They told Okaz/Saudi Gazette that the true diagnosis was withheld from some people to “avoid a scare”.
A medical source who preferred to remain nameless told Okaz/Saudi Gazette that a number of people had sought hospital attention for high temperatures and subsequently tested positive for the H1N1 virus.
However, Khaled Al-Marghalani, the spokesman for the Ministry of Health, said that there was no cause for alarm.
“(Swine flu) has become a normal illness, and there are no fears of it spreading,” he said. “People contract the virus across the Kingdom and the world, are given the necessary treatment at hospital, and are cured without even knowing they had it. Every health facility in every region and every village in the Kingdom has the necessary medication.”
Al-Marghalani reiterated that the Ministry of Health is continually at the ready to supply all vaccinations and medications required, particularly ahead of winter. “According to the World Health Organization, swine flu has gone beyond the sixth level and does not represent a threat to humans, meaning that it should be handled in the same way as normal flu,” he said.
Saudi Gazette