Nunavut reports 43 new swine flu cases

Nunavut health officials confirmed 43 more cases of swine flu on Wednesday, bringing the total number of cases to 96.

In a release filed Wednesday afternoon, the Nunavut Health Department said 75 per cent of the cases were identified in communities in the territory's westerly Kitikmeot region, while 25 per cent were found in the Kivalliq region in central Nunavut.

Several communities in those regions have experienced "significant outbreaks" of swine flu, according to the release. There have been no confirmed cases in the territory's Baffin region.

A total of seven patients with H1N1 influenza have been sent to hospitals outside Nunavut for treatment. Six have since been released.

This isthe third reported spike in new H1N1 influenza cases this week in Nunavut. The department confirmed 28 new cases on Tuesday and 19 new cases on Monday.

Dr. Isaac Sobol, Nunavut's chief medical officer, said several peopleare in hospital with flu-like symptoms, awaiting test results. Those patients reported having other medical conditions contributing to their illness, he added.

Sobol said the swine flu remains relatively mild in the territory, with the vast majority of patients recovering at home.

Health officials have said the marked rise in Nunavut swine flu cases is partly the result of heightened flu surveillance efforts, in place since Nunavut confirmed its first case on May 28.

Health-care workers across the territory have been testing every patient with flu-like symptoms for the H1N1 virus.

Sobol said the enhanced surveillance will continue until Monday.