# 4820
Although no longer considered a pandemic by the World Health Organization, novel H1N1 hasn’t gone away.
H1N1 is expected to be a major component in this fall’s flu season north of the equator, and is currently fueling flu outbreaks (along with H3N2 and Flu B) in the tropics and some southern hemisphere nations.
In New Zealand – which has seen a slow start to their flu season – consultation rates for ILIs (Influenza-like illnesses) have nearly tripled over the past several weeks.
While nowhere near the level of ILIs reported during the height of last year’s pandemic outbreak, the level of consultations are currently above that seen at anytime during the 2008 flu season.
Here are some excerpts from the New Zealand Ministry of Health’s latest (#201) Swine flu Update.
9 August 2010
Pandemic Influenza H1N1 2009 (swine flu) - Update 201
Influenza H1N1 activity is continuing to increase, and the Ministry of Health is now providing twice-weekly updates.
As at 8am this morning, there have been 454 hospitalisations of lab-confirmed pandemic influenza H1N1 this year to date in New Zealand, including 14 people currently in intensive care with confirmed H1N1. There have been a total of 67 admissions of confirmed H1N1 to intensive care so far this year.
These figures do not include influenza-like illness among people admitted to hospital without a positive H1N1 lab test result.
Pandemic influenza H1N1 is the most common strain of influenza circulating in the community, although most people will not be tested for it. For the majority of people it's a mild to moderate illness, but for some it can be serious.
So far this year there have been nine deaths reported as linked to swine flu. Six of these deaths have so far been confirmed as being due to swine flu. The three deaths reported since Monday's update - all confirmed as due to swine flu - occurred in the Waitemata, Auckland and Waikato DHB areas.
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GPs are continuing to see increasing numbers of people with influenza-like illness. In the last week there was a notable increase in the number of pre-schoolers being seen by GPs.
Weekly consultation rates for influenza-like illness in New Zealand, 2008-2010
Source: Institute of Environmental Science and Research, Influenza Weekly Update 2010/32
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