Hong Kong Confronts Swine Flu
http://www.forbes.com/2009/05/04/hk-swine-flu-markets-economy-mexico.html
Vivian Wai-yin Kwok, 05.04.09, 05:05 AM EDT
With the shadow of the SARS epidemic darkening its past, Hong Kong aggressively fights to prevent widespread transmission of Swine Flu.
The Hong Kong government warned that an outbreak of swine flu may happen before the summer holiday after the city confirmed the first case of H1N1 influenza in Asia last Friday.
Hong Kong's Secretary for Food and Health York Chow Yat-ngok warned Sunday that it was just a matter of time before the World Health Organization raised its epidemic alert level to the highest degree, and an outbreak of the deadly epidemic was difficult to avoid in highly populated Hong Kong, the epicenter of the SARS outbreak in 2003. SARS killed nearly 300 people in Hong Kong alone, and around 800 worldwide.
The city hoisted the highest emergency alert level after a 25-year-old Mexican tourist was found to be carrying the A(H1N1), the so-called swine flu virus, on Friday in the first confirmed case in Asia.
The Mexican, whose name hasn't been disclosed, was admitted to a hospital in Hong Kong on Thursday night, just seven hours after he landed the city after flying via Shanghai from Mexico. The patient had a fever and other flu symptoms, and tested positive on Friday for swine flu virus.
Chow and a team of experts, including microbiologist Yuen Kwok-yung of the University of Hong Kong, are speeding up their efforts to track down those who had close contact with the victim in Hong Kong. They are hoping to delay any outbreak until summer so as to avoid a scenario in which doctors and scientists do not have time to prepare a sufficient amount of vaccine or gather enough clinical data to help fight the disease.
Seared by its SARS experience, Hong Kong is taking no chances. About 30 passengers who sat close to the Mexican tourist on the plane have all been traced. Another 300 guests and staff at Hong Kong's Metro Park hotel where he stayed have been quarantined for seven days, starting Friday night. However medical officers are still looking for a further 50 hotel guests who have not returned to the hotel since the news of the quarantine became public.
The names of the missing guests have been passed to Immigration Department officials in order to prevent them from leaving the city and potentially spreading the virus to other countries.In addition, a taxi driver who could be carrying the H1N1 flu virus is still at large, perhaps still driving passengers around the city. Hong Kong authorities believed they had located the taxi driver who had taken the Mexican man to a hospital after a driver called the government hotline to claim he had driven the man there. But the caller admitted Sunday that he had lied, saying he just wanted to test whether the government hotline was efficient.
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Hong Kong reports first case of swine flu in Asia
Hong Kong reports first case of swine flu in Asia
http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/health/142081/hong-kong-confirms-first-case-of-swine-flu
By: AFP
Published: 1/05/2009 at 08:56 PM
The first confirmed case of swine flu (or “Pig Flu”. It caused by the strains of influenza virus that usually infected pig but there is no prove that this swine flu spreads from pig. Thus, WHO announced to stop using the term “swine flu” to avoid confusion and gave a new name called H1N1 influenza A.) In Asia was recorded in Hong Kong on Friday after a Mexican man who arrived via Shanghai tested positive, Chief Executive Donald Tsang announced.
Guests and staff at the hotel where the patient had briefly stayed were placed under quarantine for seven days as officials announced "draconian" measures in a bid to contain the disease.
"We have our first confirmed swine flu case in Hong Kong. He is Mexican," Tsang told reporters.
The 25-year-old Mexican arrived in Hong Kong on Thursday from Mexico via Shanghai on China Eastern Airlines flight 505, Tsang said.
He was admitted to hospital on Thursday night suffering from a fever and tested positive on Friday for swine flu. He was in stable condition, Tsang said.
The Metropark Hotel in Wanchai district where he had been staying had been cordoned off, he said.
"I will raise the alert level from serious to emergency," the chief executive said.
Despite putting Hong Kong on the highest level of alert, Tsang said all social activities and exhibitions would go ahead as normal and schools would remain open in the city, which is still scarred by memories of the SARS epidemic in 2003. (About 299 people died in Hong Kong)
"I stress we don't need to panic," he said.
Police wearing face masks cordoned off the Metropark Hotel and a group of blue-gowned and masked health workers was seen entering the hotel in the bustling bar and nightclub district on Hong Kong island.
