The World Health Organisation is not sure about the exact number of people affected by the swine flu pandemic across the globe and feels the statistics about the cases could be “understated“.
In its latest web update on cumulative swine flu cases across the globe, the UN health agency stated, “The number of cases reported actually understates the real number of cases. Countries are no longer required to test and report individual cases.”
The organisation says about 6.22 lakh people across the globe are suffering from the disease which has claimed 8,768 lives.
ADVERTISEMENT
The WHO also said, “The total number of people affected by the virus are no longer reported from countries in Europe and and Americas.”
However, in its latest update of each region, the WHO in regard to Europe had stated that “Over 99 per cent of sub typed influenza A viruses in Europe were pandemic H1N1 2009.”
There is also a special mention of countries where this virus has affected the healthcare services.
ADVERTISEMENT
In the United States, disease activity appears to have peaked in all areas of the country. In Canada, influenza activity remains similar but number of hospitalisation and death is increasing, the latest web update said.
Till date, both regions along with western pacific region have reported nearly two lakh confirmed pandemic H1N1 cases.
They are followed by nearly 50,000 confirmed pandemic swine flu cases in south-East Asian region, almost 40,000 in the Eastern Mediterranean and 15,000 in Africa.