Thirty Suspected Swine Flu Cases In Phuket

[george]

Thirty suspected swine flu cases in Phuket

PHUKET: -- Four tourists in Phuket are suspected of being infected with swine flu and are currently in quarantine in Phuket hospitals.

According to the Phuket Provincial Public Health Office, three of the quarantined tourists are believed to be Pakistani nationals. They were immediately quarantined at Patong Hospital after thermo scanners showed they were suffering from high fevers.

The fourth tourist is a Thai national who has been quarantined at a “private hospital”, according to a report on Thai-language news website Manager Online.

Blood samples from all four have been sent to the Regional Medical Sciences Center in Surat Thani for testing.

Blood samples from 26 Patong nightclub employees were also sent for testing at the center. They reported coughing and flu symptoms after coming into contact with a Hong Kong tourist who came down with swine flu during a stay in Patong. For our previous report, click here.

That man is currently being treated in Princess Margaret Hospital in Hong Kong. He stayed in Patong from June 4 to June 8.

On June 7, he began to show flu symptoms and was diagnosed with swine flu upon his return to Hong Kong.

Phuket Public Health Office (PPHO) Director Dr Pongsawas Ratanasang told Manager that the PPHO has been in communication with the stricken Hong Kong man via the internet.

Dr Pongsawas said the man reported visiting “many countries” before his stay in Phuket.

The PPHO have yet to identify which country the man was infected in.

While in Patong he stayed at one hotel and visited three or four nightclubs, the report quoted Dr Pongsawas as saying.

PPHO officials have examined employees of these establishments to determine if any were infected after coming into contact with the man.

Of 100 people examined, 26 showed flu symptoms. They are now receiving treatment and their blood samples have been sent to the Regional Medical Sciences Center in Surat Thani for testing.

Dr Phadungkiat Uthoksaynee of the PPHO said the results should be released “within one to three days’ time”.

-- Phuket Gazette 2009-06-12

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[kuffki]

Well only few words to say now!

Bye Bye Thai tourism. Those heat scanners in the airport must of been a really good investment.

[george]

Number of influenza patients reach 89 Monday

BANGKOK: -- Thai Public Health Ministry on Friday reported 43 new cases of the influenza 2009, bringing the number of the cases in Thailand to 89.

Permanent Secretary for health Dr Prat Bunyawongwirote said that of the number, 37 received treatment from private hospitals in Bangkok, one from Songkhla and Phuket each and three from Pattaya.

World Health Organisation on Friday declared the flu has escalated into the world's first influenza pandemic in 40 years after infecting tens of thousands of people in 74 countries.

-- The Nation 2009-06-12

[chiang mai]

I'm told that the Bahn Thai Hotel has also been quarantined.

[Padrino]

it may be spreading but the symptoms seem to be milder than the usual flu we get in the UK. The reason people died in Mexico initially was because of poor and slow access to medical treatment.

[spidermike007]

This is such a non-issue. This will never amount to anything really serious. Between 250,000 and 500,000 people die annually,

worldwide, from the normal flu. So far, 141 people have died of the swine flu, this year. Compared to approximately 125,000

to date this year for the other flu. Which flu would you rather have? Of the 27,000 people infected to date, 141 have died. Do

the math. This is a media based hysteria. There is nothing to it. I am not concerning myself for a nanosecond over this.

[chiang mai]

This is such a non-issue. This will never amount to anything really serious. Between 250,000 and 500,000 people die annually,

worldwide, from the normal flu. So far, 141 people have died of the swine flu, this year. Compared to approximately 125,000

to date this year for the other flu. Which flu would you rather have? Of the 27,000 people infected to date, 141 have died. Do

the math. This is a media based hysteria. There is nothing to it. I am not concerning myself for a nanosecond over this.

I somewhat agree with your sentiment but you might perhaps look at the problem from the perspective of a Thai business owner or native resident in Phuket, the news is simply not good and compounds existing problems to date - livelihoods are suffering very badly already. The other aspect of course is the fear factor that is most evident and that's not helpful in a poorly educated and frequently mis informed society.

