Seasonal flu spreads in Syria’s Raqqa – official
RAQQA, Syria (North Press) – An official of the Health Committee in the city of Raqqa in northern Syria told North Press that the recent flu that has spread in the area is the “seasonal flu”.
“All cases admitted to the National Hospital show it is an unusually severe common cold,” said Aboud al-Bedeiwi, member of the Primary Care Office of the Health Committee of Raqqa Civil Council, affiliated with the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES).
Recently, a type of flu described by doctors as “peculiar” had spread in the area resulting in death among children which consequently led the administration of the cities of Tabqa, Raqqa, Manbij, Sirrin, Qamishli, and Hasakah to suspend schools and institutes.
Al-Bedeiwi added that they sent samples of the virus to labs in Erbil in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) for identification.
“The result of the tests revealed that it is type B Influenza. It is seasonal and has spread before in north and northeast Syria” the health official noted.
With the spread of the flu, doctors warned of its dangerous effects on children which can lead to advanced stages of viral pneumonia and ultimately death.
Al-Bedeiwi indicated that the flu cases admitted to the hospital showed symptoms of a “common cold”, however, they have recently become more severe, saying “The mortality rate is not 1 in a 1.000 among the people of Raqqa.”
The number of cases admitted to the hospital is decreasing as parents are more aware of recognizing the symptoms at once, according to al-Bedeiwi.
The Health Committee in Raqqa distributed leaflets to raise awareness of the disease and follow preventative measures to limit its spread.