H1N1 Death Toll Rises to 19

By Thazin Hlaing 10 August 2017

YANGON — Two more children died of the H1N1 virus on Wednesday, bringing the death toll to 19 since the flu outbreak was confirmed on July 21, according to Ministry of Health and Sports.

The two children were from Irrawaddy and Magwe regions, according to the Public Health Department in Naypyitaw.

According to the health ministry, a total of 183 people contracted the H1N1 virus—also known as swine flu—between July 21 and August 9. A total of 63 patients—11 at Waibagi Hospital in Yangon and 52 at hospitals in other regions and states—are still receiving medical treatment, but most of them are recovering, according to the ministry.

However, according to the daily statements released by the ministry about the virus and deaths, the number of people who contracted and died of virus has continued to rise.

Local businessmen, companies, as well as UN agencies and international organizations, are providing cash, medicine, medical equipment and masks, according to the ministry. Turkey will provide flu vaccines, and China will also supply the antiviral medication Oseltamivir, flu vaccines, and medical equipment including respirators.

Meanwhile, the medical superintendent of Irrawaddy Region’s Pyapon Township Hospital has been discharged from Waibagi Hospital after recovering from the H1N1 virus, the medical superintendent of Waibagi Hospital Dr. Aye Aye Aung told The Irrawaddy.

The medical superintendent was admitted to Waibagi Hospital on August 3 after she became sick during the last week of July and was discharged on Tuesday, she said.

The deputy director-general of the public health department Dr. Than Tun Aung said at a meeting on the H1N1 flu on Sunday that the ministry would treat the outbreak as a pandemic, and still had not been able to bring it under control.

Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko