There is no need for panic, say officials, as Egypt confirms its first case of swine flu, Reem Leila reports A 12-year-old Egyptian-American girl who arrived in Cairo for family visit on 1 June has been confirmed as Egypt's first case of H1N1 influenza, commonly known as swine flu. The girl had arrived with her mother from the US, travelling via the Netherlands. The case is the first in Africa and the 24th in the Middle East. During a press conference on Tuesday Minister of Health Hatem El-Gabali said the girl, who is from the US state of Minnesota and is of Egyptian origin, had been found to have a high temperature on arrival. The following day laboratory tests confirmed she had the virus. "The girl had been suffering from a running nose and 39 degree fever since Saturday. She has been admitted to hospital and given Tamiflu, the most common treatment in such cases. She is in a stable condition and was released from hospital on Wednesday," says El-Gabali. Swabs taken from the mother and the other 145 passengers on the flight were tested at NAMRU3 and at laboratories in London and the US. All have tested negative for the virus. The World Health Organisation (WHO) announced on Monday that it has received 17,410 reports of cases in 62 countries, of which 115 patients have died. The bulk of cases -- 10,053 -- are from the US. The WHO has raised the level of swine influenza pandemic alert to phase five. Egypt, the most populous Arab country, controversially decided to cull the country's estimated 350,000 pigs. To date more than 150,000 pigs have been slaughtered. Already hit by the highly pathogenic bird flu virus, officials fear swine flu could spread quickly in a country where the population of 80 million people lives in the densely packed Nile Valley, many in crowded slums. Hassan El-Bushra, regional adviser for communicable disease surveillance at the WHO, says the Health Ministry is in continuous contact with the 145 passengers who were on the same flight as the girl. Passengers have been told to watch for symptoms and report to a doctor immediately if they begin to feel ill. "Each passenger has been issued with a card, allowing the Ministry of Health to monitor their cases," confirmed El-Gabali. The Health Ministry has announced that quarantine doctors will be paid a three-month bonus in recognition of their performance. Abdel-Rahman Shahin, official spokesman to the Health Ministry, points out that "detecting this case is evidence of the excellent performance of doctors and of the effectiveness of the systems put in place to prevent the entry of the virus to the country". Ahmed Abdel-Latif, WHO director in Egypt, believes Egypt's experience in dealing with the H5N1 strain of bird flu places it in a good position when it comes to tackling swine flu. He warns, however, that swine flu is potentially a far greater challenge since it can be easily transmitted between humans. During the press conference El-Gabali announced that no further exceptional precautionary measures would be taken for the time being. "People are being asked to ensure they abide by basic standards of cleanliness," he said. "And within the coming few days the Ministry of Health, in cooperation with the Ministry of Transport, will start sterilising all forms of public transport."
