Four new cases of swine flu
FOUR more cases of swine flu - one a child - have been confirmed in Northern Ireland.
Three of the cases are in adults who have recently returned from affected areas.
The child is a sibling of an earlier confirmed case at St Ronan's Primary School in Newry.
According to authorities, all of those who have contracted the illness are recovering well.
A total of 38 cases have now been confirmed in the Province.
On Thursday, Health Minister Michael McGimpsey confirmed that the UK will now move to treatment phase to deal with the swine flu pandemic.
The move means that in Northern Ireland there will be a step by step treatment approach, giving clinicians discretion on how best to treat a patient with swine flu.
It means that people who contract swine flu will still be offered antivirals but that they will no longer be used as a preventative measure.
Earlier, the Ulster public were urged not to panic over predictions that a third of people will contract swine flu.
Mr McGimpsey was speaking after health ministers and experts from around the UK regions met to discuss the virus.
"It's a fine line between people being complacent and being over worried," said Mr McGimpsey.
"Most people who get this will experience symptoms similar to seasonal flu; other more severe cases, we will look to deal with those."
Mr McGimpsey was speaking as the British Medical Association was warning people of the dangers of taking part in so-called "swine flu parties".
The events are reported to be growing in popularity among people who believe they can immunize themselves from the virus in its mild form and thus protect themselves should it change into a more dangerous strain.
Dr Colin Hamilton, chairman of the BMA's public health committee in Northern Ireland, said he had heard of such events but warned they were undermining public health and even risking death.
He said that parents taking part in such parties would "still be putting their health and and the health of their children at risk". He said such people "will still get ill and there is a risk of mortality".
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Weather for Belfast
Monday 13 February 2012
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Temperature: 4 C to 9 C
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