Health Secretary York Chow said guests and staff at the hotel would be quarantined for seven days.
"We have also exercised the authority... so that we will first isolate the hotel and also... ensure the relevant people are quarantined for seven days," Chow told reporters.
"Since this is the first case in Hong Kong we must be very careful as the chance of controlling and containing this infection is limited, we will try to be more draconian in our policy," Chow said.
"We will also prescribe Tamiflu for them, which is proven to be an effective prophylactic for this disease." (Tamiflu is an anti viral prescription drug marketed by the Swiss pharmaceutical company. It is used to treat the influenza, or flu, virus. It can shorten the duration and decrease the severity of the flu if taken as soon as symptoms start.)
He said around 200 guests and 100 staff would be affected by the quarantine order, issued under the control and prevention of disease ordinance.
Hong Kong authorities were trying to find the two taxi drivers who were in contact with the man and passengers on the flight from Shanghai.
"We are also tracing the passengers who were on the same flight as this patient, particularly the three rows in front and three rows behind," Chow said.
"We're prepared to have them sent to hospital for inspection and also for quarantine," he said
He appealed for other passengers and cabin crew to come forward for health checks.
"With this I hope that we can minimise the spread of this possible virus to our community," the health secretary said.
Hong Kong, at the forefront of the SARS epidemic in 2003 and already on alert for bird flu, had previously announced a series of tough measures to combat any threat from swine flu.
The southern Chinese city has stepped up its protection measures, including the use of temperature screening machines at airports and other entry points.
Authorities have said they would detain anyone showing symptoms of the virus after arriving from an infected area.
Health officials have also advised against all non-essential travel to worst-hit Mexico.
http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/health/142081/hong-kong-confirms-first-case-of-swine-flu
By: AFP
Published: 1/05/2009 at 08:56 PM
The first confirmed case of swine flu (or “Pig Flu”. It caused by the strains of influenza virus that usually infected pig but there is no prove that this swine flu spreads from pig. Thus, WHO announced to stop using the term “swine flu” to avoid confusion and gave a new name called H1N1 influenza A.) In Asia was recorded in Hong Kong on Friday after a Mexican man who arrived via Shanghai tested positive, Chief Executive Donald Tsang announced.
Guests and staff at the hotel where the patient had briefly stayed were placed under quarantine for seven days as officials announced "draconian" measures in a bid to contain the disease.
"We have our first confirmed swine flu case in Hong Kong. He is Mexican," Tsang told reporters.
The 25-year-old Mexican arrived in Hong Kong on Thursday from Mexico via Shanghai on China Eastern Airlines flight 505, Tsang said.
He was admitted to hospital on Thursday night suffering from a fever and tested positive on Friday for swine flu. He was in stable condition, Tsang said.
The Metropark Hotel in Wanchai district where he had been staying had been cordoned off, he said.
"I will raise the alert level from serious to emergency," the chief executive said.
Despite putting Hong Kong on the highest level of alert, Tsang said all social activities and exhibitions would go ahead as normal and schools would remain open in the city, which is still scarred by memories of the SARS epidemic in 2003. (About 299 people died in Hong Kong)
"I stress we don't need to panic," he said.
Police wearing face masks cordoned off the Metropark Hotel and a group of blue-gowned and masked health workers was seen entering the hotel in the bustling bar and nightclub district on Hong Kong island.
Health Secretary York Chow said guests and staff at the hotel would be quarantined for seven days.
"We have also exercised the authority... so that we will first isolate the hotel and also... ensure the relevant people are quarantined for seven days," Chow told reporters.
"Since this is the first case in Hong Kong we must be very careful as the chance of controlling and containing this infection is limited, we will try to be more draconian in our policy," Chow said.
"We will also prescribe Tamiflu for them, which is proven to be an effective prophylactic for this disease." (Tamiflu is an anti viral prescription drug marketed by the Swiss pharmaceutical company. It is used to treat the influenza, or flu, virus. It can shorten the duration and decrease the severity of the flu if taken as soon as symptoms start.)
He said around 200 guests and 100 staff would be affected by the quarantine order, issued under the control and prevention of disease ordinance.
