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KOTA KINABALU, Aug 9 — Eight more deaths relating to Influenza A (H1N1) were confirmed today, bringing the death toll to 26 in the country.

Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said seven deaths were from the high-risk group and that some were post-reported due to post-mortems to study and confirm the cause of deaths.

He said that a death occurred on August 3, followed by two more on August 5, four on August 6 and another yesterday.

Liow disclosed that two of the cases were from Sabah. He said the first involved an obese 24-year-old woman who was warded at the Ranau Hospital on August 1 with fever and cough for four days.

She was later referred to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) here on August 5 and died on the same day. The other case involved a 74-year-old man with chronic heart disease, who was admitted to QEH on August 3, with a history of month-long difficult breathing and fever for just one day. He died on August 6.

Other cases include a 20-year-old female student treated as outpatient for an “influenza like illness” (ILI) on August 1 and found dead in a hostel room five days later; a 48-year-old man with asthmatic and hypertensive history from Sarawak; and a 37-year-old obese man from Johor.

Liow said at present, there were 62 cases in total receiving treatment in hospitals and another 13 at intensive care units (ICU), while an additional five suspected H1N1 cases were also at ICU waiting for results.

“So far in Sabah, confirmed cases of H1N1 are 402 cases, two deaths, seven currently in hospitals where one is in ICU, and seven more ILI cases, pending confirmation,” he said, adding that there were children involved but he did not have details.

Liow said 35 schools had been closed in Sabah due to the H1N1 outbreak. — Bernama