[SeanPhuket]

This is such a non-issue. This will never amount to anything really serious. Between 250,000 and 500,000 people die annually,

worldwide, from the normal flu. So far, 141 people have died of the swine flu, this year. Compared to approximately 125,000

to date this year for the other flu. Which flu would you rather have? Of the 27,000 people infected to date, 141 have died. Do

the math. This is a media based hysteria. There is nothing to it. I am not concerning myself for a nanosecond over this.

spidermike007,

ENOUGH SAID!!

Now Mods close this topic!

[hEaDy]

This is such a non-issue. This will never amount to anything really serious. Between 250,000 and 500,000 people die annually,

worldwide, from the normal flu. So far, 141 people have died of the swine flu, this year. Compared to approximately 125,000

to date this year for the other flu. Which flu would you rather have? Of the 27,000 people infected to date, 141 have died. Do

the math. This is a media based hysteria. There is nothing to it. I am not concerning myself for a nanosecond over this.

I totally agree with your attitude.

So who's paying the controlled media to hype this up and get all the sheeple scared?

And why is Thai Visa bothering to make a statistic into breaking news?

Lets just have some good news - even if it's just imaginary, we'd all feel better

[chefshane]

This is such a non-issue. This will never amount to anything really serious. Between 250,000 and 500,000 people die annually,

worldwide, from the normal flu. So far, 141 people have died of the swine flu, this year. Compared to approximately 125,000

to date this year for the other flu. Which flu would you rather have? Of the 27,000 people infected to date, 141 have died. Do

the math. This is a media based hysteria. There is nothing to it. I am not concerning myself for a nanosecond over this.

spidermike007,

ENOUGH SAID!!

Now Mods close this topic!

well you'll always see a load of shabby looking swine staggering around Bangla around any given night between 2am and sunrise.

Many are coughing.

It's hardly surprising

:-)

[chiang mai]

This is such a non-issue. This will never amount to anything really serious. Between 250,000 and 500,000 people die annually,

worldwide, from the normal flu. So far, 141 people have died of the swine flu, this year. Compared to approximately 125,000

to date this year for the other flu. Which flu would you rather have? Of the 27,000 people infected to date, 141 have died. Do

the math. This is a media based hysteria. There is nothing to it. I am not concerning myself for a nanosecond over this.

I totally agree with your attitude.

So who's paying the controlled media to hype this up and get all the sheeple scared?

And why is Thai Visa bothering to make a statistic into breaking news?

Lets just have some good news - even if it's just imaginary, we'd all feel better

Perhaps you should educate yourself and review the potential for the current H1N1 virus to combine with the far more deadly Bird Flu virus that is more or less endemic in this region, the result of that mating would likely mirror or exceed the effects of the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic that killed over 50 million. Whilst the current "bug" has a low fatality rate it its human to human transmission rate is exceptional - the bird flu virus by way of contrast has low transmission rate but its kill rate is exceptionally high. That's why the WHO and TV publish these notes so that people can understand. Got it now!

[astral]

Reports from overseas suggest that the Swine Fever is quite mild

and mainly affects the younger members of society with less resistance.

Is this the case in Thailand??

[harleyclarkey]

Right on....the media got their wings flapping over the bird flu.....and ended up egg all over their face.

Remember SARS? The end of the world??? Another Sad And Ridiculous Story.

Now we have to endure swine fever/flu. Are they telling us porkies!!??

[VitalGirl]

Well only few words to say now!

Bye Bye Thai tourism. Those heat scanners in the airport must of been a really good investment.

Bye bye tourism? Are you for real? It's a global thing now, in case you don't read the papers... you think some Australian or American is going to decide not to come to Thailand because we have a few suspected cases while they have 1,000+ already confirmed?? Get a grip, put the beer away, buy a real newspaper and read some editorial.

[geriatrickid]

This is such a non-issue. This will never amount to anything really serious. Between 250,000 and 500,000 people die annually,

worldwide, from the normal flu. So far, 141 people have died of the swine flu, this year. Compared to approximately 125,000

to date this year for the other flu. Which flu would you rather have? Of the 27,000 people infected to date, 141 have died. Do

the math. This is a media based hysteria. There is nothing to it. I am not concerning myself for a nanosecond over this.

spidermike007,

ENOUGH SAID!!

