ID :
65140
Wed, 06/10/2009 - 20:54
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/65140
The shortlink copeid
TWO NEW INFLUENZA A (H1N1) CASED DETECTED
PUTRAJAYA, June 10 (Bernama) -- Two new Influenza A (H1N1) cases have been
detected in the country over the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of
confirmed cases to nine.
Health Director-General Dr Mohd Ismail Merican said the eighth cases
involved a 17-year-old American student who accompanied her parents for a
holiday in the country.
He said the family arrived in the country through Malaysia Airlines flight
MH091 from Newark via Stockholm at 6.30am on June 8. The girl occupied seat 18G
on the flight.
"She was having a fever when she arrived at the KL International Airport and
was warded at the Tuanku Jaafar Hospital in Seremban, Negeri Sembilan at 10.51
am for further check and treatment," he told reporters after chairing the
Technical Committee on Influenza A (H1N1) here Wednesday.
Dr Mohd Ismail said the ninth case was a New Zealand national who arrived in
the country at 7.30am on June 5 on an Air Asia flight DX7 2723.
"She was on the same flight with the Australian student who was confirmed as
Malaysia's seventh Influenza A (H1N1) case on Saturday," he added.
However, she said the woman continued with her journey to northern state of
Penang on board Malaysia Airline MH1138 at 9.15am and arrived at the Bayan Lepas
International Airport at 10.15am before taking a taxi to a hotel where she
checked-in at 1pm.
"She then met her friends and then went on a tour of the island on a tour
bus before she was tracked down as a contact to the seventh case, following
which she was placed under quarantine at the hotel at 4.15pm on Sunday.
"She began having fever, coughing and body ache at about 11pm and contacted
the health department nearby at 9am the following day, when she was then sent to
the Penang Hospital in a special ambulance," he added.
Dr Mohd Ismail said the New Zealand woman and the American student had been
given anti-viral treatment and were both in stable condition, adding that the
student's parents had been placed under house quarantine and were in good
health.
He said the ministry was tracing the contacts who had flown on the same
flight with the woman and student, as well as other passengers in the tour bus,
which the New Zealand woman had travelled on a tour of the Penang island, and
staff of the Holiday Inn hotel where she had checked into on arriving in Penang.
Dr Mohd Ismail said a total of 36 notification cases had been received
nationwide, of which 31 were tested negative while five others were awaiting
results of laboratory tests.
He also said that effective tomorrow, not everybody who were found to be
having fever on arrival in the country would be sent to hospitals for Influenza
A (H1N1)checks.
"Only those arriving from countries with the Influenza A pandemic or
countries which recorded new cases actively or those with pneumonia will be sent
to hospitals, if they have fever.
"Other than that we will do the throat swabs at the points of entry, and
then we will advise them to take care of themselves, give them high quality
mask, and then they can go home, but they must quarantine themselves pending the
outcome of the result, which will take 24 hours, to know whether they are
infected or not.
"We don't want to inconvenience the people, but we hope, and trust them, to
make sure they do not do things that shouldn't be done, and to follow the health
advice," he added.
Asked on a Canadian who escaped home quarantine, Dr Mohd Ismail said no
action would be taken against him as his result was negative for the Influenza A
virus.
He also said that checks at the entry points would be stepped up as more
students from the United States and Europe were expected to arrive in the
country for their summer vacation.
As for Malaysian students abroad, he advised those who were having symptoms
of the Influenza A to postpone their return and to seek medical treatment before
doing so.
Dr Mohd Ismail said that the World Health Organisation, in its latest
report, stated that there had been 25,586 Influenza A (H1N1) cases, including
139 deaths, in 73 countries.
-- BERNAMA
detected in the country over the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of
confirmed cases to nine.
Health Director-General Dr Mohd Ismail Merican said the eighth cases
involved a 17-year-old American student who accompanied her parents for a
holiday in the country.
He said the family arrived in the country through Malaysia Airlines flight
MH091 from Newark via Stockholm at 6.30am on June 8. The girl occupied seat 18G
on the flight.
"She was having a fever when she arrived at the KL International Airport and
was warded at the Tuanku Jaafar Hospital in Seremban, Negeri Sembilan at 10.51
am for further check and treatment," he told reporters after chairing the
Technical Committee on Influenza A (H1N1) here Wednesday.
Dr Mohd Ismail said the ninth case was a New Zealand national who arrived in
the country at 7.30am on June 5 on an Air Asia flight DX7 2723.
"She was on the same flight with the Australian student who was confirmed as
Malaysia's seventh Influenza A (H1N1) case on Saturday," he added.
However, she said the woman continued with her journey to northern state of
Penang on board Malaysia Airline MH1138 at 9.15am and arrived at the Bayan Lepas
International Airport at 10.15am before taking a taxi to a hotel where she
checked-in at 1pm.
"She then met her friends and then went on a tour of the island on a tour
bus before she was tracked down as a contact to the seventh case, following
which she was placed under quarantine at the hotel at 4.15pm on Sunday.
"She began having fever, coughing and body ache at about 11pm and contacted
the health department nearby at 9am the following day, when she was then sent to
the Penang Hospital in a special ambulance," he added.
Dr Mohd Ismail said the New Zealand woman and the American student had been
given anti-viral treatment and were both in stable condition, adding that the
student's parents had been placed under house quarantine and were in good
health.
He said the ministry was tracing the contacts who had flown on the same
flight with the woman and student, as well as other passengers in the tour bus,
which the New Zealand woman had travelled on a tour of the Penang island, and
staff of the Holiday Inn hotel where she had checked into on arriving in Penang.
Dr Mohd Ismail said a total of 36 notification cases had been received
nationwide, of which 31 were tested negative while five others were awaiting
results of laboratory tests.
He also said that effective tomorrow, not everybody who were found to be
having fever on arrival in the country would be sent to hospitals for Influenza
A (H1N1)checks.
"Only those arriving from countries with the Influenza A pandemic or
countries which recorded new cases actively or those with pneumonia will be sent
to hospitals, if they have fever.
"Other than that we will do the throat swabs at the points of entry, and
then we will advise them to take care of themselves, give them high quality
mask, and then they can go home, but they must quarantine themselves pending the
outcome of the result, which will take 24 hours, to know whether they are
infected or not.
"We don't want to inconvenience the people, but we hope, and trust them, to
make sure they do not do things that shouldn't be done, and to follow the health
advice," he added.
Asked on a Canadian who escaped home quarantine, Dr Mohd Ismail said no
action would be taken against him as his result was negative for the Influenza A
virus.
He also said that checks at the entry points would be stepped up as more
students from the United States and Europe were expected to arrive in the
country for their summer vacation.
As for Malaysian students abroad, he advised those who were having symptoms
of the Influenza A to postpone their return and to seek medical treatment before
doing so.
Dr Mohd Ismail said that the World Health Organisation, in its latest
report, stated that there had been 25,586 Influenza A (H1N1) cases, including
139 deaths, in 73 countries.
-- BERNAMA
