FLU'S NEXT? Fears virus will sweep world.

Byline: STEPHEN WHITE

EXPERTS last night warned the world was teetering on the brink of a killer Swine Flu pandemic that may be worse than anything seen before.

Scientists fear the disease that has already claimed 86 lives in Mexico could sweep rapidly across the globe as medical staff struggle to contain the spread.

The flu has already reached America and Canada and there are suspected cases in New Zealand, France, Holland, Israel and Spain.

Emeritus professor Nigel Dimmock said: "It's poised on a knife edge. It could get very nasty indeed. If it is a good spreader, it will spread around the world and we will all be in dead trouble.

"Fifty million died of Spanish Flu in 1918. This has the potential to be bigger than that. I am worried." Prof Dimmock, of Warwick University, said current vaccines would be useless against the new virulent strain.

Last night Ireland was on high alert, with anyone who has recently returned from the US advised to see their doctor for a check-up.

Head of Health Protection with the HSE Dr Kevin Kelleher said: "The ECDC and the World Health Organisation has confirmed that no cases of this illness have been confirmed in Europe, but that we should continue to closely follow the emerging situation."

Dr Tony Holohan, chief medical officer at the Department of Health, said officials were in close contact with their counterparts across Europe over the outbreak . He added: "Since receipt of the alert, I have been in close contact with public health officials in the HSE and with the National Pandemic Expert Group.

"The Department of Health and Children and the HSE have been participating in daily teleconference meetings with the European Centres for Disease Control, public health officials in each of the European Member States, and the WHO.

"The purpose of these high level discussions is to ensure that the situation is closely monitored and to ensure that any necessary additional responses are put in place and are appropriately co-ordinated."

America declared a public health emergency after 20 confirmed cases of the H1N1 virus in California, Texas, Ohio, Kansas and New York. Patient ages range from nine to 50.

Eight students from a school in New York were infected on a trip to the Mexican resort of Cancun.

Four cases have been confirmed in Nova Scotia, Canada.

Airport officials around the world are on the lookout for passengers with flu signs. Some deployed body scanners that detect fevers.

Panic yesterday swept through Mexico where the outbreak of the disease began. Churches, schools, bars and public buildings were shut down and practically the whole country was wearing surgical masks to fend off infection.

At least 1,324 Mexicans have been admitted to hospital. Dr Holohan be the Flu added: "These events warrant further investigation and require vigilance by our public health authorities.

"More investigation is required to determine the severity of the disease and the ease with which it can spread.

" These investigations are currently underway by Mexican and US authorities with the support of the World Health Organization."

Signs and symptoms of the virus have consisted of influenza- like illness - fever, headache, muscle aches - and some cases have had vomiting and diarrhoea.

It cannot be caught by eating pork.

Dr Kelleher said: "One important precaution being adopted is to ensure that health systems worldwide rapidly develop familiarity with this new virus.

"This will allow for the careful surveillance that WHO and ECDC has recommended."

QA &

What is swine flu?

A respiratory disease affecting pigs. It is rarely fatal in the animals.

Some of the cases have provided a version of the H1N1 strain of the influenza virus type A which has never been seen before.

Why have humans caught it?

This genetic mutation of the disease is a mix of animal and human versions to which humans have little immunity. It is spread in water droplets when people cough or sneeze.

What are the symptoms?

Similar to regular human seasonal flu, including fever, fatigue, lack of appetite, coughing and sore throat.

Some people with swine flu have also reported vomiting and diarrhoea.

Can I eat pork?

Yes. It cannot be transmitted by eating the meat, although it is essential to cook it properly. A temperature of 70C would kill any virus.

How do I avoid getting it?

If it spreads to Ireland people would be expected to follow general infection control practices and good hygiene. This includes covering the nose and mouth when coughing or sneezing, disposing of dirty tissues promptly and carefully, washing hands frequently with soap and cleaning surfaces which are regularly used.

What is the treatment?

Two drugs, Tamiflu and Relenza, have been used to successfully treat some of the cases and scientists are trying to develop a vaccine for the strain.

HISTORY OF PANDEMICS

A PANDEMIC is an epidemic of infectious disease that spreads across a continent or worldwide.

THE first recorded influenza pandemic was in 1510. It spread from Africa to Europe.

SPANISH flu, first recorded in Kansas in 1918, became a pandemic. It killed 50 million worldwide, 200,000 in the UK.

ASIAN flu killed 70,000 people in America in 1957-1958. Ten years later 34,000 died of Hong Kong flu.

H5N1 (Avian flu) has claimed 59 lives but because it spreads from birds to humans is not a "pandemic".

The World Health Organisation has warned that a new type of swine flu that has killed up to 81 people in Mexico and infected about a dozen people in the United States has the potential to become a pandemic. Many countries in Europe, the Middle East were running checks on passengers arriving on flights from Mexico and reviewing their stocks of Tamiflu.

BRITAIN: Authorities were confident that under the Cobra system people who had been travelling and had flu-like symptoms could be examined 'very, very quickly.' said Health Secretary Alan Johnson. He dismisses travel restrictions as 'usually futile.'

RUSSIA: Imposed curbs on meat imports from Mexico, a number of U.S. states and the Caribbean. Medical teams were posted at Russian international airports to monitor flu-like symptoms.

MIDDLE EAST:

Middle East countries should monitor closely travellers arriving from the United States and Mexico for signs of the virus, but it was not necessary to impose quarantine on all incoming travellers from there, a WHO official said. UAE was also considering banning imports of all pork products from Mexico and the United States.

AFRICA:

Running checks on passengers arriving on flights from Mexico and reviewing their stocks of Tamiflu.

CAPTION(S):

PANIC Masked locals pray in Mexico City The H1N1 influenza outbreak is the spread of a new strain of influenza virus A quarantine officer adjusts a poster at Narita International Airport , east of Tokyo Children play while wearing protective masks in Mexico City