Second suspected case of swine flu reported in Israel

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(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-04-27 21:16

JERUSALEM -- A second case of suspected swine flu has been reported Monday in Israel, after a man who returned from Mexico checked himself into a Kfar Saba hospital complaining of a sore throat, local daily Ha'aretz reported.

The 47-year-old patient will remain under quarantine until his test results are released in the coming days, said the report, adding that hospital officials said the chances that he has swine flu are low.

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Swine Flu Outbreak

The first suspected case of swine flu in the Jewish state was reported on Sunday, when a man who had returned from a trip to Mexico was hospitalized in Netanya under quarantine with flu-like symptoms.

After the 26-year-old man was placed under quarantine, Israel began to take measures to combat a potential outbreak of the disease.

On Monday, Israel's Deputy Health Minister Yakov Litzman held a press conference to update the public on developments regarding the epidemic in Israel, and recommended to use the term "Mexican flu" rather than "swine flu" for the virus.

He said that there was no indication that the virus has made it to Israel, but due to the constant air traffic between Israel and the United States, cautionary measures and monitoring were required.

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak in Mexico and the United States a "public health emergency of international concern" and urged all countries to keep a close watch for outbreaks of influenza-like illness.

Swine flu is a respiratory disease that infects pigs and does not normally infect humans. But sporadic cases do occur, usually for people who have had close contact with pigs.