Report of death from swine flu in Poland 'not true' says hospital
PR dla Zagranicy
Peter Gentle
04.01.2013 08:51
Update2 – A hospital in southern Poland has said that the swine flu virus “was not the direct cause” of the death of a 50 year-old man on Friday.
photo - glowimages.com
Spokeswoman at the hospital in Bielsko-Biala, Jolanta Trojanowska, said reports that the man died from contracting the AH1N1 virus, as reported by the RMF FM radio station, were incorrect.
She said that though the man had tested positive for the virus, this was not the direct cause of his death as he was suffering from other diseases as well.
“He was very sick,” Trojanowska said.
She added that 16 people have been diagnosed with having the AH1N1 virus at the hospital - one of them being a medical employee.
Janusz Baczewski, director at a hospital in the town of Sucha Beskidzka, also in southern Poland, says two patients diagnosed with the virus are in a “serious but stable condition” in the intensive care unit.
Spokesman for Poland’s Chief Sanitary Inspectorate, Jan Bondar, has told Polish Radio that the AH1N1 virus is a "normal seasonal flu", which "can be potentially dangerous, especially to the elderly [...] and those with asthma or cardiovascular disease".
In 2009, 172 people died from swine flu in Poland. (pg)
source: IAR