H1N1 flu spreads to Taiwan, Kuwait, Iceland: WHO
A man wears a medical mask while watching the 2009 Asian Judo Championships in Taipei May 24, 2009.
Credit: Reuters/Nicky Loh
GENEVA (Reuters) - The World Health Organization said on Monday the H1N1 flu strain has spread to Taiwan, Kuwait, Iceland, Switzerland and Honduras, but with still few deaths outside of Mexico.
In its latest tally, which tends to lag national reports but is considered more secure, the United Nations agency said its labs have confirmed 12,515 infections with the newly-discovered strain that has killed 91 people.
Mexico remains the epicenter of the disease outbreak with 4,174 cases and 80 deaths. The other fatalities have been in the United States, where 9 people have died, and Costa Rica and Canada which have reported one death each.
The WHO said that the airborne virus has been detected in 46 countries around the world, in all regions except for Africa which has yet to report an H1N1 infection. The biggest pockets outside of North America so far are in Japan, Britain and Spain.
There has been one case confirmed in Taiwan, a self-ruled island claimed by China that is not a WHO member. The WHO has listed that infection in its global total but not described it in its list of affected countries on its website www.who.int.
