Sports group in Italy quarantined after contracting the virus
SEVENTEEN new cases of the H1N1 virus were reported yesterday, bringing the total number of confirmed infections in the government-controlled areas to 218. Of the new cases, 14 were Cypriots, while the other three were foreigners.
In the new statistics issued by the Health Ministry, it was confirmed that there had so far been 452 completed analyses of suspected cases, while 124 of the aforementioned total had already made a full recovery.
In addition to the new cases, 16 children and two adults from the SPE Strovolou volleyball team have come down with the flu in Italy, where they had been part of a larger group taking part in a competition. According to media reports last night, this number was on the rise.
General Manager Demetris Stavrou, who is in Italy, told state radio that while none of the cases were serious, there was absolutely no possibility of any of the infected party returning to Cyprus until they had made a full recovery.
“By Monday night, (when the entire group of 150 is scheduled to fly back), only those who have not been displaying any signs of temperature will be allowed to leave.
“We can’t risk infecting 150 people on the plane and their families [when they get home]… Any kids who haven’t yet received doctor’s permission to travel will remain with a supervisor until they can return home healthy”.
Stavrou added that they have rented more rooms in the hotel so that the kids can be spread out and have their space.
Answering questions by members of the press at the presidential palace yesterday following a meeting of the Council of Ministers, government spokesman Stefanos Stefanou described the spread of the flu virus through the island as inevitable, adding that the government was watching the situation closely and taking all necessary measures in easing its effects.
He also reiterated the position taken by health officials and other medical observers that despite the high numbers of infections, the benign form of the virus has so far been seen in Cyprus meant that there was no cause for panic, and that “overreaction merely hurts the country”.
His assertions follow several media outlets highlighting the high proportion of infections Cyprus has witnessed in comparison to other European countries with much larger populations but similar numbers of cases, such as Greece.
Echoing the calls for calm and responsibility was head of the Pancyprian Government Doctors’ Association, Stavros Stavrou, who described the virus as “just a simple flu”, and that the only people that would need special attention in ensuring they were not badly affected were the weak and those with underlying health problems.
Speaking to state radio, Stavrou said that it was time for people to stop making a fuss over the virus, and to come to terms with the idea that, “if not half of us, then all of us will contract the flu”.
“The rest of us will be vaccinated by September – and by that I mean the sensitive members of the population.”
Despite the flu pandemic remaining relatively mild and proving fatal in only a small minority of cases around the world, EU Health Commissioner Androulla Vassiliou yesterday renewed calls for the government to take prompt action in ordering flu vaccinations as a precaution.
Pharmaceutical companies working round-the-clock in trying to produce a vaccine by the beginning of the northern flu season have been inundated with advanced orders by national governments, with Glaxo Smithkline alone set to deliver 120 million vaccines to the UK, France, Belgium and Finland – a deal already poised to net the company roughly £600 million.
Vassiliou also told state radio that greater care must be taken by those who have contracted the virus.
“People (who have symptoms) must be helped in the hospital, or kept in isolation in their homes. They cannot circulate freely amongst people, transmitting the virus. This needs to be controlled.”
Seeking to further highlight the irrationality of panicking at increasing numbers of infections Stavrou pressed on with his summation of the flu’s predicted spread, saying: “We might have a hundred infections a day, we might have a thousand. What are we going to do? This a flu and that is how it works.”
He also described some media representations of the virus and its spread as “terrorising” the general public. Stavrou lambasted the handling of the situation by all relevant actors, from the media to health workers themselves.
“If someone goes to a private doctor with symptoms of a simple flu, and they tell them that they need to go to the A&E for treatment. This is bad advice…. Even Tamiflu doesn’t protect anyone from catching the flu, it merely minimises its effects.”
Stavrou concluded on a frank but reassuring note of resignation to the circumstances, saying: “We are all going to catch the flu at some point – things will simply run their course.”
