African swine flu

The 2009 flu pandemic hit Africa two months later than other continents with the first case reported in Egypt on June 2, 2009. As of December 1, 30 countries in Africa had reported cases and 7 countries in Africa had reported a total of 108 deaths.

Symptoms of H1N1 swine flu are like regular flu symptoms and include fever, cough, sore throat, runny nose, body aches, headache, chills, and fatigue. Many people with swine flu have had diarrhea and vomiting, but these symptoms can also be caused by many other conditions. That means that you and your doctor can't know, just based on your symptoms, if you've got swine flu. Health care professionals may offer a rapid flu test, although a negative result doesn't mean you don't have the flu. The accuracy of the test depends on the quality of the manufacturer’s test, the sample collection method, and how much of the virus a person is emitting at the time of testing.

Like seasonal flu, pandemic swine flu can cause neurological symptoms in children. These events are rare, but, as cases associated with seasonal flu have shown, they can be very severe and often fatal. Symptoms include seizures or changes in mental status (confusion or sudden cognitive or behavioral changes). It's not clear why these symptoms occur, although they may be caused by Reye's syndrome. Reye's syndrome usually occurs in children with a viral illness who have taken aspirin -- something that should always be avoided.

A first case of swine influenza was detected in Algeria on June 20. This was an Algerian national, resident in Frankfurt and coming from Miami with her two children.

This first case was detected at Houari Boumediene Airport. Many Algerian immigrants and tourists were arriving during this holiday period, increasing the risk of spreading the virus. The woman suffering from flu was immediately transferred to the hospital of El-Kettar’ in Algiers.

As of May 2, 2009 there was one suspected case of swine flu in Benin.

The Egyptian government increased numbers of medical officers at Cairo Airport and pledged to monitor passengers from Mexico during their stay.

The government ordered the mass slaughter of all pigs in Egypt on April 29, even though the pandemic strain was a human-human transmittable, human influenza that has already previously hybridized with avian and swine flu. The World Organization for Animal Health called the swine killing "scientifically unjustified".

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Wikipedia