MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Influenza ‘A’ strain hits Argentina: 7 dead in Buenos Aires province, one in Cordoba

Buenos Aires province director of health primary care Luis Crovetto made the information public

Buenos Aires province health authorities confirmed on Monday that seven people have died in the last month from the influenza A virus and 40 people have been reported infected by the H1N1 strain. However the authorities do not consider it an epidemic behaviour similar to that of 2009.

According to the Buenos Aires province director of health primary care Luis Crovetto, four deaths were reported in the localities of San Martín, Tornquist, Hurlingham and Mar del Plata. Other three fatal victims were reported at Cetrángolo Hospital, located in Vicente López, in the Northern area of Buenos Aires province.

“We have 40 cases in the province, 5 or 6 more than in the same period of last year, but we are certainly not before an outbreak” Crovetto said adding one of them is hospitalized in a serious condition in Quilmes locality.

”The disease is not registering an epidemic behaviour like in 2009,” he explained but urged people to get the flu vaccine. “This does not mean concern but rather awareness”, he insisted.

Dr Salvador Pace medical chief of the Cetrangolo Hospital said that they received four patients, three died and the other one is in serious condition. However they were ‘middle age cases with associated weaknesses which made them more vulnerable, and they were not vaccinated”.

Last Thursday the province of Cordoba in Central Argentina reported the first fatal case of the A flu H1N1 strain. Currently there are forty hospitalized patients in Cordoba with the symptoms and long queues waiting to be vaccinated.