The current outbreak of H1N1 influenza is not over yet, according to a health official.
This flu strand will most likely continue until April, Bassam Hijjawi, director of the health ministry’s disease control department, told The Jordan Times over the phone on Saturday, noting that H1N1 “will continue to spread”.
Responding to news reports claiming that the H1N1 outbreak is declining since the National Committee for the Prevention of Epidemics decided to announce new cases once a week instead of on a daily basis, Hijjawi said the strand will resurface in the coming years as well.
“The committee’s decision came upon a recommendation from the World Health Organisation… countries around the world no longer announce H1N1 cases as the disease has became a part of the seasonal flu,” Hijjawi highlighted.
He also referred to the WHO’s instructions to monitor any mutation in the virus, particularly as its first appearance was in 2009.
The committee, presided over by Health Minister Mahmoud Sheyyab, announced last week that the ministry will only announce the number of cases on its website on a weekly basis.
According to the ministry’s website, the total number of H1N1 cases reached 203 as of Wednesday, while 12 swine flu-related deaths have been recorded since the strand re-emerged on December 11.
In 2009, 3,049, H1N1 cases were registered in the Kingdom with 16 swine flu-related fatalities. Over 45,000 people have been inoculated against the H1N1 virus since November 2009.
By Laila Azzeh
Jordan Times