MANILA : An elderly man and a child have died of Influenza A (H1N1) flu in the Philippines, taking the country's total number of deaths to three, the government said on Monday.

The health department learnt of the deaths of the 74-year-old man and the seven-year-old girl on Friday, Yolanda Oliveros, head of the ministry's Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, told reporters.

The girl had asthma while the man had battled pulmonary disease, tuberculosis, acute kidney failure and emphysema, she told reporters.

Last month, a 50 year-old female employee of the House of Representatives became the first known fatality from the A(H1N1) virus in the Philippines.

Oliveros put the number of H1N1 flu cases in the country at 2,668, with just five per cent still being treated and the rest, except for the three fatalities, fully recovered. - AFP/ms