu.
See: Fresh Tragedy As NI's Swine Flu Level Rises
(BMcC/GK)
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