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Photo: Roy Gazit
Premature baby diagnosed with swine flu
Baby born in Tiberias on 29th week of pregnancy suffering from respiratory complication; other preemies not infected
A premature baby has contracted swine flu, for the first time in Israel.
The month-and-a-half-old baby, who is hospitalized at the Poriah Medical Center in Tiberias, was diagnosed with the H1N1 virus.
The baby was born on the 29th week of the pregnancy and was slated to be released from the premature babies' ward after gaining weight. But after spotting signs testifying to a respiratory complication, the ward's staff decided to test him for swine flu. The tests revealed that the infant had contracted the virus, apparently from one of his relatives.
The infant's condition is defined as stable, and he is hospitalized in partial isolation at the premature babies' ward.
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Dr. Yaakov Farbstein, the hospital's director-general, said Monday that the baby's condition "is stable and improving. He is not being given artificial respiration and is hospitalized at the premature babies' ward in partial isolation. It should be stressed that none of the staff members are ill and none of the preemies have developed flu symptoms."
Monday also saw an improvement in the condition of a 38-year-old woman who had been hospitalized in serious condition at the Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem after giving birth. The woman has been released from the intensive care unit.
Another woman, 25, who was hospitalized in serious condition at the Assaf Harofeh Medical Center, has been released from the hospital.
The Health Ministry said Sunday that some 2,000 Israelis have been diagnosed with swine flu so far, and 15 of them are still hospitalized in serious condition. Ministry officials estimated that the number of people infected with the virus is much higher, but that many of the patients have not been diagnosed.
Deputy Health Minister Yakov Litzman left for the United States on Sunday evening, where he is expected to meet with his American counterpart and other health system officials, in a bid to try and obtain vaccinations for populations in risk through the Americans.
The deputy minister visits the Mayo Clinic medical center and other New York hospitals in order to study the Americans' ways of handling the disease.
