Norway confirms first swine flu case, global death tally tops 50
May 10, 2009
Norwegian health officials confirmed that two 20-year-olds returning from Mexico where they had been studying, have tested positive to H1N1 -- also known as swine flu. However, both are reported to be well and neither were admitted to hospital.
Japan, Australia, Panama and Argentina also confirmed their first cases on Saturday.
Japan, which has so far avoided a swine flu outbreak, confirmed its first four cases when a teacher and her students returned from a school trip to Canada. They were quarantined, as were 48 other passengers on a flight from the US city of Detroit to Tokyo.
The infected individuals were intercepted at the airport, as was an Australian woman, who presented herself to medical staff in Brisbane after arriving from the United States.
Meanwhile, Costa Rica has reported its first fatality, after a 53-year-old man died. It is also the first death to be recorded in Central America.
The country's Health Minister Maria Luisa Avila said the victim, who had been in hospital for a week, had been suffering from other health problems, including diabetes and a chronic pulmonary condition.
He had not traveled recently to Mexico but the country's main daily newspaper, La Nacion, reported he was a musician who came into contact with crowds.
Seven other Costa Ricans have also contracted the virus.
WHO doubles global tally
The World Health Organization on Saturday reported a sharp increase in confirmed cases of swine flu. The United States has now become the country with the most patients sick with the virus.
The WHO raised its global tally of swine flu cases to 3,440 confirmed infections -- but this does not include the new cases reported on Saturday. Also in its latest assessment of the epidemic, the WHO confirmed a total of 48 deaths. This does not include the death in Costa Rica, or three recently reported fatalities in Mexico.
The majority of the deaths have occurred in Mexico, while there have also been three in the US and one in Canada.
While the flu first originated in Mexico, the United States has now overtaken its southern neighbor, to become the country with the highest number of cases.
It now has 1,639 laboratory confirmed human cases, while Mexico has 1,364.
Life in Mexico has gradually returned to normal this week, with tourist sites, Mexico City eateries, sports stadiums, theaters and cinemas reopening after being shut down for more than a week. Universities and high schools reopened on Thursday and primary schools were due back on Monday.