Published: Wednesday, 10th June, 2009 1:13pm

Wee County"s first cases of swine flu

by Elaine Birse

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SWINE flu has reached the Wee County. A Menstrie woman was confirmed as the first case of Influenza A (H1N1) in Clackmannanshire on Friday.

It is understood she picked up the virus from a confirmed case outside the area.

On Saturday her husband and a man and a woman from Tillicoultry were diagnosed with the virus - bringing the total number of confirmed cases in Forth Valley over the last month to 10.

A further six probable cases and one possible case are still being investigated.

The four from Clackmannanshire are being treated at home with anti-virals and health officials say their condition is not giving cause for concern and contacts of the individuals are being followed up.

NHS Forth Valley Medical Director Dr Gareth Davies said, 'We continue to remain vigilant. As with the rest of the country, we can expect to see more cases on an ongoing basis. That is why we are working to slow the spread of the virus as much as possible, and to ensure that our services are prepared if the number of cases increases.

'Everyone can play their part in helping reduce the spread of infection by following good personal hygiene such as washing hands with soap and water and using a tissue to cover their mouth and nose if they sneeze.'

An engineer from the Glasgow area who works for Lemac Engineering in Tillicoultry has been off work for a fortnight after being diagnosed with the virus.

James Travers, managing director at Lemac, told the Advertiser, 'He is fine and doing well. The impact on the business has not been dramatic.'

It is believed the man may have caught the flu from an outside supplier.

On Monday there were 43 new confirmed cases of Influenza A (H1N1) across Scotland, bringing the total to 232. Another 157 possible cases were currently under investigation, eight of which were travel related.

Across the globe cases have now been confirmed in 73 countries with the illness causing deaths in six - Mexico, the United States, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic - however, almost all infections outside of Mexico have been mild.

Symptoms of swine flu in humans are usually similar to regular human seasonal flu systems. Health officials advise the public to watch out for fever, respiratory problems such as cough or runny nose, sore throat, body aches, headache, chills, fatigue. If anyone shows these symptoms they should contact NHS 24 immediately on 08454 24 24 24.

Councillor Sam Ovens, Portfolio Holder for Regeneration, said this week, 'No children in Clackmannanshire have Influenza A (H1N1) so it remains entirely safe to keep schools open as normal.

'The council is following Government and NHS advice to limit the spread of Influenza A (H1N1) and should a case emerge where a child with this strain of flu has attended school while infectious, we would take appropriate action.

'Clackmannanshire Council has rigorous procedures in place to monitor cases and will take every precaution to prevent the spread of Influenza A (H1N1). While it is likely that there will be more cases in the future, we are confident that we are fully prepared.'

More information on the virus is available from the Health Protection Scotland website www.hps.scot.nhs.uk