Now Mods close this topic!

If you wish to downplay the seriousness of the situation in respect to your own health, go for it. However, this virus is alot more dangerous than you think or appreciate. Flu season is now starting in Australia and parts of SE Asia. It will grow exponentially. As more people are infected, the host pool grows and the opportunity for adaptation and mutation grows as well. What we will see is a mild form for a little longer and then this flu strain is going to come back and most likely match the mortality and severity of a very potent strain. What makes this flu of concern is that it has spread rapidly and that it can go undetected in the population. It's not the initial cases that are the worry, but rather what happens after a few months of the flu growing and developing in populations which are fertile places to mutate and adapt.

When reference is made to the people that die due to flu, you discount the fact that the population dying is the at risk population; They are already infirm, have impaired immune systems or are either elderly or very young. The swine flu strains are hitting the population segment that is not at risk and that's a major concern. Viruses don't sit still. They are constantly mutating. These mutations mean that sooner or later, new population segments will become susceptible. Keep in mind that this virus is special as it incorporates code from other severe flu strains which acts to facilitate adaptation and most likely potency.

Numbers of reported infections are not the only indicator of danger. If you lived next door to a nuclear waste dump, would you be concerned? That dump was built to the highest of standards and was 99% foolproof. All it takes is one series of incidents, perhaps even chance and all of a sudden there is a nuclear waste leak. Well, with an infectious virus, the percentage is somewhere down around 75%, which at face value is still good, unless you are the one that's exposed.

[block2]

"Lets just have some good news - even if it's just imaginary, we'd all feel better "

The £'s going up against the baht..happy days

[Jingthing]

This isn't a Thai story. It's a global story. The WHO thinks it probable that one third of the entire world population will be getting this FIRST wave of the virus. The later waves, that is what to worry about for most most people.

The heat detectors were always a joke. It had always been impossible to prevent this from entering Thailand.

I also think it is quite possible that tens of thousand ALREADY have this in Thailand. It is in its current state a mild illness for most, and the vast majority will not even go to a doctor.

So far it appears that the only people with any resistance to this are people above age 58.

Edited June 12, 2009 by Jingthing

[ohdearohdearohdear]

"Lets just have some good news - even if it's just imaginary, we'd all feel better "

The £'s going up against the baht..happy days

The Aussie Dollar is improving and Thai Airways are offering some good deals at last

[chefshane]

Right on....the media got their wings flapping over the bird flu.....and ended up egg all over their face.

Remember SARS? The end of the world??? Another Sad And Ridiculous Story.

Now we have to endure swine fever/flu. Are they telling us porkies!!??

But I must say my hat comes off to the first poster, one of the indefatiguable armchair expert brigade with a shoulderful of 'glass half full'

Indeed, one of the very judges and executioners that would have brazenly stepped forward to point the finger if scanners were NOT put in.

From a population of 61.5 million in a tropical environment a few hundred get the flu, and old Nostradamus here sparks up like a wind up toy with a car battery up its arse.

I have developed a high tech way of detecting these kinds of people at the airport so we can catch them before they get in and quarantine them.

A high pitch sound monitoring device.

When the plane lands and the turbines stop turning, if the whining continues, just stride on board in hazmat suits and drag them out.

Yes, development of such a virus into a supervirus is something to take cautionary measures and maybe over react to rather than under react.

But only two factors are really at issue here.

The media blowing it out of proportion to sell advertising space with circulation figures, and the dreary negative bunch of whingeing swine that sit snuffling and sneezing over their keyboards as they search the forums for things to be glum, fearful and resentful of.

It's hardly Churchill, is it?

Stiff upper lip, fighting them on the beaches with proud British determination and vigour.

Shells whistling overhead, they strike a pose of courage and rightfulness as they strive for justice and truth.

No.

Screw that.

Go online and glumly forecast the end of days whenever you can possibly twist it out of a topic.

Good comedy folks.

Love it.

Seriously, I'm slapping my knees.

