Swine flu in Scotland may have begun passing from person to person

Published on Thursday 30 April 2009 22:55

THE Scottish couple who became Britain's first victims of swine flu left hospital yesterday, as it emerged they may have passed the virus on to someone they know.

It was also revealed last night that newlyweds Iain and Dawn Askham may have caught the virus on the flight home from their honeymoon in Mexico.

The couple returned to their home in Polmont, near Falkirk, after five nights in an isolation ward. But as they were allowed home, it emerged one of their close contacts, an unnamed male, is a "probable" case of swine flu.

If confirmed, it will be the first time someone in Britain who has not been to the source of the infection has contracted the virus.

Meanwhile, the newlyweds said that five men sitting close to them on their flight from Cancun to Birmingham had been coughing and sneezing throughout the journey back. Speaking of his ordeal Mr Askham, 27, an IT worker, said: "I actually said to Dawn 'I think we're going to be getting off this plane with the plague'.

"Most people go to Mexico and come back with a few bottles of tequila but then we go and come back with this flu thing. I just couldn't believe our luck."

Mrs Askham, 25, who works as a dispenser in Boots, said: "The men appeared to be sweating and in a fever and were clearly ill – all of them."

Globally, the number of confirmed cases had risen last night to 257, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said. Further cases were reported in Mexico and the United States, while Switzerland and the Netherlands reported their first confirmed cases and a probable case was identified in the Republic of Ireland. In total, 230 possible flu cases are being investigated in the UK, with eight cases confirmed. These include 27 "possible" and one "probable" case in Scotland, according to health secretary Nicola Sturgeon.

The possible cases include one in Ayrshire and Arran, one in the Borders, two in Fife, three in Forth Valley, five in Grampian, five in Greater Glasgow and Clyde, one in Highland, four in Lanarkshire, two in Lothian and three in Tayside.

Possible cases are defined as those showing flu symptoms who have either travelled from an infected area or had close contact with someone who has.

Probable cases are people who have gone through the first stage of testing, with a positive result for influenza A – of which swine flu is a strain.

Ms Sturgeon said a new probable case was under investigation into a male in the Forth Valley area who had been in contact with the Askhams.

"This individual had continued to feel unwell and a retest has rendered a positive for influenza A," she said. "That person now must be treated as a probable and that sample is now being further analysed, which will allow us to confirm whether it is a positive for swine flu. If this case was confirmed, then it would be the first case we have of onward transmission from one of our Mexico returning cases."

The Scottish Government was working on the basis that there will be human-to-human transmission of the virus, she said.

Dr Harry Burns, Scotland's chief medical officer, said it was "probably more likely than less likely" that the case would turn out to be confirmed. But he said false positive and negative tests were to be expected and retesting was entirely appropriate.

First Minister Alex Salmond earlier warned that swift action to treat the people infected with swine flu with antiviral drugs had merely "bought some time" for Scotland, but that the virus would inevitably spread further.

He told MSPs that the WHO had raised its alert level to five – the second highest level before a full pandemic is declared.

"That means they have identified person-to-person spread in at least two countries. That means we have to anticipate that person-to-person spread will occur," Mr Salmond said.

"What we have done, it seems, in our identified cases is effectively bought ourselves some time in terms of interrupting the spread of the virus."

The Health Protection Agency will be tracing people who sat near the Askhams on their flight back from Mexico. It had previously said there was no need to do this as the risks were low.

The news came as a campaign to warn people about the virus and tell them how to help prevent its spread got under way. A help team is contactable via NHS 24 on 08454 24 24 24.

&#149 International police agency Interpol warned consumers yesterday to be wary of criminals exploiting the swine flu outbreak by peddling fake medicines. It said internet security firms were reporting around 3-4 per cent of spam e-mails being circulated related to swine flu and it predicted the number would grow.

SCHOOL CLOSES OVER SCARE

PUPILS at a Scottish school were told to stay at home yesterday after it emerged they could possibly have been exposed to swine flu.

Hermitage Academy, in Helensburgh, wrote to parents to tell them that five students were being kept at home.

Deputy head teacher Carol Stuart said the pupils had had contact with someone who had been recommended to be tested for swine flu.

The letter said: "None of our five pupils are showing any symptoms and all are being kept at home as a precautionary measure.

"The school will continue to run as normal and parents are asked to ensure that their son or daughter does not leave the school without permission."

The letter said the school was in touch with Argyll and Bute authority staff and the situation would remain under review, with parents kept informed of any changes.