Outbreak | featured news

At least 74 elementary, junior high and high schools have closed across the country because of confirmed or probable cases of swine flu, the Department of Education said Wednesday.

The swine flu outbreak has claimed its first victim in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Contro and Preventionl: A 23-month old child who died in Texas.

The White House asked Congress for an additional $1.5 billion for pandemic flu preparations Tuesday as the head of the Republican Party defended its opposition to an earlier request.

More cases of swine flu in humans are likely to emerge across Europe in the coming days, a top EU official says.

Cases of swine flu were confirmed early today in Israel and New Zealand, the first definitive proof that the dangerous new virus has spread to the Middle East and Asia-Pacific regions, but international health officials said there was little point in imposing border or travel restrictions or otherwise trying to contain the virus.

The current vaccine-making processes are multi-step recipes that begin in the molecular biology labs of international and national ...

The UK advises against all but essential travel to Mexico, where swine flu is believed to have killed almost 150 people.

Health officials around the world worked to contain what appears to be a spreading swine flu outbreak early Monday, while one out of every five residents of Mexico's most populous city wore masks to protect themselves against the virus.

American health officials on Sunday declared a public health emergency over increasing cases of swine flu, saying that they had confirmed 20 cases of the disease in the United States and expected to see more as investigators fan out to track down the path of the outbreak.

Officials said they had confirmed eight cases in New York, seven in California, two in Kansas, two in Texas and one in Ohio, and that the cases looked to be similar to the deadly strain of swine flu that has killed more than 80 people in Mexico and infected 1,300 more.

A strain of flu never seen before has killed up to 60 people in Mexico and also appeared in the United States, where eight people were infected but recovered, health officials said on Friday.