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  • El Salvador hospitals overwhelmed by respiratory diseases

    El Salvador hospitals overwhelmed by respiratory diseases
    (AFP) ? 2 hours ago

    SAN SALVADOR ? Hospitals in El Salvador have been overwhelmed by an unexpected rise in respiratory diseases including pneumonia and dengue fever, health authorities said Wednesday.

    "We've got our hospital network and neighborhood health clinics working at full capacity... with a huge increase these past few weeks in patients with respiratory ailments and possible dengue," Deputy Health Minister Eduardo Espinoza told reporters.

    The official said acute respiratory disease has shot up in 11 of the country's 14 departments, totaling some 1.3 million cases since the start of the year, including 26,546 cases of pneumonia and 6,584 cases of dengue fever.

    continues at; http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp...3dR3r6xL2378qg
    Twitter: @RonanKelly13
    The views expressed are mine alone and do not represent the views of my employer or any other person or organization.

  • #2
    Re: El Salvador hospitals overwhelmed by respiratory diseases

    Archive Number 20100728.2537
    Published Date 28-JUL-2010
    Subject PRO/EDR> Influenza - El Salvador: alert

    INFLUENZA - EL SALVADOR: ALERT
    ******************************
    A ProMED-mail post
    <http://www.promedmail.org>
    ProMED-mail is a program of the
    International Society for Infectious Diseases
    <http://www.isid.org>

    Date: Tue 27 Jul 2010
    Source: SDPnoticias.com, Bloomberg report [machine trans., edited]
    <http://sdpnoticias.com/sdp/contenido/2010/07/27/4/1085305>


    Health authorities in El Salvador issued a flu epidemic alert, with an
    average of 14 000 cases a day, exceeding those of dengue fever. Health
    Minister Maria Isabel Rodriguez told local media that 11 of the 14
    departments of the country are the worst affected by respiratory
    disease.

    According to Rodriguez, consultations in health units have increased
    with patients complaining of chest pain, runny nose, fever, cough and
    other symptoms of influenza. Even before last week, about 10 000 cases
    of influenza [i.e. respiratory illness] were reported daily, and in
    the week just ended, the figure amounted to 14 171 cases a day.

    So far this year [2010], the Ministry of Health estimates the total
    number of influenza cases to be 1 329 350 [out of a population of 7
    million (2007)]. The rising incidence of respiratory diseases is the
    usual pattern in this country, with an increasing trend from July to
    September, Rodriguez explained. "We are conducting an analysis to
    determine the factors that influence the increase in each department.

    --
    Communicated by:
    HealthMap Alerts via
    ProMED-mail <promed@promedmail.org>

    [These figures appear to refer to respiratory illness in general and
    not specifically to influenza virus infection. The text does not
    indicate what types of influenza virus are in circulation.
    Clarification is requested.

    According to the Pan American Health Organisation Weekly Summary of 19
    Jul 2010, El Salvador reported an increasing trend in acute
    respiratory disease; Costa Rica reported an unchanged trend, while
    Honduras, Nicaragua, and Panama reported decreasing trends. All these
    countries reported low/moderate intensity of acute respiratory disease
    and low impact of acute respiratory disease on health care services,
    except Panama, which has reported high intensity and moderate impact
    of acute respiratory disease on health care services for 3 consecutive
    weeks.

    According to the World Health Organisation Update 110 of 18 Jul 2010,
    in the tropical regions of the Americas, the situation is that
    overall, pandemic and seasonal influenza activities were low, except
    in pockets of Central and South America with co-circulation of
    pandemic and seasonal influenza H3N2 viruses (Costa Rica had
    predominantly pandemic H1N1 influenza virus, while Nicaragua and
    Panama had predominantly influenza H3N2 virus).

    The HealthMap/ProMED-mail interactive map of El Salvador can be
    accessed at: <http://healthmap.org/r/00GT>. - Mod.CP]


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