Swine flu cases almost double within a week
Cases of swine flu in the UK have almost doubled this week, the Department of Health revealed today, as the outbreak imposes increasing pressure on intensive care beds.
So far 122 people have died after contracting the H1N1 virus and more than 500 are being treated in hospital, of whom 99 are in critical care – the highest figure since the disease emerged. Children appear to be vulnerable to higher rates of infection.
Emergency planners have, however, downgraded the UK’s worst case scenario, calculating this month that as many as 1,000 people could die during the pandemic infection. Far more of the victims are likely to be younger patients, unlike the normal pattern of seasonal flu, which affects the elderly most severely.
Estimates of likely casualties have come down progressively over the past few months from an initial upper assessment of 65,000 deaths, later reduced to 19,000 and now cut back again.
Source/Full Story: The Guardian
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