The New Nation - Internet Edition

Staff Reporter

Three persons died of swine flu in the last one month raising the death toll in the country to six. A total of 800 people, of which 120 were attacked by H1N1 virus during the period, are so far affected by swine flu.

Prof Dr Mahmudur Rahman , Director, Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research (IEDCR) talking to the newsman said that the magnitude of H1N1 virus has been reduced.

He said that six people have so far died of swine flu out of 800 swine flu affected in the country.

IEDCR in its last press briefing on October 11 mentioned that there were 680 swine flu patients with three deaths.

Some public hospitals including Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) and Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) that had been given treatment to swine flu affected patients, however, have closed their swine flu wards.

Dr Mahmudur Rahman said that there is enough scope for treatment of swine flu patients in 15 government designated hospitals.

As there is no swine flu patients at DMCH and BSMMU, the special wards have been closed there, he said. He hoped that Bangladesh would get swine flu vaccination from World Health Organisation (WHO) next year. He however could not confirm the quantity to be received.

It needs to be recalled in this context that US President Barack Obama has declared state of emergency as swine flue has taken a serious turn in his country. Bangladesh cannot remain complacent as large number of people travel between the two countries regularly.

It is felt that passengers arriving from the USA should be screened at the Zia International airport so that anybody with swine flue virus could be handled accordingly. According to WHO, 4, 82,000 people have been attacked by swine flu of whom 6,071 died throughout the world.