Hong Kong - A 37-year-old Filipino maid has died from swine flu, the first person without any underlying health problems to die from the virus in Hong Kong, a media report said Tuesday. The woman arrived in Hong Kong on June 28 and developed a sore throat and fever the following day but did not visit a doctor until more than a week later, the South China Morning Post newspaper said.
The woman, who has not been named, came from Tarlac in Luzon in the northern Philippines where she had a 6-month-old baby. She was admitted to intensive care at United Christian hospital and swine flu was confirmed on July 11. She died on July 27.
She worked for a Chinese couple who subsequently developed flu-like symptoms, but did not have the virus.
Health experts said the woman could still be alive if she had sought medical help earlier.
Professor David Hui Shu-cheong, an expert in respiratory medicine at Chinese University, said: "Drugs are most effective on the first two days after the onset of symptoms. After a delay, the virus starts to attack lung tissue, and might lead to multiple organ failure."