Hong Kong authorities were trying to find the two taxi drivers who were in contact with the man and passengers on the flight from Shanghai.
"We are also tracing the passengers who were on the same flight as this patient, particularly the three rows in front and three rows behind," Chow said.
"We're prepared to have them sent to hospital for inspection and also for quarantine," he said
He appealed for other passengers and cabin crew to come forward for health checks.
"With this I hope that we can minimise the spread of this possible virus to our community," the health secretary said.
Hong Kong, at the forefront of the SARS epidemic in 2003 and already on alert for bird flu, had previously announced a series of tough measures to combat any threat from swine flu.
The southern Chinese city has stepped up its protection measures, including the use of temperature screening machines at airports and other entry points.
Authorities have said they would detain anyone showing symptoms of the virus after arriving from an infected area.
Health officials have also advised against all non-essential travel to worst-hit Mexico.
Swine flu: HK quarantines hundreds at hotel
Swine flu: HK quarantines hundreds at hotel
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/05/01/AR2009050101212.html
By DIKKY SINN and MIN LEE
The Associated Press Saturday, May 2, 2009; 12:49 AM
HONG KONG -- Hundreds of tourists and employees were under quarantine in a downtown Hong Kong hotel Saturday after a Mexican guest tested positive for swine flu. With the outbreak on its doorstep, China suspended direct flights from the Latin American country.
Hours after the first confirmed case in Asia was reported, the continent got its second: Tests showed a South Korean woman also had the disease. (It was confirmed by Lee Jong-koo, chief of the state disease control center of South Korea.) She has been under quarantine since returning earlier this week from Mexico, the epicenter of the disease.
Sixteen people in Mexico and one toddler in the U.S. have died from the disease. (More than 100 deaths have been reported in Mexico on 2nd May, 2009)More than 650 cases have been confirmed worldwide, with 397 in Mexico. Canada, Israel, New Zealand and more than a half-dozen European countries have also confirmed cases.
Though U.S. officials have already begun to express hope the epidemic may fizzle, authorities sprang into action in Hong Kong, where memories of 2003's deadly SARS outbreak are still fresh. Experts fear the disease will be more difficult to contain if it begins to spread through Asia's densely populated countries.
Health workers in white bodysuits patrolled the lobby of Metropark Hotel in Hong Kong early Saturday as guests picked up bottles of water, chocolate milk and bread before returning to their rooms by elevator. About a dozen police officers wearing masks guarded the building, which was cordoned off.
An Australian tourist who spent the night with friends in a Hong Kong suburb returned to the hotel Saturday morning to join the quarantine.
James Parer, 38, told reporters as he entered the hotel that he was not worried because the territory could draw on experience from its battle with SARS, severe acute respiratory disease.
"Hong Kong is the best place this could happen because it should be best prepared," said Parer, who was visiting Hong Kong from Brisbane to attend a trade fair.
During the 2003 SARS outbreak, an infected doctor who checked into a Hong Kong hotel later died, but not before infecting a resident of the Chinese territory and 16 other hotel guests. Those guests spread the virus internationally, which eventually killed more than 770 people, including 299 in Hong Kong.
Officials who did not initially impose quarantine measures during SARS were accused of responding slowly to the public health crisis.
But Kevin Ireland, visiting from India on a business trip, suggested officials were overreacting.
"I would prefer them to be practical, evaluate the risk more thoroughly before taking this stringent measure, but the government has different ways in approaching the issue," the 45-year-old told The Associated Press by phone.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/05/01/AR2009050101212.html
By DIKKY SINN and MIN LEE
The Associated Press Saturday, May 2, 2009; 12:49 AM
HONG KONG -- Hundreds of tourists and employees were under quarantine in a downtown Hong Kong hotel Saturday after a Mexican guest tested positive for swine flu. With the outbreak on its doorstep, China suspended direct flights from the Latin American country.
Hours after the first confirmed case in Asia was reported, the continent got its second: Tests showed a South Korean woman also had the disease. (It was confirmed by Lee Jong-koo, chief of the state disease control center of South Korea.) She has been under quarantine since returning earlier this week from Mexico, the epicenter of the disease.
Sixteen people in Mexico and one toddler in the U.S. have died from the disease. (More than 100 deaths have been reported in Mexico on 2nd May, 2009)More than 650 cases have been confirmed worldwide, with 397 in Mexico. Canada, Israel, New Zealand and more than a half-dozen European countries have also confirmed cases.
