The Acting Director General of Health, Dr. Atoa Glenn Fatupaito has denied reports that there were deaths from influenza-like flu in the country.

In an interview with the Samoa Observer on Saturday, Dr. Fatupaito rubbished allegations leveled at the Ministry, which claimed that children died from the flu outbreak, and emphasised that the Ministry of Health (M.O.H.) has a duty to advise the public if the reports are true.

"If someone dies from any serious illness then it's a must to inform the public about it so that they are made aware of the situation but so far we have yet to obtain any official information about a death-related case from the flu virus," Dr. Fatupaito said. 

"There's been a lot of cases of walk-in patients to the hospital with strong symptoms of the flu and other conditions such as pneumonia due to the flu but other than that no death.

"Since I started this week, I haven't heard of any official report on any death-related cases of the flu outbreak, and we act on reports submitted to us through the normal procedure but so far I am not aware of anything like that."

Asked whether the Ministry will look into a case of a fatality from the flu, Dr. Fatupaito said "yes", but only if official information about the affected family is submitted to the Ministry, as they are currently not aware of any such case. 

"Usually, we always look into verbal accusations and concerns whether it's true or not and there's been a lot of that going around which are mostly inaccurate so we always investigate," he added.

The Acting Director General was contacted by the Samoa Observer, following concerns from an anonymous member of the public relating to a family in Savai'i, whose 4-year-old baby allegedly died from the flu at the Tupua Tamasese Meaole hospital in Moto'otua.

According to the member of the public, the baby was taken from Savai'i to Upolu for treatment and had symptoms of the flu. The child's referral was based on the recommendations of the doctor in Savai'i but did not survive the trip. Attempts by this newspaper to get a comment from the family were unsuccessful.

Dr. Fatupaito said there are currently no cases of the flu virus admitted at the ICU in the national hospital. However, only children were admitted to the children's ward with strong symptoms of the flu. He also urged parents to take heed of vaccination requirements and prevention measures encouraged by the Ministry using various communication platforms.

The Ministry this week confirmed that the main virus circulating in the community is Influenza (flu) B which has symptoms similar to the COVID-19 virus. A statement released on Friday afternoon confirmed that there continues to be a steady increase of influenza-like-illness or 'flu' reported at health facilities since 5 April 2023. 

According to the syndromic surveillance data from M.O.H. released on Friday, a total of 1,764 cases of Influenza-like illness have been reported to all health facilities in Samoa from 10-16 April 2023.

"Influenza is an acute respiratory infection caused by the influenza virus and is contagious," the statement from M.O.H. stated. Influenza can cause illness which becomes severe and sometimes leads to hospitalisation and death. 

"There are four types of Influenza (flu) which are type A, B, C,D. The most common type are A and B- with both confirmed to be circulating in Samoa. Type A influenza is the most common and can be more serious in adults. Type B is confirmed to be more common in children and is more serious in the same young age group. 

"Both influenza type A and B have the potential to be severe in patients who contract these viruses. Symptoms for influenza b flu are similar to COVID-19 and include fever, headache, muscle ache, and upper respiratory symptoms such as sneezing and coughing. Many patients also report a loss of smell and taste. 

"Influenza spreads through inhaling droplets from the cough or sneeze of an infected person. Some people may not have any symptoms at all but could still spread the virus (contagious)."

Furthermore, the statement also urged the general public in taking precautionary methods as advised to minimise the spread of the virus in the community. 

"As of today, the Ministry received laboratory confirmation confirming Influenza-B as the main virus circulating in the community. As such, the Ministry of Health wishes to strongly advise the general public in taking heed of the notice below and to continue with precautionary methods as advised to greatly minimize the spread of the Influenza B virus or 'flu'."