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ONDON (Reuters) - Health officials confirmed five further cases of H1N1 flu in Britain on Friday, bringing the total to 39.
All the new cases are connected with Alleyn's school in Dulwich, southeast London, which is already shut as a precautionary measure.
Four are pupils and the fifth is an adult associated with the school, the Health Protection Agency said. All are recovering at home.
Alleyn's was shut earlier this week after six other pupils tested positive.
All pupils and staff have already been given antivirals as a precautionary measure.
Chief Medical Officer Liam Donaldson has defended the policy of closing schools after criticism the government was overreacting to an infection that appeared to be less dangerous than originally feared.
"We don't want to take any risks with children at this stage when we don't know enough about the disease," he said on Thursday.
The virus, widely known as swine flu, has killed 44 people in Mexico but all of those infected so far in Britain have had relatively mild symptoms.
(Reporting by Tim Castle; Editing by Steve Addison)
http://uk.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idUKTRE5473XM20090508
All the new cases are connected with Alleyn's school in Dulwich, southeast London, which is already shut as a precautionary measure.
Four are pupils and the fifth is an adult associated with the school, the Health Protection Agency said. All are recovering at home.
Alleyn's was shut earlier this week after six other pupils tested positive.
All pupils and staff have already been given antivirals as a precautionary measure.
Chief Medical Officer Liam Donaldson has defended the policy of closing schools after criticism the government was overreacting to an infection that appeared to be less dangerous than originally feared.
"We don't want to take any risks with children at this stage when we don't know enough about the disease," he said on Thursday.
The virus, widely known as swine flu, has killed 44 people in Mexico but all of those infected so far in Britain have had relatively mild symptoms.
(Reporting by Tim Castle; Editing by Steve Addison)
http://uk.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idUKTRE5473XM20090508