Do a search. Every topic. Hardly anything is sacred from the "Oh no, I told you so. Now it's all finished" brigade.

Hilarious.

I used to shake my head, but now I actually read them all for the entertainment value.

[beerchang]

Well only few words to say now!

Bye Bye Thai tourism. Those heat scanners in the airport must of been a really good investment.

Yeah! Bye bye Thai tourism, Maybe you should try Mexico for your next holiday. Those heat scanners found out 3 people traveling with the virus who were unanware of having it. They are now in quarantine and not spreading the virus. So yes, you have actually made an intelligent statement there Kuffki. Pretty good investment I'd say. Now try and open your mind a little eh.

[Jingthing]

I don't think y'all get it yet. The genie is out of the bottle. Now it is hand washing time.

Pandemic means the first wave almost definitely WILL spread widely across all country's populations. Nothing sheeple-y about, just grow up and face reality.

Edited June 12, 2009 by Jingthing

[ding]

Thai tourism should not be suffering. Thailand has a small number of cases compared to the USA's 1,325 swine flu cases.

http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/update.htm

I have more confidence that US numbers are more accurate these days, and have some confidence Thailand is dealing with this very rationaly, but TIT -I know... we'll see

[buddyholly1]

This is such a non-issue. This will never amount to anything really serious. Between 250,000 and 500,000 people die annually,

worldwide, from the normal flu. So far, 141 people have died of the swine flu, this year. Compared to approximately 125,000

to date this year for the other flu. Which flu would you rather have? Of the 27,000 people infected to date, 141 have died. Do

the math. This is a media based hysteria. There is nothing to it. I am not concerning myself for a nanosecond over this.

The Thaivisa resident medical expert speaks again. You still do not seem to have grasped the fact that we do not have immunity to the swine flu, giving it the opportunity to spread widely and possibly mutate into something more dangerous.

You say you are not concerned for a nanosecond, but seem to be concerned enough to post your uninformed nonsense here.

[chiang mai]

This isn't a Thai story. It's a global story. The WHO thinks it probable that one third of the entire world population will be getting this FIRST wave of the virus. The later waves, that is what to worry about for most most people.

I also think it is quite possible that tens of thousand ALREADY have this in Thailand. It is in its current state a mild illness for most, and the vast majority will not even go to a doctor.

So far it appears that the only people with any resistance to this are people above age 58.

I've also long thought that large numbers of the population probably already have a very mild form of the disease but it's interesting that you raise that point also - do you have any sources that lead you to that belief or is it just a supposition?

[harleyclarkey]

Right on....the media got their wings flapping over the bird flu.....and ended up egg all over their face.

Remember SARS? The end of the world??? Another Sad And Ridiculous Story.

Now we have to endure swine fever/flu. Are they telling us porkies!!??

But I must say my hat comes off to the first poster, one of the indefatiguable armchair expert brigade with a shoulderful of 'glass half full'

Indeed, one of the very judges and executioners that would have brazenly stepped forward to point the finger if scanners were NOT put in.

From a population of 61.5 million in a tropical environment a few hundred get the flu, and old Nostradamus here sparks up like a wind up toy with a car battery up its arse.

I have developed a high tech way of detecting these kinds of people at the airport so we can catch them before they get in and quarantine them.

A high pitch sound monitoring device.

When the plane lands and the turbines stop turning, if the whining continues, just stride on board in hazmat suits and drag them out.

Yes, development of such a virus into a supervirus is something to take cautionary measures and maybe over react to rather than under react.

But only two factors are really at issue here.

The media blowing it out of proportion to sell advertising space with circulation figures, and the dreary negative bunch of whingeing swine that sit snuffling and sneezing over their keyboards as they search the forums for things to be glum, fearful and resentful of.

It's hardly Churchill, is it?

Stiff upper lip, fighting them on the beaches with proud British determination and vigour.

Shells whistling overhead, they strike a pose of courage and rightfulness as they strive for justice and truth.

No.

Screw that.

Go online and glumly forecast the end of days whenever you can possibly twist it out of a topic.

Good comedy folks.

Love it.

