Malaysia confirms first H1N1 flu case
Posted: 15 May 2009 1432 hrs

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KUALA LUMPUR - Malaysia's top health official Friday confirmed the country's first case of Influenza A (H1N1) amid fears that some of those exposed to the infected patient could have gone on to Indonesia.

"I can confirm (that it) is the first case in Malaysia," health ministry director general Ismail Merican told AFP.

Acting health minister Kong Cho Ha, who addressed a hastily-convened press conference later, said the patient was a 21-year-old male student who arrived on a flight from the United States on May 13, giving no further details on his identity.

He said the patient came down with fever, sore throat and body aches the next day and was admitted to the Sungai Buloh quarantine facility in central Selangor state on the same evening and is now in stable condition.

He said five family members who live with the patient have been placed under home quarantine in order to monitor their condition.

The government has urged all passengers who travelled on Malaysian Airlines flight MH091 from Newark in the United States to Kuala Lumpur, that landed at 7.15am on May 13 to contact the ministry for further instructions.

"No passengers have been quarantined, we are still trying to trace them," Kong said of the 199 passengers and crew onboard the flight. "We will segregate them (when located). If they have no signs (of the disease) they can go after a certain number of days," he added.

However, he said there was a fear that some of those exposed to the infected patient may have gone on to Indonesia.

"We mention Indonesia because that flight is a code share with (Indonesian carrier) Garuda so the assumption is that there could be some passengers going to Indonesia," he added.

Officials could not immediately confirm how many Indonesians were on board nor if any passengers continued onto Indonesia.

Kong said Malaysia's alert level would remain the same despite its first confirmed H1N1 flu case as the country was already at its highest state of preparedness since the World Health Organisation raised its flu alert to phase five out of six.

"We have been on full alert," said Kong. "We are on a level of full preparedness."

Malaysia is also pushing for the WHO to get affected countries to implement exit screening in order to stop the spread of the disease amid concerns that a second wave of the H1N1 disease could be deadlier.

"If we can have travellers from affected countries screened before they are allowed to travel out, this will help us to contain the spread of such virus to other places," health minister Liow Tiong Lai told state media before heading off for the 62nd WHO General Assembly in Switzerland from May 18 to 22.

The world health body has not recommended travel restrictions following the outbreak but has advised those who are ill to delay their travel plans and urged returning travellers who fall ill to seek medical treatment.

Health officials could not immediately confirm if Malaysia would be implementing exit screening after confirming its first H1N1 case.

On Tuesday, the government urged its citizens to defer travel to the US, Mexico, Canada, Spain and Britain following reported cases of H1N1 flu in those countries.

Malaysian health authorities have installed 20 thermal scanners at the country's entry points to help detect cases with 9,324 passengers screened so far.

The latest World Health Organisation figures show the number of laboratory-confirmed H1N1 flu cases worldwide is 7,520 in 33 countries. A total of 65 people have died from the disease, most of them in Mexico, WHO figures show.

- AFP/so/ir