Manila - The number of swine flu cases in the Philippines has surged to nearly 100 patients, the highest in South-East Asia, the health department said Thursday. Health Secretary Francisco Duque said 92 cases have been confirmed in the country, including 15 new patients reported on Thursday.
Duque, however, noted that all the reported swine-flu cases were mild, with 32 of the patients having fully recovered and discharged from hospitals.
"We stress that there is still no community level transmission, that is why we are still in the containment stage," he said in a press briefing.
Duque said the government was preparing to shift its swine-flu management from contact tracing of index cases to early detection to prevent the further spread of the disease in the country.
"The government will work closely with the World Health Organization (WHO) to exchange information about the virus in our country to help us understand how the virus is evolving," he added.
The WHO said it was on the verge of declaring a global pandemic alert as the worldwide cases of swine flu rose to 27,737 cases from 74 countries, with 141 deaths.
