Swine flu claims lives of four in Syria amid crisis

The ongoing fighting in Syria and the lawlessness in several parts of the country has led to the emergence of some diseases, notably the swine flu that has reportedly claimed the lives of four people in the central city of Hama amid official confirmation of suspected 36 cases. The Lebanese al-Safir newspaper recently cited medical sources as saying that the swine flu caused the death of four people in Hama as Syria's Health Ministry Sa'ad Nayef told the local al- Watan daily that there are some 36 suspected cases, 11 of which came positive. The virus re-emerged in Syria after an absence of five years. Some suspected cases were also detected in the provinces of Tartous and Homs. Medical sources confirmed that the disease is curable, especially in its early stages, but the misdiagnosis is the main reason for the spread and caused the death of citizens. The return of a (H1N1) pandemic to Syria comes at a time when the country's security situation is deteriorating and fighting in many of the provinces is still ongoing. Swine flu spread in Syria in 2009, and at that time the government announced its presence as a global epidemic, and took all measures to reduce infections and deaths. Al-Nayyef said in a statement published by al-Watan newspaper that the total number of suspected cases stood at 36 cases, 11 of them were positive and the remaining were either negative or under laboratory analysis. He added that there were nine dead whose cases were associated with chronic diseases, such as cardiac arrests or diabetes, which are classified as being of high risk that cause bad complications and then death. The minister confirmed that the ministry has formed, soon after the WHO revelation of swine flu cases in the region, joint workshops for doctors working in intensive care units about the measures of diagnosis and control.