Costa Rica May Follow
US On Credit Card Interest Limits
Costa Rica
Confirmed AH1N1 Flu Cases Climbs To 28
Condos To
Replace Hatillo Slums
Costa Rican
Clubs Snub National Team Coach
Patti
Blagojevich To Go To Costa Rican Jungle For
Her Kids
Liberia ‘Green Community’ fair to be held
June 5
Costa Rica
Confirmed AH1N1 Flu Cases Climbs To 28
The number of confirmed cases of AH1N1 flu
cases in Costa Rica continues to rise, as
three new cases were added on Friday,
bringing the total now to 28.
The latest infected include two children in
Heredia and a woman resident of San José.
Salud officials say they are tracking the
chain of transmission of infection.
María Ethel Trejos, director of the
Vigilancia de la Salud del Ministerio, said
that one case that had been reported as
confirmed as in error, the case is being
listed as a "probable", waiting on
confirmation of test results by the Center
for Disease Control (CDC) in Atlanta.
The majority of the confirmed cases are in
the province of San José, with 14. Coronado
and Moravia have each six cases, one each in
Goicoechea and Desamparados. One case in
Pavas is listed as probable.
In the province of Heredia, there are nine
confirmed cases and Salud officials are
keeping an eye on 2 probable cases, one
living in Santo Domingo and the other in San
Isidro.
The province of Cartago counts with five
cases, two women and three men in the area
of Oreamuno.
The H1N1 flu mainly spreads in the same way
that regular "seasonal influenza" spreads,
which is through the air from coughs and
sneezes or touching those infected.
It cannot be transmitted from eating cooked
pork and there are no confirmed cases of
anyone becoming infected with this new
strain by being in contact with pigs.
According to the CDC, it is not yet clear
how serious this new virus actually is
compared with other influenza viruses. What
is known, they state, is that because this
is a new virus, most people will not have
immunity to it, and illness may eventually
become more severe and widespread in
different population groups as a result.
As yet there is no vaccine available to
prevent infection although companies are in
the planning stages for having one available
later this year.
But there is concern that the virus could
mutate again over the coming months, leading
to a new and potentially more dangerous flu
outbreak later in the year, and a vaccine
that will be less effective in preventing
its spread.
According to the CDC, the fact that the
flu's infection activity can now be
monitored more closely may partly explain
why more flu cases than normal are being
recorded. About half of all influenza
viruses being detected so far are this new
AH1N1 virus, and there is mounting evidence
that the symptoms of swine flu are milder
than health officials feared, which "experts
acknowledge is no worse than seasonal
influenza for now."
The signs of infection with swine flu are
similar to influenza, and include a fever,
coughing, headaches, pain in the muscles or
joints, sore throat, chills, fatigue and
runny nose. Diarrhea and vomiting have also
been reported in some cases.
People at higher risk of serious
complications include people age 65 years
and older, children younger than 5 years
old, pregnant women, people of any age with
chronic medical conditions (such as asthma,
diabetes, or heart disease), and people who
are immunosuppressed (e.g., taking
immunosuppressive medications or infected
with HIV).
About half of all influenza viruses being
detected so far are the new H1N1 virus, and
there is mounting evidence that the symptoms
are so far milder than health officials
feared. |
|
|
|
|
