S. Korea finds first suspected swine flu case

SEOUL, April 28 (Yonhap) -- South Korean health authorities are conducting tests on a citizen suspected of having contracted swine flu, an official said Tuesday, as the country heightened its health alert following a global outbreak of the deadly disease.

"A South Korean citizen who recently returned from a trip to Mexico has been
classified as a possible swine flu patient," the official said, asking not to be
identified.
Lee Jong-koo, director of the state-run Korea Center for Disease Control (KCDC),
confirmed that three had been tested for possible infection and one is still
being tested with the other two found not to have swine flu influenza.
Governments worldwide are struggling to stem the spread of the highly infectious
virus, which has reportedly killed nearly 150 people in Mexico alone.
Human cases have been also confirmed in the United States, Canada and some
European countries, according to media reports, raising concerns that the virus
is spreading at a faster-than-expected pace.
Swine flu is a respiratory disease caused by type A influenza that regularly
causes outbreaks mostly among pigs and is transmittable to humans.
Earlier, the World Health Organization (WHO) held an emergency meeting and raised
its alert level by one notch to the third highest.
The South Korean government has also tightened quarantine measures for pork
imports from Mexico, the U.S. and Canada, while stepping up inspections of
tourists who have traveled to affected areas.
In a precautionary effort, the KCDC said on Monday that it will double its
stockpile of Tamiflu and other influenza drugs. The amount would be enough to
treat 5 million people, around 10 percent of the country's population.
The disease control center is scheduled to hold a press conference at 9:30 a.m.
to explain its latest response to the swine flu concerns.
kokobj@yna.co.kr
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