3 people in Cebu being checked for H1N1 virus

MANILA, Philippines – Three people, including a foreigner who flew in last week to the central Philippine province of Cebu from Mexico, are being tested for the dreaded Influenza A (H1N1) virus, the Department of Health said Tuesday. Dr. Susan Madarieta, director of the DOH Central Visayas (Region 7), was quoted in a radio report as saying that the female foreign tourist – the nationality of whom was not immediately disclosed – checked herself in at the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center on Monday. The foreign national said she feared that she might have been infected by the virus because she developed cough and cold days after arriving to the Philippines from Mexico. Madarieta said health officers had already obtained a mouth swab sample from the woman and had sent it to the Health Department’s Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) office in Manila. The three people have already been placed under quarantine at the said Cebu medical facility, 24 Oras reported Tuesday night. Dr. Eric Tayag, head of the National Epidemiology Center (NEC), clarified that the three people's condition could not yet be considered a suspected or probable case of A (H1N1) infection. Tayag said that the case should only be identified as “cases under investigation." “Ang pag-confirm po namin ay nangangailangan pa ng testing sa specimen na galing sa lalamunan at malalaman ang resulta sa 24 o 48 oras [Before confirming, we first have to test specimen from the person’s throat. Results of the test will be available in one or two days’ time]," Tayag said in a radio interview. The NEC head said it was still a long way before the DOH could confirm whether the three people were indeed infected by the virus, because swab samples still has to be transported overseas. Verification process Tayag said local health experts would first have to identify if the flu virus that plagued the patients were a Type A Influenza. If found to be so, the virus will then have to be further identified as either Hemagglutinin 1 (H1) or H3. “Kapag negative po sa H1 at H3, tsaka pa lang namin ika-classify na probable case ito [If the virus was not identified as an H1 or H3, only then can we call this a probable case]," Tayag added. The swab sample obtained from a probable case will then be brought to a laboratory in Melbourne, Australia to finally ascertain if the virus is an Influenza A (H1N1). Tayag said Hemagglutinin and Neuraminidase (as in N1) are types of proteins commonly present in flu viruses. He said that medical science has so far identified 16 types of Hemagglutinin and 9 types of Neuraminidase. Airport officials in Manila have earlier held off six travelers from Hong Kong who were all found to have fever. They were later released after testing negative for virus. Meanwhile, the Health department also clarified that the two Filipino tourists who flew in to the country from Switzerland and the United States and were held at the airport were merely suffering from ordinary flu. In a related development, Lorelei Fajardo assured the public that officials down to local governments are prepared to face any suspected cases of flu infection. She said local government officials had already been instructed to check on their communication plans, stockpiling of their anti-viral drugs, and medical facilities in hospitals. Fajardo said that even if the Philippines remains H1N1-free, the Health department and the National Disaster Coordinating Council continue to hold daily meetings to check on the progress of the government efforts against the global health problem. - GMANews.TV