Over 400 cases of flu in 2 weeks

JEDDAH — A total of 425 cases of seasonal flu have been registered during the past two weeks, according to spokesman of the Health Ministry Faisal Al-Zahrani. He said 168 of these cases were registered in Jeddah, 128 in Riyadh and the others in various parts of the Kingdom. The spokesman said this year there are more flu cases than those registered the previous year. “The ministry’s labs have so far examined more than 50,000 blood samples as compared to 26,000 the same time last year,” he added. The spokesman said that in most cases, the seasonal flu does not cause any major complications, but it may prove fatal in children below five years of age, old people with chronic diseases and pregnant women. He said there are about 40 infectious diseases including the seasonal flu which is usually active during the cold season from October to April every year. He noted that the death cases resulting from the flu have decreased from 6.8 percent last year to 1.6 percent this year. The spokesman asked citizens and expatriates to have the annual vaccination against the flu. There are more than 1.5 million vaccine doses available in hospitals, Al-Zahrani said.