Reuters: UK school children quarantined for H1N1 flu in China

A group of 52 British school children and their teachers have been quarantined in Beijing after four pupils were admitted to hospital infected with the H1N1 flu virus, Britain's Foreign Office said Saturday.

(A hospital worker wearing an isolation suit stands
at the entrance of a flu inspection clinic in
Beijing's Ditan Hospital. REUTERS/Jason Lee)

The group arrived in China earlier this week for a culture and study tour. But shortly after arrival at Beijing airport, four of the students -- all believed to be teenagers -- were admitted to hospital showing symptoms of swine flu infection.

As a precaution, the remainder of the group was quarantined in their four-star hotel in Beijing.

'We can confirm that a group of 52 British school children and teachers are being held in quarantine in their hotel,' a Foreign Office spokeswoman said.

Reuters: UK school children quarantined for H1N1 flu in China

Swine Flu Diary - Melissa Auf der Maur

Photo courtesy of Melissa Auf der Maur

Musician Melissa Auf der Maur, formerly of Hole and the Smashing Pumpkins has Mexican Flu.
She writes in her weblog:

"About two weeks ago, I was reading an article in The Globe and Mail over breakfast, when a question crossed my mind: 'Have I been kissed by the gloom of Swine?'

You might think it’s a shocking or silly question, but I’d been sick on and off for a month. It turns out that, somewhere between a video shoot in Vermont, a heavy metal concert in London, and my own musical showcase in Toronto, I had indeed fallen victim to a world pandemic. I am now officially on the mend – thanks to a combination of naturopathic treatments and heavy-duty antibiotics, among other survival tools – and I’ve gathered enough energy to type out this, my swine flu chronicle."

Swine Flu Diary - Melissa Auf der Maur

Swine flu reports jump by half in a week - Times Online

The number of swine flu cases has jumped by nearly 50 per cent in a week, figures released yesterday indicate.

Data from a sample of GPs’ surgeries, seen by The Times, shows that up to 40,000 people complained to their doctor last week of “flu-like illness” in England and Wales, with a huge rise in the number of young children being affected.

The report shows that the highest rates of reported illness are in children aged five to 14, with 160 of every 100,000 in this age group reporting symptoms, followed by 114 per 100,000 of the 0 to four-year-olds.

Overall, the rate of people complaining of symptoms increased to 73.4 cases for every 100,000 people in the week to Sunday, compared to 50.3 cases per 100,000 the week before.

Times Online: Swine flu reports jump by half in a week

Edmonton Sun: Swine flu on wane, but health officials anticipate comeback

Three months after Canadian scientists first became aware of a mysterious influenza outbreak in Mexico, the rate of new swine flu cases in this country finally seems to be ebbing.

But public health officials warn the virus will be back with a vengeance in the fall.

'We're still seeing new cases (but) it appears there are fewer,' Dr. David Butler-Jones, Canada's chief public health officer, said yesterday. 'We are seeing fewer people admitted to hospital, so it seems to be on the wane.'

But he added, 'It's an amazing, adaptive disease and it's always full of surprises.'

So full of surprises, apparently, that British officials this week projected a worst-case scenario of up to 65,000 deaths in the U.K. from H1N1. Their bleak assessment included an estimate that 30% of the population could become infected, and that half of British children could contract H1N1.

Edmonton Sun: Swine flu on wane, but health officials anticipate comeback