A/H1N1 flu continues to spread worldwide, more cases reported

BEIJING, July 19 (Xinhua) -- With the A/H1N1 flu pandemic continuing to spread, more confirmed cases were reported worldwide on Saturday.

The European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) said in its daily situation report Saturday that 169 new A/H1N1 flu cases were reported in European countries within the last 24 hours.

Of the new cases, 87 were confirmed in Spain, 33 in France, 15 in Switzerland, 10 in Portugal, six in Luxembourg, five in Ireland, three in Slovenia, two each in Belgium, Bulgaria, Lithuania and Iceland, and one each in Poland and Romania.

The total number of confirmed cases of the A/H1N1 flu virus in the EU (European Union) and EFTA (European Free Trade Association) countries rose to 16,059, with 1,309 cases in Spain and 10,649 in Britain, 514 in France and 834 in Germany, the ECDC said.

In Russia, the number of confirmed cases rose to 10 after one new case was registered in southwestern Siberia, the RIA Novosti news agency reported Saturday.

The new patient, a 14-year-old girl from Tomsk, contracted the flu virus on a trip to Britain, the regional administration said.

In Georgia, authorities on Saturday confirmed the country's first case of the flu in a male Georgian citizen who had recently returned home from Britain. The man has been put under isolation and was in a stable condition, said authorities.

Singapore reported its first death from the A/H1N1 flu virus Saturday, signaling a worsening situation of the epidemic in the Asia-Pacific region.

According to Singapore's Health Ministry, a 49-year-old man infected with the virus died of heart attack Saturday afternoon.

The ministry said the patient had multiple co-morbidities, including diabetes, hypertension and high cholesterol.