Seriously, I'm slapping my knees.

Do a search. Every topic. Hardly anything is sacred from the "Oh no, I told you so. Now it's all finished" brigade.

Hilarious.

I used to shake my head, but now I actually read them all for the entertainment value.

I'm in a right quandry here....why pick on little old me???

But then we all know the papers print pig manure on the swine fever issue...as they have on the other pan epidemics. No, I won't be heading to my defunct air raid shelter just yet.

[Jingthing]

I've also long thought that large numbers of the population probably already have a very mild form of the disease but it's interesting that you raise that point also - do you have any sources that lead you to that belief or is it just a supposition?

Its based on reports out of Mexico. It was massively UNDERREPORTED. Flu experts have known this from the beginning. This first wave is not what most people should be worried about. Its the later waves that are really scary and nobody knows what that will bring. I am also sure it is underreported in the US. Over 50 million people don't have health care access there, they are not going to go to the doc over a mild flu, in fact, they will WORK with it, spreading it more, same thing that is happening here.

BTW, in the US it is recommended that those with a MILD CASE do not go to the doctor, at all! Going spreads the virus and taxes the health care system. Here in Thailand, the hysterical officials are suggesting the opposite, everyone go and possibly face government isolation. That is insane. What happens when 20 million people in Thailand get the first wave virus, all going to the doctor?

This is a situation that will play out over months and YEARS. It is not like a tsunami and it is easy for the sheeple squawking people to say it was nothing, it is over, when it has really just BEGUN.

Edited June 12, 2009 by Jingthing

[chiang mai]

I've also long thought that large numbers of the population probably already have a very mild form of the disease but it's interesting that you raise that point also - do you have any sources that lead you to that belief or is it just a supposition?

Its based on reports out of Mexico. It was massively UNDERREPORTED. Flu experts have known this from the beginning. This first wave is not what most people should be worried about. Its the later waves that are really scary and nobody knows what that will bring. I am also sure it is underreported in the US. Over 50 million people don't have health care access there, they are not going to go to the doc over a mild flu, in fact, they will WORK with it, spreading it more, same thing that is happening here.

BTW, in the US it is recommended that those with a MILD CASE do not go to the doctor, at all! Going spreads the virus and taxes the health care system. Here in Thailand, the hysterical officials are suggesting the opposite, everyone go and possibly face government isolation. That is insane. What happens when 20 million people in Thailand get the first wave virus, all going to the doctor?

This is a situation that will play out over months and YEARS. It is not like a tsunami and it is easy for the sheeple squawking people to say it was nothing, it is over, when it has really just BEGUN.

That makes sense, thanks. I agree this is probably just the start of something very nasty that may take time to unfold.

[Jingthing]

That makes sense, thanks. I agree this is probably just the start of something very nasty that may take time to unfold.

However, there is no reason to panic. There is no reason to think a repeat of 1918 is probable either. But as these things go, there will be later waves and the virus will be different by then.

[Smee]

According to doctors I have spoken to swine flu is - so far - not as seroius (dangerous) as "regular" flu. The media may have hyped it up has been suggested, but the fact remains that it could possibly mutate into something far more serious. I m begining to think it may be better to catch it now rather than later, which would presumably build up resistance in one's body and prevent infection from more serious strain later on - though I may be completely wrong of course. As a father of three young kids, any issues that could potentialy affect their health and safety are of concern to me, so I am prepared to suffer the possibility that media hype has blown this out of proportion so long as I am kept informed of the basic facts, in this case, the known locations of the curnnet wave of infections. Its a trade off: on the one hand facts are thin on te ground, on the other, I am grateful that raw information is available allowing me to make somewhat informed decisions - such as whether I should be considering taking my children out of school or not. Anyone that beleives everything they see, hear or read in news reports is obviosly a few degrees short of a thermometer. But to reject media reports out of hand is equally shortsighted. The hard part is deciding which parts are relevant, but better to havbe too much onformation than none at all in my opinion. Thanks to Thai Visa for providing a forum where opinions can be expressed and personal decisions honed.

[phuketster]

Anyone know which clubs and hotel in Patong this article's referring to?