23.03.11
Flu outbreak puts elderly at high risk
A deadly outbreak of flu has hit elderly care homes, with six people dying in one care home. The death rate is the highest that health officials have seen for several years.
The flu is type A, the most dangerous form of the virus, and strain H3N2. 70 cases have been identified in care homes since November, and there have been 40 cases in schools. It is less prevalent in hospitals, where there have only been 15 cases between December and March.
Professor Nick Phin of the Health Protection Agency told the Guardian: “We have had problems in care homes for elderly people and we have seen a few outbreaks with quite high mortality rates since the beginning of December. We are more concerned about flu A because it can cause epidemics and pandemics. It also causes more serious illness.
“We have been getting outbreaks involving 20 to 30 people at a time. When this happens local health protection unit staff go into the homes and take swabs. There is a mandatory scheme whereby anyone admitted to a hospital intensive care unit who dies from flu is reported to the Department of Health. But we don’t formally record flu deaths of people dying in care homes. If we get confirmation of flu A from swabs then we can calculate on the balance of probabilities how many deaths in the home are likely to be caused by this strain of flu.”
An HPA spokesperson said: “Flu has circulated late this season. Although we have seen a number of flu outbreaks across the UK, the overall current flu activity is low, and has been low throughout the season.
“The most common flu strain we are currently seeing circulate this season is H3N2, which can cause more severe illness particularly in older people.”
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