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Source: http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_d...603&con_type=1
Flu maid critically ill
Adele Wong
Monday, July 13, 2009
A domestic helper who twice tested negative for human swine flu (H1N1) before a third positive test last night remained in a critical condition at the United Christian Hospital.
The 37-year-old Filipino woman arrived in Hong Kong on June 28 to work for a pregnant woman and her husband. She developed flu symptoms the following day but two tests for the H1N1 virus proved negative. However, a third tested turned up positive on Saturday as her condition deteriorated.
She is in the intensive care unit of the Kwun Tong hospital and is on a respirator. She was earlier given the antiviral drug Tamiflu and yesterday got Relenza, another antiviral drug. Her pregnant employer developed a sore throat last week and is now under observation in the hospital and has been given Relenza. The woman's husband was given Tamiflu after getting a cough. They have both tested negative for the virus.
Meanwhile, medical experts have met in Hong Kong to discuss the latest H1N1 developments.
The group comprises members of the British Medical Association, Hong Kong Adventist Hospital, The Society of Physicians of Hong Kong and the Association of Private Medical Specialists of Hong Kong.
Internal medicine specialist John Simon said he believes that people born before 1957 might be more immune to the virus due to previous exposure.
"An H1N1 virus similar to the current human swine influenza was circulating well before 1957," Simon said.
The virus "disappeared" in 1957 when an H2N2 pandemic killed about two million people around the globe. Simon speculates that those born before 1957 would have been exposed to the old H1N1 strain, which bears similarities to the current H1N1 virus.
As a result, they are at an advantage compared with those who have never been exposed to a similar virus.
Simon predicts that the current epidemic will infect 33 percent of the global population, or about two billion people. However, he also believes the virus will remain mild.
Respiratory medicine specialist Kenneth Tsang Wah- tak also believes the current virus will remain mild, although he cautioned the situation could be dangerous to people already affected by other medical conditions including asthma or pneumonia.
Pregnant women appear to be more vulnerable to the virus as their immune systems tend to be weaker, Tsang said.
As of yesterday afternoon, there was a total of 1,265 H1N1 cases in Hong Kong, with 29 new confirmed cases yesterday. The city's first acute H1N1 case was a 76-year- old man who was in serious condition in hospital last week. His condition has since been upgraded to stable.
Flu maid critically ill
Adele Wong
Monday, July 13, 2009
A domestic helper who twice tested negative for human swine flu (H1N1) before a third positive test last night remained in a critical condition at the United Christian Hospital.
The 37-year-old Filipino woman arrived in Hong Kong on June 28 to work for a pregnant woman and her husband. She developed flu symptoms the following day but two tests for the H1N1 virus proved negative. However, a third tested turned up positive on Saturday as her condition deteriorated.
She is in the intensive care unit of the Kwun Tong hospital and is on a respirator. She was earlier given the antiviral drug Tamiflu and yesterday got Relenza, another antiviral drug. Her pregnant employer developed a sore throat last week and is now under observation in the hospital and has been given Relenza. The woman's husband was given Tamiflu after getting a cough. They have both tested negative for the virus.
Meanwhile, medical experts have met in Hong Kong to discuss the latest H1N1 developments.
The group comprises members of the British Medical Association, Hong Kong Adventist Hospital, The Society of Physicians of Hong Kong and the Association of Private Medical Specialists of Hong Kong.
Internal medicine specialist John Simon said he believes that people born before 1957 might be more immune to the virus due to previous exposure.
"An H1N1 virus similar to the current human swine influenza was circulating well before 1957," Simon said.
The virus "disappeared" in 1957 when an H2N2 pandemic killed about two million people around the globe. Simon speculates that those born before 1957 would have been exposed to the old H1N1 strain, which bears similarities to the current H1N1 virus.
As a result, they are at an advantage compared with those who have never been exposed to a similar virus.
Simon predicts that the current epidemic will infect 33 percent of the global population, or about two billion people. However, he also believes the virus will remain mild.
Respiratory medicine specialist Kenneth Tsang Wah- tak also believes the current virus will remain mild, although he cautioned the situation could be dangerous to people already affected by other medical conditions including asthma or pneumonia.
Pregnant women appear to be more vulnerable to the virus as their immune systems tend to be weaker, Tsang said.
As of yesterday afternoon, there was a total of 1,265 H1N1 cases in Hong Kong, with 29 new confirmed cases yesterday. The city's first acute H1N1 case was a 76-year- old man who was in serious condition in hospital last week. His condition has since been upgraded to stable.
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