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Swine flu arrives in Southeast Asia
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2 Thai cases bring Asia total to 9
Thailand on Tuesday became the first country in Southeast Asia to confirm swine flu cases. The two patients are Thai and had recently arrived from Mexico. One had already been treated and returned home. Nine other people who came in contact with them are under surveillance.
Meanwhile, the first case in mainland China also was confirmed. It's in Chengdu, a city popular with tourists, and the man had recently visited the United States. The Chinese government seems appropriately alarmed. (That's a big relief after its complacency at the beginning of the 2003 SARS epidemic). And there's another case in Japan. That brings the total number of confirmed cases in Asia to nine: two in Thailand, one in mainland China, one in South Korea, one in Hong Kong, and four in Japan.
Coming to Southeast Asia? Flu screening officers at Tokyo's Narita Airport .jpg)
AP photo
Thai Public Health Minister Witthaya Kaewparadai again ordered more H1N1 vaccines. Earlier he reiterated that Thailand still has a travel warning for the United States, Mexico, Canada, Britain and Spain -- the five countries with the most number of swine flu cases.
"We have advised Thais to postpone trips to those countries and also travellers who returned from them must immediately see the doctor," he said.
Tourists may face screening
But what does that mean for tourists coming to Thailand from North America, Britain and Spain, the countries with the largest number of infections? Are they going to be checked or questioned on arrival? Sorry, I can't find anything except for the following two remarks emanating from Witthaya.
The first came after the May 8 meeting of Southeast Asian health ministers in Thailand: "In addition, passengers who travel from areas where the flu has been detected will be screened to reduce negative effects on trade and the economy."
The second is from an April 30 government press release:
... tour companies were asked to report details of tourists who visited the flu affected countries before entering Thailand during the past 14 days.
The tour companies must fill in the form about the health condition of the tourists and submit to the ministry daily, he said, adding that its staff should help monitor whether the tourists have suspected symptom and promptly reported to the ministry.
On the positive side, the Tamiflu vaccine used against the swine flu virus (H191) is the same as the one used against avian flu virus (H5N1). Thailand already has stockpiles of that because of flu outbreaks (and 17 deaths) in Thailand since 2004. And the Government Pharmaceutical Organization has been ordered to produce 1 million more pills. East Asian health ministers are talking about the need for more stockpiles but there doesn't sound like there's a lot of new action from this story:
"Japan's Senior Vice Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare Takao Watanabe told the Bangkok Post that 1 million doses of antiviral drugs and 750,000 protection kits had been distributed to the grouping for stockpiling as initial support--half of this is stored in Singapore and the rest has been distributed to other Asean members.
The Philippines has had the most suspicious cases--38--but most have turned out negative. There's only one remaining questionable case, a four-year-old girl who arrived from the United States.
The biggest swine flu related news is that boxing champ Manny Pacquiao and his entourage returned from Los Angeles to a victory parade in Manila. He defied suggestions from government officials that he delay his hero's return from the United States because he might bring the flu to his homeland.
The large Pacquiao party cleared the airport's thermal-imaging scanners with no signs of fevers, but the health department said this did not necessarily mean they were free from the virus since its incubation period is between five and seven days.
Indonesia's first suspected case of swine flu turned up Tuesday in the Java city of Surabaya. The elderly patient had come from Hong Kong. Of course, because it gets so many tourists from so many countries, Bali is especially vulnerable. In fact, Indonesians officials think there may have been a case of H101 on the island several years ago, though it couldn't be identified at the time.The Bali provincial government has set up two thermal cameras at the airport, but is that a sufficient screening?.jpg)
Malaysia has no cases of swine flu yet, but taking the precautionary route, Tuesday it canceled an international soccer (football) competition that would have involved teams from eight countries. Late last month, the Malaysian government warned its citizens against travel in Canada, Mexico and some U.S. states.
No cases in Singapore yet, but the statelet raised the pandemic alert from level 4 to level 5, which means "screenings and checks for flu-like symptoms will be mandatory at hospitals, and patients will be allowed only one visitor each time." In addition to thermal scanners at the airport, by now there should also be thermometer checks at sea entry points. Hospital personnel, already wearing masks, were also ordered to cut down on elective admissions.
I'd predict that Singapore would be the most likely to go into overdrive on screening people entering the city, given its actions during the SARS epidemic in 2004. I predict that it may soon cancel the first Asian Youth Games, scheduled for June. IIt's notable, though, the Singaporean health minister late last month brought up a SARS comparison:"We are fighting a new war. What worked during SARS may not be effective or even necessary this time round."
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