Durban - The spread of flu this year appears to be under control, an influenza surveillance report compiled by the National Institute of Communicable Diseases, has found.
Statistics were provided by hospitals and clinics.
For example, of the 346 patients exhibiting flu-like symptoms at the Edendale Gateway Clinic in Pietermaritzburg, only 35 tested positive for the H1N1 strain (swine flu).
There were 11 patients and 22 others suffering the effects of the A strain (H3N2) and B strain respectively.
The report draws from several sources, including primary health clinics and Viral Watch (VW) sites, Severe Acute Respiratory Illness (Sari) and the respiratory consultations and hospitalisations surveillance system.
“Surveillance at primary health-care clinics was started in 2012 at two clinics in two provinces; four additional clinics were added in 2013.”
Viral Watch, the report said, was a “sentinel influenza surveillance programme” started in 1984 in Gauteng and expanded from 2005 to include all nine provinces.
“The majority (90 percent) of the sentinel sites are general practitioners. Respiratory specimens (throat, nasal swabs or nasopharyngeal aspirates) are collected from patients of all ages meeting the case definition, which is an acute respiratory illness with a measured temperature of 38ºC, or a history of fever, and cough, with onset within the past 10 days prior to consultation.”
The organisation said that nationally influenza A(H1N1) accounted for 51.4 percent, Influenza A(H3N2) for 58.1 percent, and influenza B for 7.6 percent of cases with confirmed influenza.
Daily News