H1N1 INFLUENZA OUTBREAK AND BRAZIL: SITREP #14

UNCLAS BRASILIA 000685 DEPT FOR OES/IHB AMBASSADOR LOFTIS DEPT FOR WHA/BSC USDA PASS TO APHIS HHS PASS TO CDC HHS FOR OGHA SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: TBIO KFLU CASC AEMR AMED ASEC KSAF PREL PINR AMGT KFLO, KPAO, TF, BR SUBJECT: H1N1 INFLUENZA OUTBREAK AND BRAZIL: SITREP #14 (U) THIS MESSAGE IS SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED AND NOT FOR INTERNET DISTRIBUTION. PLEASE HANDLE ACCORDINGLY. ¶1. (SBU) This report provides an update on developments in Brazil regarding the H1N1 flu outbreak. NEW REPORTED CASES: ¶2. As of June 2, 2009 the Brazilian Ministry of Health is reporting 21 confirmed cases of the H1N1 flu virus spread throughout six of the country's 26 states and the federal district: Sao Paulo (9 cases),Rio de Janeiro (5 cases),Santa Catarina (4 cases),Minas Gerais (1 case),Rio Grande do Sul (1 case),and Tocantins (1 case). Of these cases, 14 have come from individuals infected while travelling outside the country, and seven have resulted from domestic person to person transmission. Health officials are also monitoring 21 suspected cases in nine states plus the federal district. Four American Citizens are still in quarantine in a hospital in Tocatins, one with a confirmed case of H1N1. Hospital contacts expect all four to be released tomorrow. BRAZILIAN GOVERNMENT'S RECENT ACTIONS: ¶3. The most recent case of H1N1 in Brazil was contracted by a day care employee in the city of Campinas, 58 miles northwest of the city of Sao Paulo. The day care facility has an enrollment of 30 children. Health officials are monitoring the children, as well as other day care employees and individuals who have been in contact with the infected person. The Ministry of Health has also recommended that the day care suspend activities for 10 days. DEVELOPMENTS WITH MISSION BRAZIL: ¶4. The U.S. Consulate General in Sao Paulo received a report from one of Brazil's influenza reference hospitals indicating that the number of actual H1N1 cases in Brazil might be higher than the Brazilian Government is reporting. Contacts from the hospital report that the Ministry of Health is using very strict standards to confirm cases of H1N1, which may be resulting in a degree of underreporting. SOBEL