CAIRO: The Ministry of Health reported eight swine flu related deaths during the Eid El-Adha break, which began Thursday, raising the death toll in Egypt to 21. Even though the ratio of death to infection is less than 1 percent, the increasing rate is worrying. On Thursday, the ministry announced the death of a 28-year-old man in Luxor who was suffering from severe flu symptoms as well as asthma. On Friday two more deaths were announced from the governorate of Minya, a 52-year-old woman who had diabetes and a 55-year-old man who suffered chronic lung diseases. Early Saturday, three deaths were announced, the first was a 17-year-old boy from Sixth of October governorate who was admitted to the hospital suffering from severe pneumonia and tested positive for H1N1. The second was a 28-year-old man from Alexandria and the third a 25-year-old woman from Beheira who had given birth two days earlier on Nov. 25. The ministry reported the seventh death on Saturday afternoon in a 30-year-old man from Cairo who entered Al Sadr Hospital in Giza on Nov. 26. He reportedly had difficulty breathing and was placed on a ventilator. He was also suffering from the chronic skin disease, Psoriasis, and was taking cortisone. On Sunday, the ministry reported the death of a 28-year-old man from Helwan. The patient was admitted to the hospital on Nov. 24 suffering severe respiratory diseases. He was also having difficulty breathing and was put on a ventilator. In the last swine flu update released by the Ministry of Health last Wednesday, there were 3,216 cases of H1N1 reported. These include 1,213 cases in schools and 169 cases in universities. Ninety-four percent of the patients have completely recovered while 181 are still undergoing treatment. The ministry had announced earlier in the month that it would stop its daily updates of the number of H1N1 cases discovered in Egypt starting Nov. 25. Meanwhile, the Saudi health minister says five people have died from the H1N1 flu virus during the annual Hajj. Abdullah Al-Rabeeah said Sunday authorities recorded 73 cases of H1N1, commonly known as swine flu, during the pilgrimage. He said only 10 percent of the some 3 million pilgrims were vaccinated against the virus. -Additional reporting by AP