Though U.S. officials have already begun to express hope the epidemic may fizzle, authorities sprang into action in Hong Kong, where memories of 2003's deadly SARS outbreak are still fresh. Experts fear the disease will be more difficult to contain if it begins to spread through Asia's densely populated countries.
Health workers in white bodysuits patrolled the lobby of Metropark Hotel in Hong Kong early Saturday as guests picked up bottles of water, chocolate milk and bread before returning to their rooms by elevator. About a dozen police officers wearing masks guarded the building, which was cordoned off.
An Australian tourist who spent the night with friends in a Hong Kong suburb returned to the hotel Saturday morning to join the quarantine.
James Parer, 38, told reporters as he entered the hotel that he was not worried because the territory could draw on experience from its battle with SARS, severe acute respiratory disease.
"Hong Kong is the best place this could happen because it should be best prepared," said Parer, who was visiting Hong Kong from Brisbane to attend a trade fair.
During the 2003 SARS outbreak, an infected doctor who checked into a Hong Kong hotel later died, but not before infecting a resident of the Chinese territory and 16 other hotel guests. Those guests spread the virus internationally, which eventually killed more than 770 people, including 299 in Hong Kong.
Officials who did not initially impose quarantine measures during SARS were accused of responding slowly to the public health crisis.
But Kevin Ireland, visiting from India on a business trip, suggested officials were overreacting.
"I would prefer them to be practical, evaluate the risk more thoroughly before taking this stringent measure, but the government has different ways in approaching the issue," the 45-year-old told The Associated Press by phone.
My reaction
1. Mexican man is the first confirmed case of swine flu in Asia, Hong Kong
2. The passengers and the cabin crew who were on the same flight as the patient, guests and staff at the Metropark hotel have to come for the health check and will be quarantined for seven days
3. Hong Kong will use the temperature screening machines at the airport’s border point to screen people who are suffering from fever.
4. The health authority of Hong Kong will prescribe Tamiflu, which is proven to be an effective prophylactic for this disease for the patient.
5. Hong Kong authorities were trying to find the two taxi drivers who were in contact with the man and passengers on the flight from Shanghai.
2. The passengers and the cabin crew who were on the same flight as the patient, guests and staff at the Metropark hotel have to come for the health check and will be quarantined for seven days
3. Hong Kong will use the temperature screening machines at the airport’s border point to screen people who are suffering from fever.
4. The health authority of Hong Kong will prescribe Tamiflu, which is proven to be an effective prophylactic for this disease for the patient.
5. Hong Kong authorities were trying to find the two taxi drivers who were in contact with the man and passengers on the flight from Shanghai.
Conclusion
The Hong Kong authorities have sealed off the Metropark hotel 7 days, including about 300 people in the hotel to be quarantined after a Mexican guest was confirmed that he was infected the swine flu. It also stepped up its protection measures, including the use of temperature screening machines at airports and other entry points.
H1N1 influenza A caused by the strains of influenza virus that usually infected pig. It is now transmit through 18 countries such as Hong Kong, Canada, France, Germany, etc. It also has been kill more than 100 people around the world.
Certainly, People all over the world are concerning about the transmission of swine flu. WHO revealed that the vaccine can be made but it takes time about four to six months. It could be said that the patients all over the world can be cured.
"We don't have a policy on quarantining hotels in situations like this, but we like governments to be as sure as they can that they're controlling the situation rather than missing opportunities. So in that context, we're happy with what Hong Kong has done," said Peter Cordingley.
H1N1 influenza A caused by the strains of influenza virus that usually infected pig. It is now transmit through 18 countries such as Hong Kong, Canada, France, Germany, etc. It also has been kill more than 100 people around the world.
Certainly, People all over the world are concerning about the transmission of swine flu. WHO revealed that the vaccine can be made but it takes time about four to six months. It could be said that the patients all over the world can be cured.
"We don't have a policy on quarantining hotels in situations like this, but we like governments to be as sure as they can that they're controlling the situation rather than missing opportunities. So in that context, we're happy with what Hong Kong has done," said Peter Cordingley.
Sunday, April 26, 2009
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