JEDDAH: Director of Preventive Medicine at the Health Directorate in Jeddah Dr. Adel Turkistani told Arab News that the directorate has not implemented any quarantines of persons infected with the H1N1 virus.
“The infected people are sent to their homes if their cases are not serious enough to be admitted in hospital. A problem with the H1N1 virus symptoms is that they are not different from the symptoms of ordinary flu,” Turkistani told Arab News on Friday. “The directorate, however, is implementing all recommendations to counter the spread of swine flu made by the Ministry of Health and the World Health Organization particularly when dealing with passengers arriving from abroad.”
The director added that the number of swine flu cases in Jeddah has numbered about 30 with no fatalities.
The largest number of deaths, three, were reported from the Eastern Province followed by two in Riyadh and one each in Qassim and Asir provinces.
The director urged people to avoid crowds, particularly places crowded with foreigners, like bus stops. He also recommended frequent washing of hands and wearing gloves and masks in the areas close to the Grand Mosque where people from different countries assemble.
The director also appealed to people not to hesitate to go for medical checkups if they notice signs of the illness.
The director also said the ministry is currently preparing a special plan to counter the spread of the illness.
In another development, a 38-year-old Bahraini woman coming from Jeddah and a 19-year-old youth returning from Umrah tested positive for H1N1 out of 18 cases in Manama on Thursday.
On Wednesday, a 28-year-old Saudi man from Jeddah was infected with the virus. He is presently being quarantined along with other flu cases at the Ebrahim Khalil Kanoo Health center. Several Bahraini patients who are being quarantined returned from neighboring countries such as Dubai, Kuwait, Egypt and Iran.
