INFLUENZA - EL SALVADOR: ALERT

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.

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[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).