First British Swine Flu Death is Confirmed in Scotland

Hospital patient is first person outside the Americas to have been killed by H1N1 virus
A patient suffering from swine flu has died in hospital in Scotland, becoming the first person outside the Americas to have been killed by the virus.

The Scottish government disclosed that the patient, thought to be from the Glasgow area and one of 10 Scots in hospital with the H1N1 virus, had underlying health problems.

The announcement came after health officials said earlier today that nearly 500 people in Scotland had now been diagnosed with the virus, with a large majority in the Greater Glasgow and Clyde health board area.

The Scottish government released a statement shortly before 8pm tonight, stating: "With regret, we can confirm that one of the patients who had been in hospital and had been confirmed as suffering from the H1N1 virus, has died today.

"At the family's request, to allow them some time to come to terms with their loss, no further details will be released tonight."

The death follows repeated warnings from the Scottish health secretary, Nicola Sturgeon, that swine flu was likely to continue spreading, after it became clear last week that efforts to contain the virus had failed.

Last week, Scottish ministers pre-empted a World Health Organization decision to declare a world wide pandemic on Wednesday by announcing that it was widespread in the community, particularly in Glasgow and in two nearby towns, Paisley and Dunoon.

Sturgeon had also warned that a fatality was inevitable, although officials had hoped that this first wave of infections would subside quickly, before a more intense surge of cases in the autumn.

Although more than 1,000 Britons and over 680 elsewhere in Europe have contracted H1N1, until today fatalities had been confined to north, central and south America. The latest WHO swine flu bulletin said on Friday there had been 145 confirmed deaths, chiefly in Mexico and the United States.

Earlier today, the Scottish government reported there were 498 cases confirmed so far, after 35 new cases were confirmed, with 32 of those in the Greater Glasgow and Clyde health board area.

The Health Protection Agency in England reported 61 fresh cases, chiefly in the Birmingham area, where health officials believe there is a similar rate of infections to the Glasgow area, bringing the UK total to 1,251. Of the 752 cases confirmed in England, 354 are in the West Midlands.Speaking before the death emerged, Sturgeon said: "We continue to see a rise in cases of H1N1 around the world, and Scotland is not isolated from that.

"Given the number of cases being confirmed in the West Midlands, there is an indication that the area is experiencing a level of spread similar to what we are seeing in Scotland.

"We remain one of the best prepared countries in the world and, as in every other country, the vast majority of people contracting the virus are experiencing relatively mild symptoms."

© Guardian News & Media 2008
Published: 6/14/2009
 
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